Meerschaum Refurb & Rewax

[Mister Moo]

Been smoking the big Paykoc dublin for years and managed to wipe it off every so often; it was the travel pipe because it had a case and didn't care what I smoked in it. It has been knocked around, dropped on concrete, handled with dirty hands and generally appreciated without any great respect to meerschaum rules. The rim looked terrible and what color had developed earlier had gone to dirt and a little tan on the shank. I was motivtated to make improvements so it was:

1. damp wiped
2. wet sanded 1500 through 8000
3. buffed on a wheel with emery paste;
4. buffed clean
5. twice tank dipped in hot beeswax
6. rubbed out with lint free cotton

Before:



Prepped:



After:



In the end the clay was smooth and the patina came back rich and golden-to-medium brown. With all dirt, scratches, gouges and scorching gone the Paykoc came back a million bucks. The right materials, some attention to detail and a bit of patience changed this pipe from scars to stars. I have tried every kind of wax rubbing, painting wax on a hot-from-smoking pipe, rubbing wax on a pipe hot from heat gunning.... tell you what - a dipping tank is the all the difference.

[Bruck]

Nice!!!

[Mister Moo]

Nice!!!

That what five years of smoking a meer and a pound and a half of beewax gets you.

Started on the barely smoked 40 year old buccaneer today. I'll get back with you in 2020.

[Bruck]

Would you mind elaborating on the method for dipping in beeswax? So far I've ascertained, melt beeswax, plug chamber, dip, remove. How long do you leave it in the wax, and when you pull it out, then what? TIA.

[Desertlifter]

Looks great. Makes me want to get out my Meer pipe.

That I haven't picked up yet.

[Mister Moo]

Would you mind elaborating on the method for dipping in beeswax? So far I've ascertained, melt beeswax, plug chamber, dip, remove. How long do you leave it in the wax, and when you pull it out, then what? TIA.

Elaboration for the OCD:

I use an antique-ie metal beer pail with lid for a dipping tank; the Turks keep a few old coffee cans on the fire. A secure lid is good because it keeps out obvious contaminants like dust, dirt, bugs, cobwebs etc. that might appear in an uncovered pail full of anything. Fringe bennie with my pail is the wooden handle which makes it easy to move or lean while hot.



Plugging a meer, chamber and shank, is best done with carefully fitted tapered softwood plugs. Natural cork might work but I always have trouble trimming it precisely and it tends to crumble. I tried a synthetic cork, top post/"Prep", on the dublin but it began to melt after a little while so I don't advise retesting my experiment. Some pine or balsa trimmed with an Exacto knife is fine.You want to make plugs fit deeply enough that a little bump won't knock them out and well-fitted enough that heat causing increasing pressure inside the pipe won't pop them out - no rule here here but fit them well and insert them firmly.

A hook of some kind inserted in the plug is helpful to lower and lift the pipe. You also need something to hook on with; I use a long old-timey twisted metal flex-handled bottle brush. It has a loop on one end and it's perfect.



Different beeswaxes can impart more or less coloration; the garden variety stuff at craft shops works fine. I am lucky to have a lot beekeepers in the area and I have experiemented with waxes produced in hives that are serviced by by different crops. Some produce tan, some pale yellow and some show clear. All bets are off once you've been smoking a pipe for a while - smoking plus rewaxing definitely intensifies coloration in whatever shade.

My method: heat wax slowly to just melted and lower in the pipe; allow the temperature to rise slowly but quit (fast) if it begins to smoke. If your pipe floats so it won't stay fully immesered use the hook to tip it over from time to time. I leave a pipe in for a few minutes, lift and let it drip, then dunk it again for another few minutes. When you're done kill the heat and lift the pipe to allow it to drip off the excess. As the pipe is removed from the tank it won't form globs or lumps or even streaks of wax - the pipe is so hot that wax flows off in a few seconds. That little bit which clings to the surface will remain viscous for many minutes. Don't touch a hot pipe out the tank to see what really hot wax sticking to your skin feels like. Also, take care not to spill or drip melted beeswax outside your tank - it is sticky stuff unlike most paraffin waxes and it is hell to clean up. Allow the pipe to cool, but still warm to the touch.

Return the warm pipe to a paper towel or a clean lint free cloth (kept aside for this purpose) and carefully remove the plugs. Gently wipe and buff the pipe, let it cool. Get your smoke on and rewax in another six-months to a year.

Alternative for the not-OCD:

Pay the two dollars. Send your meer(s) out once every year or so to someone who can properly clean and redip your pipe(s). If you only have one or two meers the dip tank thing can be a nuisance.

[Mister Moo]

Looks great. Makes me want to get out my Meer pipe.

That I haven't picked up yet.

What is the hold up? (I had one I rarely smoked and, one day, finally figured out all the reasons I hated the pipe - gave it away soon after the awakening.)

Picture?

[Desertlifter]

What is the hold up? (I had one I rarely smoked and, one day, finally figured out all the reasons I hated the pipe - gave it away soon after the awakening.)

Picture?

PAD hasn't afflicted me with a Meer yet. I have a lovely clay tavern pipe though. Thing smokes like a dream.

[Lynn]

that was what is called character.....nicely done there an it really looks like a gem to me, but I couldnt bear to smoke it once it looked that good...

[Mister Moo]

that was what is called character.....nicely done there an it really looks like a gem to me, but I couldnt bear to smoke it once it looked that good...

Thank you! No worries abut preservng it; it's gone. Traded it last week. Starting on another two meers.