Back to Basics

There is no part of a pipe more intimately connected with its smoker than the mouthpiece. And just like any other amorous affair, this intimate connection is prone to becoming a love-hate relationship. When a vulcanite stem falls victim to oxidation, adoration can quickly turn to frustration. That greenish-brown haze can cloud up any love affair with a pipe and even sour the taste of the most savory of smoking instruments. It is little comfort, but pipe smokers can take some solace in the axiom that "misery loves company." For instance, take these successive postings from an online forum:

"Has anyone any ideas of how to get rid of that stench of rubber that some … older pieces tend to get … after they have been worked on a bit? Especially once you start using them and the chamber gets moist?"

Someone else joins in: "Do you think the stink comes from the interior—hot steam on the chamber—or the exterior from saliva on the shank?"

A member of the forum takes a stab at the original question: "Ebonite is vulcanized rubber. The vulcanization process involves mixing sulfur in with the rubber. The smell and brownish-green tint is the result of the sulfur leaching out to the surface."

Another member chimes in: "You're talking about that 'burning tires' smell, right?"

And a final rejoinder follows: "It's not the rubber smell. It's the 'rubber is degrading-acrid-burning-penetrating-nauseating' oxidation and sulfur smell. I'm thinking carnauba wax. Beeswax is too soft and melts too cool."

These remarks reflect a vernacular familiar to any seasoned pipe smoker and include references to mouthpieces, shanks, oxidation, moist chambers and even carnauba wax. A lurker to the site might be surprised to learn that these pleas for help and expressions of frustration come—not from a pipe forum—but from a Web site called "Sax on the Web." Pipe smokers can find concordant accompaniment with saxophone players when it comes to the discordance associated with vulcanite and oxidation of mouthpieces on their prized instruments.

To read the rest of the story, subscribe to Pipes and tobaccos magazine's print or digital edition.