Vulcanite Composition

[FLDRD]

I'm having issues with my older / estate purchased vulcanite stems. Many of them are in need of refurbishing because they have that "appearance"; but worse, I think I've determined that at this stage of degradation they irritate my lip tissue. (I don't have the same issues with acrylic.) Applying obsidian oil will temporarily change their appearance but doesn't really do much for the irritation factor.

1. If I sand them to remove the oxidation, what length of time might I expect to have them maintain the renewed level of improvement? They do not spend time in direct sunlight, only when out and about and being smoked.

2. I have some new pipes with vulcanite stems (several Petersons for example) that I purchased and wish to enjoy. However, before I do, I'm wondering if the composition has "improved" over the years or if I should expect the same level of deterioration as on my older ones. And if I should expect deterioration, at what pace would I expect that to occur?

I may not wish to have an additional level of maintenance if they are always going to be a PITA, but I otherwise like all of the pipes in question and would seek first to fully enjoy them other than trading them and moving on...

Thank you, looking forward to input.

 

[crashthegrey]

I'm having issues with my older / estate purchased vulcanite stems. Many of them are in need of refurbishing because they have that "appearance"; but worse, I think I've determined that at this stage of degradation they irritate my lip tissue. (I don't have the same issues with acrylic.) Applying obsidian oil will temporarily change their appearance but doesn't really do much for the irritation factor.

1. If I sand them to remove the oxidation, what length of time might I expect to have them maintain the renewed level of improvement? They do not spend time in direct sunlight, only when out and about and being smoked.

2. I have some new pipes with vulcanite stems (several Petersons for example) that I purchased and wish to enjoy. However, before I do, I'm wondering if the composition has "improved" over the years or if I should expect the same level of deterioration as on my older ones. And if I should expect deterioration, at what pace would I expect that to occur?

I may not wish to have an additional level of maintenance if they are always going to be a PITA, but I otherwise like all of the pipes in question and would seek first to fully enjoy them other than trading them and moving on...

Thank you, looking forward to input.

They are essentially the same composition. Keep them clean and out of the sun and they will not get like that.

 

[sablebrush52]

They are essentially the same composition. Keep them clean and out of the sun and they will not get like that.

This pretty much sums it up. Just keep them clean after you're removed the crud, and the crud won't come back.

 

[cosmicfolklore]

I have 90% of my stems made of vulcanite. On estates that I have sanded and polished and smoke regularly, they will never need sanding again. Mine all set in my car window for hours a day, and never oxidize. I also water wash them each night, and just lightly buff them with a jeweler’s cloth.

My take is that estate pipes have been neglected for years to give them that green look. But, once you are taking care if your pipes they won’t do that again.

Obsidian oil makes my skin break out like crazy. Never use the shit. I may use a tad bit of Renaissance Wax when I do a deep cleaning to the bowls, but that is it for adding something.

Everyone is scared of oxidation, but in my 2 decades of smoking pipes, I’ve never had one oxidize on me.

 

[FLDRD]

Ok, so first reports indicate: "clean them up, fool" and I'll be golden.
Good to know.
I do have some extremely fine mesh pads I purchased a while back. I'll break them out and go to work on one and see how it goes.
I do love most of those old pipes and would like to properly enjoy them.

 

[FLDRD]

I have 90% of my stems made of vulcanite. On estates that I have sanded and polished and smoke regularly, they will never need sanding again. Mine all set in my car window for hours a day, and never oxidize. I also water wash them each night, and just lightly buff them with a jeweler’s cloth.

My take is that estate pipes have been neglected for years to give them that green look. But, once you are taking care if your pipes they won’t do that again.

Obsidian oil makes my skin break out like crazy. Never use the shit. I may use a tad bit of Renaissance Wax when I do a deep cleaning to the bowls, but that is it for adding something.

Everyone is scared of oxidation, but in my 2 decades of smoking pipes, I’ve never had one oxidize on me.

"Never need sanding again" sounds right up my alley.
Thanks.

 

[cosmicfolklore]

Ok, so first reports indicate: "clean them up, fool" and I'll be golden.
Good to know.
I do have some extremely fine mesh pads I purchased a while back. I'll break them out and go to work on one and see how it goes.
I do love most of those old pipes and would like to properly enjoy them.

It is a hassle to get them polished up, but for me it is a once in the lifetime of that pipes ordeal. Worth the effort.

 

[Zero]

I don't know if materials have improved, but upon receiving my 2 Petersons 2021 POTY 4ABs...I was pretty steamed at the condition of my sandblasted one. It looked nothing like the photo that was presented at SP, the stem was completely hazy, the button had white crust around it, and the silver mount looked like a shiny black pearl. The Terracotta 4AB was in mint condition. I can count on one hand how many vulcanite stems that I own, I just prefer acrylic. It's upsetting that Peterson doesn't offer both options on these kind of releases. Like with the 2023 SPD release, you couldn't get a wool pipe bag unless you bought a pipe with a vulcanite stem, irritating I think I'm about done with buying pipes anyways

 

[cosmicfolklore]

Also, polish up the inside of the shaft with some toothpaste and a churchwarden pipecleaner held on side end in a vise. Just work that stem back and forth till it rinses clean. Then use alcohol.

 

[FLDRD]

Also, polish up the inside of the shaft with some toothpaste and a churchwarden pipecleaner held on side end in a vise. Just work that stem back and forth till it rinses clean. Then use alcohol.

Ok, have seen that before.
Essentially "cleaning" it both internally & externally to minimize further degradation from either side?

 

[cosmicfolklore]

Ok, have seen that before.
Essentially "cleaning" it both internally & externally to minimize further degradation from either side?

It will just give you a more clear tobacco flavor, without that tractor grease flavor oxidation will put off.

 

[kcghost]

You could remove all doubt by switching to acrylic stems.

 

[mingc]

My experience is very much the opposite of Cosmo's. I find vulcanite discolors after clean up within 2 or 3 years if not kept out of the light. I insist on shiny vulcanite. When I work on a stem, I look at them under a bright light and make sure I remove every last bit of discolored rubber. I suspect my standards are different from Cosmos's.

I keep my pipes on and in a china hutch in a south facing room (for you antipodeans, that's the room with the sun in the northern hemisphere). It makes no difference if they're behind glass or not. Before I learned to keep them away from light and depending on the quality of the vulcanite, they'd get discolored by the second or third year after clean up. I learned that coating the stems with Renaissance wax (without rubbing the wax off) to keep oxygen out does not help. They still discolor after 2 or 3 years. What does help is keeping the stems out of light. I even go to the length of making sheaths for my rubber stems out of acid-free black colored paper. So far, they've not discolored for at least 5 years. I do use Obsidian oil after every smoke.

 

[Sobrbiker]

Also, polish up the inside of the shaft with some toothpaste and a churchwarden pipecleaner held on side end in a vise. Just work that stem back and forth till it rinses clean. Then use alcohol.

Works great, I figgered that trick out all on my own cleaning my first estate meer.
I’d add-just be careful overdoing it in stems like bent saddles, they can be thin enough already.

 

[cosmicfolklore]

Works great, I figgered that trick out all on my own cleaning my first estate meer.
I’d add-just be careful overdoing it in stems like bent saddles, they can be thin enough already.

I just don't have any deeply bent stems, maybe a slight bend, but nothing considered a bent pipe. I sometimes forget that guys smoke those, ha ha.

 

[crashthegrey]

I don’t have them oxidize even in light, either. I keep mine out.

 

[UB 40]

It takes a while after sanding an old vulcanite stem but you can’t stop the process of decaying material. Keep them out of light, light will speed up the process.

I tried some acrylic stems, but the feel and thickness is not the same as vulcanite stems and not for me. As long as I won’t taste the Sulfides while smoking I just tolerate the slightly greenish look of the stem of my older (40/ 50 years) pipes. They are what they are, old pipes.

 

[FLDRD]

Ok I've been working on a couple of my old fav's with these stem issues.

I've wet sanded with 600 grit wet/dry and lots of nasty came off. They look much better where my lips contact them, although dull. I didn't go for shiny or pretty, only what I thought would be enough to remove the nasty that seems to be the culprit and the issue with my internal lip tissue...

I'm not sure I've accomplished all that I want to on the issue.

While the discoloration issue is ugly, it's the tissue reaction that I'm concerned about.

It may have improved a bit but that could be placebo - because I "want" to enjoy these pipes.

If I'm not achieving the desired result do I need to go to a higher grit that gets me a bigger result?

(I know acrylic stems will not cause the same problems, and I like them. I'm simply trying to overcome the issues on pipes I currently have and appreciate otherwise.)

Thanks for any other reasonable input. I'm also concerned because I've recently invested in some new Peterson pipes that have vulcanite stems and don't want to smoke them if they're simply going to deteriorate into something unpleasant for me. I'd rather turn around and move them on to someone else if the inevitable is going to happen.

Are their newer stems different and of "better" quality? Or am I to expect more of the same?

 

[Chasing Embers]

I don’t have them oxidize even in light, either. I keep mine out.

Same here.

 

[georged]

I once thought acrylic was the obvious solution. That vulcanite might have been hi-tech when it was invented, but science had moved on, yadda yadda

Turns out that emotional "feels right logic" works no better in the pipe world than the rest of the world.

Most acrylic does not age well. It develops an orange peel surface texture and gets increasingly brittle over time. Some recipes of the stuff more than others, but unless it is something like Mike Butera's proprietary recipe which is INSANELY difficult to cut and shape---meaning isn't suitable for commercial use by anyone except hardcore artisans---it will degrade with time. How fast? Impossible to know, but it absolutely will. Indeed, the worst of it is complete junk. Snappy, crumbly crap the day it is sold.

The worst vulcanite has inclusions and oxidizes quickly, but at least it remains structurally sound.

So it's a case of pick your poison.

If you have the desire, self-discipline, and whatever else goes into thorough wipe-downs after smoking, storing pipes in the dark, and so forth, rubber is the better choice. There are 100+ year old pipes with stems in perfect, jet black condition. Properly "supported" the material will serve you well.

If you do NOT have the desire, self-discipline, and etc., though, the only significant option is acrylic. But future generations will never enjoy those pipe the way we enjoy old vulcanite ones, and you can expect ever-increasing fragility while you own them.