Obsession-Pipe cleaning rituals, what is yours?

[djf1]

Since joining this board i think not only I have improved my knowledge and enjoyment of the hobby, but besides the latest PAD attacks, I have developed almost an obsessive ritual of cleaning my used pipes every night.
Usually I use 2-3 pipes for my daily needs. At the end of the day i go down to my office, take out my cleaning stuff and meticulously clean each pipe. Empty the pipe, run pipe cleaners, sometimes using cleaning fluid, clean the rim, polish the stem and give a wax coat to each pipe.
I find this a cathartic and very enjoyable experience. Looking at a shining pipe, all cleaned up and put it to bed for a few days. Sometimes I'm so sleepy, I still go through this, so I figured its an obsession! I'm I alone in this? What are your cleaning rituals?

 

[ZeroContent]

Sounds like you're a better pipe owner than I. I should aspire to be as meticulous, i pretty much dump and put in the rack. I usually run a pipe cleaning right before I load my pipes.

 

[Harlock999]

I only smoke on the weekends, and will clean my smoked pipes all at once, using rum. After that, I'll let them sit un-assembled for a few days to dry out. That's my ritual.

 

[Zeno Marx]

I used to be OCD about keeping pipes clean. I enjoyed it. Then that OCD shifted to the idea of separating the pipe after every smoke and just for fun probably wasn't a great idea. Maybe it is. Maybe it doesn't matter. No chance of loosening the fitting, and there's no chance of breaking a tenor or splitting a shank. I like those odds. Now, I very rarely take the briar from the stem. I run a pipe cleaner after a smoke. I use a felt swatch to rub down the briar and clean the stem of fingerprints and lip stuff. They don't smoke any better or any worse than when I was cleaning them well enough to eat out of them, and they don't look any different, either. I think I get a better cake than when constantly futzing with the bowl.

 

[momus]

I am real simple. I run a pipe cleaner through the stem and shank...curve it to sweep the bowl and call it good. I don't like disassembling the pipe a lot as I've heard they can get loose and I've had a Sav stem break doing that (a day after it was smoked last). But probably once a month or two I break them apart. And when I buy hard liquor every six months I use some of that too.
I guess its like guns. Guns are fun to shoot but I always hated cleaning them. But some people love that part...

 

[LIPIPE]

I smoke a bowl three times and clean once a week. I usually have about 10 pipes lined up for chores. I like the smoke I hate the cleaning routine. Wish I could just pop my pipes in the dishwasher and be done. I'm with you on guns. Like to shoot, but hate to clean. I need to get service in for weekly pipe and gun maintenance. Any recommendations?

 

[riff raff]

I do a simple stab & bowl sweep with a cleaner.

Reading this post header this morning, made me laugh: my wife just remarked last night, when I was cleaning my daily smoker "don't you get tired of cleaning your pipe every night?". I said "Nope, all part of the process".

 

[dougc905]

Usually after smoking, I break up the mess in the bowl and then shake the pipe with my thumb over the bowl opening. This coats the bowl with ash. Then I empty the pipe by slapping it on my palm, run a cleaner through the stem and let it sit to dry. I never wipe the interior of the bowl.

In rare exceptions, if the stem has dried saliva, I clean that with a toothbrush and detergent followed by a polish before letting the pipe sit. Every now & then I will polish all my pipes with a wax coated cloth. If a pipe tastes bad, I will also run an alcohol soaked cleaner through the stem.

 

[Brewdude]

Guess I'm somewhat lazy. Only run a pipe cleaner through if I feel the draw is obstructed. Normally take apart the stem but don't like doing this as I once broke one. Yet haven't had real good luck with doing it assembled since all of my pipes are some form of bent and the pipe cleaner seems to often get stuck no matter how I twist it.

Blasphemy to some, but it seems to work for me.



Cheers,

RR

 

[Guy]

I clean a pipe after every smoke. I only smoke a bowl or two a day, never in the same pipe and don't usually see the pipe for months so it is very dry the next time used.

 

[IronKnight]

I usually only smoke 1-2 bowls a day Mon-Fri since I treasure my pipes and don't take them to work with me. On the weekends I'll smoke about 4-5 bowls just to truly relax. Starting at the Beginning of the week I will start stripping down pipes and cleaning them with 190* Everclear. I don't necessarily worry about having a completely clean pipe, just enough so the pipe cleaner comes out barely dirty. I'll hang them up to dry for about 36 hours before I smoke them again. The only ones I clean the bowl on is my cobs, they do get smoked a lot. Sometimes I'll pour just a tad of Everclear in the bowl and shake it, then wipe it out clean. Works for me.

 

[flytyer]

I give the pipe a thourough cleaning with pipe cleaners after every smoke. Recently Ive been wipeing the stem and bowl down with a soft cloth treated with briar pipe wipe. I take filter pipes apart after every smoke, and only take the stem out of my other pipes every third smoke or so.

 

[Boxerbuddy]

I usually run a scrubby through right after I smoke, while the gunk is still warm so it comes out easier, them I run a regular pipe cleaner through to absorb whatever's left. Then I take the regular cleaner and bend it into a "U" shape and twist it in the bowl.

But yeah I'm with you guys on the gun thing. It's alot easier to clean a pipe than a gun. It is damn near impossible to get all the gunk out of a rifle. I have spent hours and hours trying to get the barrel of my .308 squeaky clean but the patch always seems to come out with some **** on it..ALWAYS.....maddening. It's not so bad with my handguns.

On the positive side it doesn't seem to affect the accuracy at all....sub MOA @ 100 yards...love that rifle.

 

[taharris]

After dumping the dottle I wad up the end of a paper towel and screw it around the inside of the bowl and then I insert a pipe cleaner in the stem and let the pipe sit until the next time I want to smoke it.

Just prior to smoking the pipe again I will run a scrubby down the stem and around the bowl.

This probably isn't the best method, but I tend to be more interested in smoking them than cleaning them.

Todd

 

[Josjor]

I usually do a scrubby after every smoke: Down the stem, into the bowl, and then fold it in half and give a light scrub around the bowl.

Once every couple of months, depending on use, I'll do a deep clean with alcohol and then wax things. I might polish rubber stems a little more frequently if they need it.

 

[smokey422]

Right after every smoke, I run a pipe cleaner that has had the tip soaked in Everclear through the stem and shank. Then I use the same cleaner to run around the inside of the bowl (I don't like a lot of cake in my pipes). Maybe once ever 6-10 smokes I'll pull it apart to thoroughly clean the inside of the mortise and tenon.

Smokey

 

[Wayne_Teipen]

I prefer to smoke a "dirty" pipe. I'll run a pipe cleaner through after a smoke but not religiously. I rarely take the stems off my pipes. If I run a pipe cleaner through the airway, I'll bend it in two and swab the tobacco chamber. I'm probably on the other end of the spectrum than most as far as cleaning my pipes. I just don't see the benefits of cleaning them so often. I just don't see the benefits of cleaning a pipe with alcohol if it's not obstructed or restricted. It removes all the goodness that flavors a pipe. I've yet to have a pipe go sour in 5 years. More importantly, I let my pipes rest between smokes. I gently ream them every few months depending on how much cake is building up as I prefer a thinner cake. For those that have visions of a crusty pipe collection, if you saw my pipe collection you would think they were hardly smoked but they are smoked quite often. That's just me though, YMMV.

 

[williamcharles]

I use two parts 151 and one part honey liquor as a cleaning fluid/sweetener. I clean the pipe I smoked at the end of the day and give the ones I smoked during the month at better cleaning at the end of the month. The daily cleaning consists of running dampened pipe cleaners through the stem until a cleaner comes out white and then do the same thing to the shank.

Presently I'm engaged in an experiment. I'm not cleaning the pipe I'm smoking. I ream it so that I maintain a 1/8" thick cake. I use the shank pick on my pipe tool when dottle plugs the draft hole. That's it. So far every bowl of tobacco is sweeter than the one that preceded it. No gurgle or hissing or "soup" coming out of the stem into my mouth. I want to see if the horror stories I have heard are true. The old timers surely would not have been crazy enough to smoke something as foul as stories would have you believe. So far...no problems and the pipe is smoking better than it ever did. Like I said...its an experiment. I may be singing a different tune later on. Time will tell.