Tight Stem / Tenon

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EvertonFC

Starting to Get Obsessed
May 5, 2020
252
482
Philadelphia
I just bought one of those Savinelli Ottagonos that SmokingPipes dropped last week. Cool pipe, but it's really hard to get the stem out. Is that something that I should expect will gradually grow easier with time or does the tightness indicate a poorly made pipe? Thanks in advance.
 
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sasquatch

Lifer
Jul 16, 2012
1,683
2,862
Briar moves with humidity changes. If it's super tight, you may have to put a little sandpaper around a pencil or something and take just a little material out of the mortise (takes only a twist or two, we are talking 1/1000th of an inch).
 
Dec 3, 2021
4,792
40,296
Pennsylvania & New York
I just bought one of those Savinelli Ottagonos that SmokingPipes dropped last week. Cool pipe, but it's really hard to get the stem out. Is that something that I should expect will gradually grow easier with time or does the tightness indicate a poorly made pipe? Thanks in advance.

If you put the pipe in your freezer for ten minutes, things should contract enough to take the pipe apart more easily.
 
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EvertonFC

Starting to Get Obsessed
May 5, 2020
252
482
Philadelphia
Thanks everyone. I'll give all three of those a try.

One more question. I'm not at all handy. What grade sandpaper would be advisable if I need to go that route?
 

Ryan

Part of the Furniture Now
Sep 30, 2021
574
4,392
Noblesville Indiana USA
When I have this problem and it seems removing material is the only option, I prefer to use fine steel wool on the tenon, doing it very carefully so as not to affect anything other than the tenon (obviously you don’t want to round the edges of your stem) Just keep turning it in the steel wool a few tubes each time until it fits correctly.

If it seems loose later for some reason, you can heat up the tenon with a candle or lighter and it will expand just a little and be tight again. Of course you could do that if you removed wood as well. I just don’t like the idea of removing wood from the pipe.
 
Dec 3, 2021
4,792
40,296
Pennsylvania & New York
When I have this problem and it seems removing material is the only option, I prefer to use fine steel wool on the tenon, doing it very carefully so as not to affect anything other than the tenon (obviously you don’t want to round the edges of your stem) Just keep turning it in the steel wool a few tubes each time until it fits correctly.

If it seems loose later for some reason, you can heat up the tenon with a candle or lighter and it will expand just a little and be tight again. Of course you could do that if you removed wood as well. I just don’t like the idea of removing wood from the pipe.

With gunsmithing, a general rule is you alter the replaceable part—I would agree that removing wood from the pipe is not the way to go.
 
Jan 30, 2020
1,850
6,087
New Jersey
Once it’s acclimated to your climate, that will give you a good baseline. As mentioned, humidity changes the fit significantly. Iv had some stems that I fit stupidly at 20% humidity only to have them fall out when it went up to 50-60% because of the growth.
 
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burleybreath

Part of the Furniture Now
Aug 29, 2019
955
3,327
Finger Lakes area, New York, USA
If you can remove wood uniformly from a pipe's mortise with sandpaper, you're a better handyman than I. For what it's worth, I've owned maybe 150 pipes over time, and I've never had the graphite thing fail. Real graphite pencils work better, but regular #2s are fine.
 
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Servant King

Lifer
Nov 27, 2020
4,111
22,275
38
Frazier Park, CA
www.thechembow.com
Just to add my two cents...I like to use a nub of dried out bar soap, and rub it lightly on the tenon. That works a little better for me to induce an easier attachment/removal of the stem than the pencil graphite approach, but as with any suggestion, YMMV.
 
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bullet08

Lifer
Nov 26, 2018
8,932
37,913
RTP, NC. USA
Silicone sheets. Well, that's what I do with my pipes. Grab the stummel on one hand with silicone sheet and stem on the other hand with silicone and gently twist. So far no cracked mortise. But I don't suggest this to others. And all my pipes have ferrules.
 

sasquatch

Lifer
Jul 16, 2012
1,683
2,862
With gunsmithing, a general rule is you alter the replaceable part—I would agree that removing wood from the pipe is not the way to go.
Savinelli tenons are teflon or delrin, they aren't vulcanite and don't take well to sanding. Taking wood out of the mortise, the .005" we are talking about is easy and painless, and much safer than things like graphite where you aren't reducing the stress on the mortise, but reducing the friction of the fit. Much better to reduce the stress on the mortise, long run.
 

JimPM

Starting to Get Obsessed
Mar 14, 2021
251
1,552
Briar moves with humidity changes. If it's super tight, you may, I have to put a little sandpaper around a pencil or something and take just a little material out of the mortise (takes only a twist or two, we are talking 1/1000th of an inch).
This is true I agree
 

didimauw

Moderator
Staff member
Jul 28, 2013
9,894
31,608
34
Burlington WI
I didn't believe that graphite on the tenon would work. Refused the idea for years. Then one day I ran out of ideas and tried it. Scribbled on the tenon with a pencil, and it was like pure magic. Couldn't believe it.