While fooling around on the laptop last week, I bid on a Capstan briar for $11 with a max bid of $12.50.
I'm now the (soon to be) proud owner of a 2nd hand pipe. The condition looked ok but the pics were a bit grainy.
How to I clean & prepare it?
I noticed a member mentioned that he soaks his pipes in everclear. Did I interpret that correctly? (Can't get everclear here but 100% isopropyl should do the trick)
How to clean a 2nd hand pipe.
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Houtenziel
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It really depends on the condition of the pipe when you get it. Best case, you can just clean the inside of the stem and shank with your chosen alcohol until the pipe cleaners come out clean. Then carefully wipe the oustide of the stem taking care to avoid any nomenclature that might have paint on it. I am really careful to clean the area around the button at the end of the stem, as that spot tends to get pretty funky. I also might carefully clean the outside of the bowl with a lightly soapy rag, if it looks like there is build up from hand oils/dirt.
Inside the bowl, you'll have to judge if it really needs to be reamed or not, and judge if someone may have smoked something that ghosts.
If it smells and tastes strongly like a previous tobacco(Lakeland, Deertongue, etc) and you aren't happy about that, you can give the inside of the bowl a salt and alcohol treatment.
I think I followed this guy's instructions the first time I did the treatment on a pipe:
Inside the bowl, you'll have to judge if it really needs to be reamed or not, and judge if someone may have smoked something that ghosts.
If it smells and tastes strongly like a previous tobacco(Lakeland, Deertongue, etc) and you aren't happy about that, you can give the inside of the bowl a salt and alcohol treatment.
I think I followed this guy's instructions the first time I did the treatment on a pipe:
“To educate a person in the mind but not in morals is to educate a menace to society.”
― Theodore Roosevelt
― Theodore Roosevelt
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Fr_Tom
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I scrub them as clean as I can get them inside with PGA and bristle cleaners. Let a damp one soak in the shank/stem for a bit to soften things up. I will find a drill bit that fits the ID of the shank and turn it by hand to get that cleaned up. Clean the bit pretty obsessively with PGA in the outside too. Ream the bowl back to (almost) wood.
Smoke the new out of it. I usually use a pipe cleaner most every bowl for the first few before settling into my "spare the cleaners" routine. The heat or the moisture seems to loosen things up inside even when the PGA/pipe cleaners were coming out looking like new.
For me there is little I dislike more than a vanilla ghost. I have gotten a few estates that were smoked with nothing but Captain Black, and it can take a while. Five Brothers seems to speed the process of deghosting up a little.
Smoke the new out of it. I usually use a pipe cleaner most every bowl for the first few before settling into my "spare the cleaners" routine. The heat or the moisture seems to loosen things up inside even when the PGA/pipe cleaners were coming out looking like new.
For me there is little I dislike more than a vanilla ghost. I have gotten a few estates that were smoked with nothing but Captain Black, and it can take a while. Five Brothers seems to speed the process of deghosting up a little.
"Prov'dence don't fire no blank ca'tridges, boys" Roughing It, Mark Twain
Old Ted Award - 2017
Old Ted Award - 2017
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Houtenziel
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In case anyone was wondering like me and had to google what PGA was, it's "Pure Grain Alcohol" 
“To educate a person in the mind but not in morals is to educate a menace to society.”
― Theodore Roosevelt
― Theodore Roosevelt
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Fr_Tom
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Oops... Sorry!houtenziel wrote: ↑Sat Aug 25, 2018 3:13 pm In case anyone was wondering like me and had to google what PGA was, it's "Pure Grain Alcohol"
Here we can get the 190 proof stuff.
"Prov'dence don't fire no blank ca'tridges, boys" Roughing It, Mark Twain
Old Ted Award - 2017
Old Ted Award - 2017
I do the same thing Father. I haven’t used a salt treatment in a while. I just smoke it after I have killed anything that could be living with everclear.
My brother saw the bottle of everclear sitting on my counter one day and he asked me if I was drinking that stuff lol. I told him that that wasn’t for drinking, but for cleaning!
My brother saw the bottle of everclear sitting on my counter one day and he asked me if I was drinking that stuff lol. I told him that that wasn’t for drinking, but for cleaning!
Adwyth
That's a handy vid. Let's hope it's not that bad, lol. Thanks.houtenziel wrote: ↑Sat Aug 25, 2018 10:15 am It really depends on the condition of the pipe when you get it. Best case, you can just clean the inside of the stem and shank with your chosen alcohol until the pipe cleaners come out clean. Then carefully wipe the oustide of the stem taking care to avoid any nomenclature that might have paint on it. I am really careful to clean the area around the button at the end of the stem, as that spot tends to get pretty funky. I also might carefully clean the outside of the bowl with a lightly soapy rag, if it looks like there is build up from hand oils/dirt.
Inside the bowl, you'll have to judge if it really needs to be reamed or not, and judge if someone may have smoked something that ghosts.
If it smells and tastes strongly like a previous tobacco(Lakeland, Deertongue, etc) and you aren't happy about that, you can give the inside of the bowl a salt and alcohol treatment.
I think I followed this guy's instructions the first time I did the treatment on a pipe:
Ghosting isn't something I'd considered. My sense is from the sellers comments is that it's a pipe that may not have been used for quite a while. Hopefully smell fades with time.
I've yet to try a vanilla pipe tobacco so can't say if that will be an issue or not. Generally I like aromatics & I haven't tried a tobacco yet that I didn't like (As a young bloke I smoked anything strong & obnoxious like Gitanes, Sobraines, Gudam Garam for e.g.) not that I've smoked a huge range of pipe tobacco.Fr_Tom wrote: ↑Sat Aug 25, 2018 1:54 pm I scrub them as clean as I can get them inside with PGA and bristle cleaners. Let a damp one soak in the shank/stem for a bit to soften things up. I will find a drill bit that fits the ID of the shank and turn it by hand to get that cleaned up. Clean the bit pretty obsessively with PGA in the outside too. Ream the bowl back to (almost) wood.
Smoke the new out of it. I usually use a pipe cleaner most every bowl for the first few before settling into my "spare the cleaners" routine. The heat or the moisture seems to loosen things up inside even when the PGA/pipe cleaners were coming out looking like new.
For me there is little I dislike more than a vanilla ghost. I have gotten a few estates that were smoked with nothing but Captain Black, and it can take a while. Five Brothers seems to speed the process of deghosting up a little.
Here in Aus. we've got a very limited options unless one hits the specialty tobacconists in the city. And it's extremely expensive - $75 for a 50g tin/pouch.
I'm smoking from a 16oz bag of Windsail (2 Daughters) which is mild but a good basic tobacco which I ordered from 4noggins.
The Capstan briar arrived today. Looking forward to posting pics.
It's a nice clean pipe in good condition. A wash with soapy water & clean the stem with some alcohol is all that's required.
Thankfully the previous owner wasn't a clencher (Seriously, unless a stem is replaceable, I will not buy an estate pipe with teeth marks)
It's got 8 oval shaped bevels around the middle of the bowl. It's a small pipe that's not much bigger than my Grabow Duke, with a bowl that's around 50% bigger than the tiny Duke bowl. It's also a very light weighted pipe.
It's a nice clean pipe in good condition. A wash with soapy water & clean the stem with some alcohol is all that's required.
Thankfully the previous owner wasn't a clencher (Seriously, unless a stem is replaceable, I will not buy an estate pipe with teeth marks)
It's got 8 oval shaped bevels around the middle of the bowl. It's a small pipe that's not much bigger than my Grabow Duke, with a bowl that's around 50% bigger than the tiny Duke bowl. It's also a very light weighted pipe.