My new Iron horse pipe is supposec to arrive today or tommorrow. I have read many Posts about forming a cake and I think I will try the fill the bowl have full for a week then moving on to a full bowl after that. Still working on slow smoking. As far as cleaning it. Run a pipe cleaner through the stem that is dipped in rubbing alchol, then another dry one. Then do I simply wipe the outside of the pipe with nice cloth and put it away? I know I am trying to form a cake in the bowl, so I don't want to touch it untill it forms. I am confused about once it forms, how do I clean the bowl? If I smoke the pipe twice a day and let it rest outside for one or two hours between smokes, do you think that will be ok?
I am very excited about the new pipe, I just want to do it right and not ruin it. I have heard the term burnout being used. What does it mean?
Can you switch between tobacco during the cake forming process. I am planing on using either Captain black, or some bulk lane tobacco.
[Reply]

I found a nice little write-up about burnout here: http://www.amsmoke.com/Writings/PIPE...r/burnout.html

As to using alchohol on your pipe cleaner to clean the stem - be sure to let the alchohol evaporate and the pipe dry out completely before smoking again. I only use alchohol to clean the stem and shank about once a month when I do the salt/alchohol treatment on the bowl. Of course if you want to do it more often feel free - to each his own and I'm no expert.

Wiping down the outside of the bowl as well as the shank and the stem will help. Also, consider using a little saliva on the rim of the bowl after smoking; let it sit for 30 seconds or so then wipe it off with a soft cloth (using medium firmness, don't rub too hard) to keep any gunk from building up on the rim.

For cake buildup many recommend the half-bowl method for the first few smokes to give the bottom half of the bowl a jump-start on cake building since according to conventional wisdom the bottom half has a more difficult time building cake. I've never used it myself but maybe I've been lucky so far. With my next new pipe I intend to try it.

Also, I've read that many recommend smoking a tobacco like Prince Albert when building a cake so that it won't lend it's own flavors to the tobaccos you smoke later. That's a fine recommendation since Prince Albert is both good and cheap. If you'd rather jump right into the tobaccos you're interested in I recommend two pipes - one for aromatics and one for other tobaccos. Ghosting from an English blend can interfere with the taste of your favorite Rum & Maple and the flavors of an aromatic can similarly interfere with the exotic tastes of an English or Oriental. Building up a cake with a strongly flavored tobacco will definitely affect the taste of the smoke. A lot of smokers dedicate certain pipes to certain categories of tobacco.

For cleaning the bowl while the cake is forming I just fold a pipe cleaner in half and gently twist it around the bowl a few times. Also be sure that no little bits of tobacco cling to the sides of the bowl. After cake is formed I clean the same way. Once the cake gets pretty thick (larger than the thickness of a nickel) you may need to ream it back down to the thickness of a dime.

Keep in mind that, while I have a few years XP smoking a pipe I'm by no means an expert. :-)

Hope this helps. :-)
[Reply]

Congrat's on the new pipe!!!

I'm by no means an expert, but I thought I'd add my :-)

Personally, I'd use something like Everclear or some other spirit that is 80-100+ proof when you want to thoroughly clean your pipe. Isopropyl rubbing alcohol is poisonous and can cause serious problems if consumed, so I would avoid it just to be safe. Also, remove excess liquid from the cleaner before use & keep the bit of your pipe below horizontal so any drips from the tenon run down the stem and don't ruin the finish of your pipe.

I clean the bowl of my pipe right after smoking using the dry cleaner that I ran through the stem. I simply fold it in half & gentry rub the circumference of the bowl & blow through the pipe to remove any debris.

Yes, I'm sure you will enjoy :-)
[Reply]

So you still clean the bowl even though you are trying to form a cake?
[Reply]

Lightly brush out the bowl after it has cooled with a looped pipe cleaner; don't scour it out with a bristle-cleaner, for example - just a gentle rub to get the loose stuff off. In any case, make sure unburned flecks of tobacco aren't left hanging on the inside of the bowl. That can disturb cake formation and, potentially, cause of a burnout down the road. Or so "they" say.
[Reply]

Well my pipe came. I love it. Just finished smoking my first half bowl. It is now cooling, then I will dump out the ash and make sure that there is no flecks of tobacco left. Premire pipes also sent me a sample of some tobacco, so I smoked that first. Was ok, still not what I want. I am sure when the pipe gets broken in, the tobacco will change? Will smoke again tommorrow night. Would like to smoke in the morning, but I will give it time to rest....I can always smoke my cob.
[Reply]

Congratulations! I hope it brings you years of smoking pleasure. Take care of it and it will take care of you. :-)
[Reply]

Didn't smoke it yesterday, so me, the pipe and some scotch have a date by my lake...
[Reply]