To Cake or Not to Cake

[smokingcricket]

Thank you all for you input.Im just gonna enjoy smoking it.Im just gonna twist a paper towel in it after every smoke.Hopefully that will keep just enough of a carbon layer to protect the briar and give me optimum flavor for the blend I dedicate to it.Thanks again fellas.

 

[snoopy311]

@smokingcricket, in time you will find out what works best for you and your smoking pleasure. You’ll get great advice from the forum members but in the end it’s what you feel is best and what your preferences are. Enjoy.

 

[hoosierpipeguy]

I have adopted the recommendation of several here and have been washing out my pipes, with water, following each smoke. This certainly impedes cake build up and seems to work quite well without any negative side effects I've seen this far. I've decided to do this only after a thin cake has already been built up.

 

[npod]

I used to care about cake. Heck, I have all the reamers, read or watched all the data on cake. Then one day I just gave up didn't care. I now use the water clean out method, wipe the bowl after smoking. Most of my pipes just have a thin "cake" and that helps with thermodynamics and also flavor. But I very rarely use my many reamers.
And as above, Meers and Cobs, no cake.

 

[luigi]

I can't avoid cake in the upper part of the chamber but never get any on the heel, want it or not. I'm completely ok with that. Swiping a bowl with a twisted towel or a pipe cleaner after every smoke. The water method seems too messy for me although it would probably slow down or even prevent the cake build.

 

[hoosierpipeguy]

How have you found it messy?

 

[Chasing Embers]

Too much after clean up, and some pipes need buffing afterward. Water will never come near my pipes except for when I'm deoxidizing a stem.

 

[philobeddoe]

Amen brother!

 

[hoosierpipeguy]

I guess I haven't seen that. Fill the bowl up with water, let it drain. Wipe off excess water with napkin, swab inside of bowl. I also run a pipe cleaner through, bend it in half and swab the inside of the bowl. Not saying it is for everybody and I didn't like the idea when I first heard about it. I like it after trying it for awhile.

 

[luigi]

How have you found it messy?

As Chasing Embers said. I tried it a few times and didn't like it enough to accept it as a regular cleaning. Also, the (barely noticable) smell when water is in contact with the pipe is not too pleasant for me so I prefer to go the "traditional" way.

 

[Chasing Embers]

I guess I haven't seen that.

If the water is too hot, it will cause swirling in any carnauba wax, and can flash oxidize vulcanite.

 

[bnichols23]

JMOVHO; YMMV. Briars, some cake; I remove excess with a reamer, never a knife. Reasons two: dangerous for the pipe because it's uneven, & for the user because the knife can slip. Meerschaum? NEVER! ::

 

[cosmicfolklore]

Funny, I have been using the hot water method for months now, and never have any of my vulcanite oxidized, nor has any of the wax melted. I think the water would have to be pretty darn hot. It has kept my pipes looking like new and smelling fresh.

But, even with water and reaming it with a paper towel after each smoke, I still get cake. And, while I don't recommend it to anyone, because most people can't even keep a blade sharp these days, much less handle a knife with delicacy nor precision, I gently slice the cake down to keep it evened out and down to a very thin layer. But, I work with my hands by trade, and not everyone has the finesse needed to be able to do this.

 

[Chasing Embers]

Something that helped me early on was the flat blade on some pipe tools like this one. It's not sharp, removes cake buildup, and is unlikely to damage your pipe. Now I just use the clip blade on my Case XX stockman.

 

[Chasing Embers]

Meerschaum? NEVER

Unscented baby wipes are great for meers and cobs.

 

[bnichols23]

+1 on the knife, Cosmic. Even with a diamond file or impregnated honer (no harmonica jokes, please), your basic Joe Average can't keep a right edge on a blade to save his soul. :crazy:

 

[bnichols23]

"Unscented baby wipes are great for meers and cobs. " -- That'd be good, yeah. Just the very thought of caking a meerschaum mes me edgy. :x

 

[cosmicfolklore]

I have to keep my engravers and metal working knives extremely sharp for what I do in the studio, so I have all of the stones and whatnots, but for my pocketknife, I have an old porcelain tube that my grandfather used to hone his knives. I have no idea where he got it, but it works great.

 

[bnichols23]

I use crock sticks here, too. Gotta get the right kind, though. I seen some that were so nubby I just couldn't at all conceive that they could give me a good edge.

 

[cosmicfolklore]

Duane, I have read where you had posted that before. But, don't wipes have a mineral oil and mild solvents in them? Wouldn't that be adding stuff to your smoke that you might not want? It could also explain your aversion to Penzance, ha ha. Maybe it doesn't mix well with wet wipes, ha ha. ::