When to sweeten?

[bogie]

I tried the search feature but kept getting the same three threads lol.
When I smoke a pipe, I always wait for it to cool down, then run a pipe cleaner through everything. After a pipe has been smoked a few times I will run the bristle type cleaners through.

My uncle when I first started told me to buy some pipe sweetener. So I bought some BEE Pipe Sweetener. But I was curious as to how OFTEN one should sweeten their pipe? I have read on here that commercial sweeteners dont have enough alcohol content to do the job. And I understand something like Everclear is the preferred choice.

So how often do you folks sweeten your pipe?
I am currently saving for two more pipes. I am planning on an Erik Nording freehand, and a Savineli Non perie(SP?) and do not want to mess anything up lol. I try my best to keep what pipes I have so far very clean.
Thanks
Bogie...

 

[unclearthur]

I do a super heavy duty cleaning/sweetening about once or twice a year. But I also have a very large collection so no pipe gets very heavily used. When ever you start getting any kind of funky taste then sweeten.

 

[flipflopsandshades]

As a related question, a few people have told me that you should clean your pipe after each use with rum or whiskey to keep it "sweet." Does anyone have an opinion on this because I was actually going to make a thread regarding this specific dilemma.
I don't want my pipes going sour since I only have 3 briars and 1 cobb.
Thanks.

 

[chuckw]

It is my opinion you are doing it right. A pipe needs to be "sweetened" only when it goes sour. Keeping the pipe clean and dry will go a LONG way in preventing that sour taste. I have pipes that are ten or twelve years old that haven't soured yet. Like Unclearthur, I have quite a few pipes and it may be four or five weeks before a particular pipe come back into use.

As for Bee Sweet, I never cared for the minty taste it left in a bowl. I prefer grain alcohol when I refurbish an estate pipe.

 

[bogie]

Okie Dokie....thanks fellas. Ima heading down to little rock thursday to get some more baccy. I just MIGHT come home with a new pipe. Just have to wait and see
Bogie

 

[pstlpkr]

I'm with the guys on this one. I prefer Ezra Brooks because it imparts a nice flavor in the pipe for a bowl or two.

But, as for frequency... only once or twice a year.

If you sweeten too much you run the risk of having a soft cake and it can crumble, and that may cause problems... possibly burn through... not a good thing.

 

[cortezattic]

Ditto pstlpkr, et al., but I use Seagram's Extra Dry Gin.

I am planning on an Erik Nording freehand, and a Savineli [...] and do not want to mess anything up lol.

As a general rule, a clean pipe performs better than a dirty pipe. That said,

there's not too much you can do to screw-up a pipe if you just smoke slowly

and coolly, and don't bite down too hard on the stem.
Lest we overlook the obvious, PipesMagazine's Bob Tate has a video on the subject

of cleaning that all of us would benefit from. The link also appears in the left hand column of this page.
Kevin's article is also a good discussion on pipe cleaning issues.

 

[hauntedmyst]

Ignore these guys, they all drink. When you want to sweeten your pipe, instead of using prebottled sweetenter, do the Salt and Alcohol treatment but instead of salt, use Sweent N Low in bulk and instead of alcohol, use maple syrup. Your pipe will be sweet without being cloying.

 

[cortezattic]

That last post belongs in the "What have YOU been smoking?" thread. :lol:

 

[jaxz]

I have a very small collection that I'm proud of. Mind you, I've only been smoking a couple of years now, but somewhere along the line I was told twice a year is adequate unless you start tasting sourness.
I do run a pipe cleaner through after each bowl...that seems to help.

 

[excav8tor]

As someone who mainly buys estates, I ensure ALL the pre-smoked pipes I get hold of are given the Alcohol & Salt treatment and a major ream. Therafter, after each smoke (the next day), I dismantle the pipe and run a pipe cleaner dipped in alcohol through the mouthpiece and the shank (and with my Systems, a Q-tip dipped in alcohol to clean out the trap). The bowl I simply stuff paper towel into it and twist it out. A little care after each smoke, should keep your pipes sweet and clean for years. However, I do a full renovation each year on my regular rotation pipes which includes a major ream, basically I treat it as if it came to me from someone else.

I am going to experiment with using Dark Rum (Pusser's) or a Brandy every now and again, to see if it imparts some of those lovely flavours to the pipe.

 

[jwp159]

I am a owner of a small collection of only 10 pipes. I have found that twice a year with what ever spirits I have on hand keep them smoking sweet. My pipes see heavy use. I clean them after use with dry cleaners, and rotate a different pipe each day so they get plenty of rest between the days they are used, then twice a year give them all a good cleaning with spirits. It has worked for me for several years now and have never had one to sour.

 

[unclearthur]

I frequently use brandy. Some for sweetening the pipes too . :wink:

 

[jimbo]

You are doing about what I do, but I swab the smoke channel with a dry pipe cleaner as soon as I dump the last ashes and then leave another clean pipe cleaner in the pipe until it fully cools down (about an hour). Remove it and a final cleaner thru it (with sweetner optional), and it's ready to put in the rack (no cleaner... for air circulation).
As for Bee Pipe Sweetener, YelloBowl stopped making it! :evil: I really like it for occasional sweetening and I recently found several new bottles on eBay (do a search!). Unlike what chuckw said, it is NOT "minty", but has a sweet taste like honey. Chuck must mean that awful green stuff that to me tastes like Lysol and I wouldn't want it in my pipes. Yuck. :x
I save the Everclear for the very occasional times when I take the stem off and use a bristle brush to do a thorough cleaning of the stem/shank. I never do anything inside the bowl, short of a salt/Everclear soak, and then only if it has soured. (Not likely if you keep your pipe clean and dry.)