New Pipe Smoker With A Question? Ask an Old Fart

[RevSmoke]

Do not, repeat, do not us isopropyl alcohol. That stuff does nasty things to briar, so the next time you smoke it, you can crack your pipe. Doesn't happen all the time, but... It will also whiten vulcanite stems.

Get yourself some Everclear, grain alcohol.

Peace of the Lord be with you.

[Thrak]

Originally Posted by RevSmoke

Do not, repeat, do not us isopropyl alcohol. That stuff does nasty things to briar, so the next time you smoke it, you can crack your pipe. Doesn't happen all the time, but... It will also whiten vulcanite stems.

Get yourself some Everclear, grain alcohol.

Peace of the Lord be with you.

Yeah I dont put it on the wood, just the stem, then after it airs out for a while I put a light coat of olive oil on for 10mins, then wipe dry.

[trendo]

Hi guys, thanks for all the great information. I tried pipe smoking a couple of years ago....got a grabow and some cornel and diehl. I was having problems keeping it lit, I used the loading technique listed here, but i suspect the tobacco was too wet. I found the tobacco in a closet the other day and was thinking of giving it another shot. I had two questions.....is the tobacco still good? It was in its original container for the past two years, it has a lid, but it has been opened in the past. Second, I understand that you should not store pipe tobak in a humid enviorment, I live in hawaii and the RH inside my house varies from 65 to 75 percent. Will my tobacco always be to wet?

Thanks guys, sorry if the humidity thing has already been brought up, I looked through a bunch of pages and didnt see anything.

[Mister Moo]

Originally Posted by RevSmoke

...That stuff does nasty things to briar, so the next time you smoke it, you can crack your pipe. Doesn't happen all the time, but...

Is this amply demonstrated or is this hearsay? I ask because I have used unscented isopropyl 91% for sterilizing and destinking bowls/stem interchageably with Everclear 190-proof and never had problem 1. Only problem I ever heard of (for sure) with iso was from folks who fouled pipes with alcohol that had scent- or bittering agents.

I think a clear, definitive evalution of iso is important as many among us are unable or unwilling to purchase grain alcohol. I'm not sure I know about one.

[RevSmoke]

Originally Posted by Mister Moo

Is this amply demonstrated or is this hearsay? I ask because I have used unscented isopropyl 91% for sterilizing and destinking bowls/stem interchageably with Everclear 190-proof and never had problem 1. Only problem I ever heard of (for sure) with iso was from folks who fouled pipes with alcohol that had scent- or bittering agents.

I think a clear, definitive evalution of iso is important as many among us are unable or unwilling to purchase grain alcohol. I'm not sure I know about one.

I have had a pipe crack from the "salt" method, and a friend had one crack after using unscented isopropyl.

Now, to be fair, it might have been the duration of the soak which caused the problem in both cases. I got a phone call and the salt/alcohol sat for nearly 4 hours (instead of like 20 min.). It dried the briar out immensely and I heard an audible pop when the bowl cracked. I believe my buddy had the same problem, falling asleep after setting up his soak - coming back to it hours later.

You don't need Everclear. In fact, I normally use a clear rum or vodka. I used cotton balls instead of salt to fill my pipe. And, I can let it sit overnight. I am able to remove quite a bit of cake, and what is left is highly malleable. It does need to dry a couple days. But, it can be smoked with no ill effects.

If you can use isopropyl alcohol and pay attention to what you are doing, not getting distracted - I think you'll be OK.

I use the other method because sometimes "life happens" and if it does, I know everything will be cool whenever I get back to it.

Peace of the Lord be with you.