Rubber tips?

[crazypipe]

I have never used them, not for me ::

 

[metalheadycigarguy]

I use softy bits on all my pipes except my cobs. I use them to protect my stems as I like to clench plus I think they make it easier to clench the pipe.

 

[newbroom]

I bought a very lightly smoked estate pipe early on this year (my first year of piping) and let it sit and rest in its sock and box for awhile after first checking it over and seeing no marks on the stem. When I pulled it out again a few weeks or so later, there was a slight discoloration at the tip that was uniform and approximated the size of a softee bit. No big deal, just an observation.

I've got a Dunhill I don't smoke because I've got a brand new stem on it, from Howard Shulte, and I don't want to imperil its virtue.
What size surgical tubing is recommended?

 

[wyfbane]

I use rubber nubbies on all my pipes. I am most often a smoker on the go (walking the dog, running around the yard with the kidlet, driving, etc) so I need to be able to clench and not jack up my pipes.
First 'good' pipe i ever bought was a Really nice Stanwell estate. B&M had buffed down some toothmarks and I hadn't started rubber nubbying yet. In traffic on the freeway smoking WaffleHouse (TBox house blend) when traffic stops and I slam on the brakes. Crunch. Tooth right thru the bottom of my stem. Pipe was 2 days old. I have Nubbied ever since and not broken another stem.

 

[sailorjeremy]

Practice safe smoking. Use a rubber ;-)

 

[billypm]

I've tried them and can't seem to get used to the feel. I'm not a big stem chomper anyhow, so I'm in the "nope, not for me" camp.

 

[huntertrw]

"Practice safe smoking. Use a rubber..."
Or else you may end up as a guest on The Maury Show!

 

[drwatson]

I use them but trim off the thick part and just use the thin end.

 

[throbinson]

What size surgical tubing is recommended?

I had the same question... I was looking to make a retort, as well as a pump-fed ozone generator, and wondered what size of surgical tubing on average works? (inside diameter)
10mm?

 

[pipesmoker66]

Yep. I love them! They make clinching much, much better and they protect your stems from being scratched to death by your teeth. I for one want my pipes to stay as new as I can maintain them and the softy bits are the ticket in my opinion. I also use the clear vinyl hose (Home Depot) on any stem that is colorful (not black) so as to let the stem show through a transparent soft bit.

 

[joeval]

Tried them once, and hated the bloody things! They made the stem feel far too big to comfortably hold in my mouth, whether I was clenching or not.

Plus, I probably care a bit too much about the aesthetics of my pipes, and those softy bits really do spoil the look. A daft reason to dislike them, but there you go.

 

[pipebaum81]

LOVE LOVE LOVE them. It was one of the first bits of advice I recieved. Saves on the tooth marks and is so comfortable.

-pipebaum81
So I have had a partial change of heart on this. I do love them butonly for one purpose. They are great to clench but too big to be elegant. I smoked one of my pipes without a softy bit after a cleaning and realized what I was missing. The next day I took them off all my pipes
j/B

 

[lordofthepiperings]

I've never used them. Most people I know use them to prevent teeth marks and they also say it helps if you're a chewer... uh I mean a clencher.

 

[billypm]

Hate 'em. The look, the feel, the whole thing.

 

[throbinson]

I'm a fan, I have a Stanwell, my first 'good' pipe and stuck one on before I ever used it.
My first pipe was a corn cob, had it a month before buying the Stanwell, and by then I had lots of tooth marks in it. I clench the pipe and smoke hands free, and I have a few really sharp teeth so, the rubber bit made sense.

 

[gregprince]

Tried them about 50 years ago. Found them too fat and pipe felt unsteady in my mouth.

 

[instymp]

love them

 

[natibo]

I'm a big fan. I tend to clinch and I like acrylic stems.

 

[weezell]

Just not for me. Don't like em...

 

[beastkhk]

I keep them on all my pipes that aren't cobs(replacement cob bits aren't expensive).
When I am debating whether to purchase an estate one of the larger contributing factors is how bad the teeth marks are. I assume others have that mindset as well, and while I never plan to part ways with any of my pipes, I like to keep that wear and tear down to a minimum on the off chance I have to sell.
What is the background to salivating and pipe smoking? I always felt it somewhat of a nuisance as if I looked down too long I would end up drooling on myself. Sounds like there might be something neat and scientific I am not currently aware of.