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Post by Deleted on Mar 9, 2018 6:51:03 GMT -5
I bought an estate pipe that was heavily ghosted with something rather nasty, so I did the non-iodized salt and Everclear treatment. It actually worked very well. No damage at all, although it took two or three smokes before it seemed broken-in again. The pipe has become one of my favorites for English blends. No worries - if you need to, I recommend that you press on with it.
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Post by rblood on Mar 9, 2018 7:19:40 GMT -5
On a couple of newer pipes I couldn't get the taste of salt out after total OCD washings. It's just not worth it. I have had good luck using Green Alcohol, which is what Pipe Sweetener is. You have to watch that the green is from spearmint not menthol ...at the risk of being reprimanded, I say... look, it's an estate pipe. It's been smoked, maybe with tobacco I don't care for. If you ream, sand and sterilize, so-called *ghosts* vanish in a few smokes. It's a f***ing pipe, not brain surgery. Made me chuckle Drama. True, so true... But hey, even being obsessive can be fun! |
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Post by Baboo on Mar 9, 2018 9:39:54 GMT -5
Soaked a meer-lined Baraccini with an alccohol solution a few times and the meer cracked, FWIW. Otherwise, I generally just fill the bowl with a high-proof hooch n salt solution with the stem tip plugged so no leaks, shake it good a few times over a 12 hour period, dump the slosh, tight-twist towel-ream clean the bowl, use pipe cleaners throughout, let air dry for 24-48 hours, and good to go. Pipe Science for Dummies is my book...
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Post by mwps70 on Mar 9, 2018 10:09:52 GMT -5
I use my Czech tool to loosen the salt and pour it out and then a paper towel to wipe out the salt that is still stuck to the bowl. Then blow through the stem and good to go.
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Post by Legend Lover on Mar 9, 2018 11:34:47 GMT -5
I use my Czech tool to loosen the salt and pour it out and then a paper towel to wipe out the salt that is still stuck to the bowl. Then blow through the stem and good to go. Thanks for the clarification! |
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Post by slowroll on Mar 9, 2018 11:56:34 GMT -5
Question.... How do you get the salt / alcohol mixture out of the pipe? Do you rinse it with something, give it a shake and a rub, put a hose-pipe on the end and flush it with water??? Just dump it out and wipe the bowl. Leave it sit for a day or 2 afterward. Bear in mind that it needs to be coarse salt, like kosher salt. Fine salt will Be tougher to remove and might get into crevices. |
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Post by Legend Lover on Mar 9, 2018 12:08:43 GMT -5
Question.... How do you get the salt / alcohol mixture out of the pipe? Do you rinse it with something, give it a shake and a rub, put a hose-pipe on the end and flush it with water??? Just dump it out and wipe the bowl. Leave it sit for a day or 2 afterward. Bear in mind that it needs to be coarse salt, like kosher salt. Fine salt will Be tougher to remove and might get into crevices. Good to know, thanks. We call it sea salt here. Think it's the same thing anyway, or close enough. |
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Post by trailboss on Mar 9, 2018 12:29:15 GMT -5
I use Kosher salt, never had any residual salty taste.
Grain Alcohol should not be used on a meer, a pipe cleaner dipped in it everclear is fine for a swab.
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Post by Deleted on Mar 9, 2018 12:43:54 GMT -5
Question.... How do you get the salt / alcohol mixture out of the pipe? Do you rinse it with something, give it a shake and a rub, put a hose-pipe on the end and flush it with water??? tap and dump. chase with bristle PC, then a fluffy and follow with a regular. |
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Post by william on Mar 11, 2018 16:38:18 GMT -5
I have used this method twice on estate pipes--both briar pipes. I used an old egg carton to prop up the pipe, shoved several Saran-wrapped Q tips down the shank to seal that end off, filled with kosher salt, and carefully filled with cognac. Let it sit 24 hours and dug the salt out, rinsed out the bowl with more cognac. I keep a tiny bottle of cognac near my pipe cleaners for daily use. It seems to get the crud out of the stem and shank, and smells good too. Probably a waste of good cognac, but I do believe the pipes were fresher.
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cgvt
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Post by cgvt on Mar 11, 2018 17:07:40 GMT -5
I do it with isopropyl alcohol on some of the pipes I get. I used to do it with vodka, but the isopropyl evaporates quickly and has worked for me with no ill effects. I'll even drop the entire briar in a jar of alcohol if I plan on removing the finish and re-staining it.
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Post by william on Mar 11, 2018 17:59:26 GMT -5
I do it with isopropyl alcohol on some of the pipes I get. I used to do it with vodka, but the isopropyl evaporates quickly and has worked for me with no ill effects. I'll even drop the entire briar in a jar of alcohol if I plan on removing the finish and re-staining it. I have never tried to remove the finish. But that makes sense. And I will admit that I am only guessing here and do not know if it is the salt or the "alcohol" that cleanses the bowl--or both. I just assumed that salt holds the "alcohol" in contact with the inner walls of the bowl in a restrained sort of way. So there is not so much alcohol to be absorbed by the wood, but enough to dissolve tars and other goo. I'd probably feel better about it all if I used regular alcohol and drank the cognac.  |
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