A Cheap Meerschaum and it's evolution
Posted: Mon Sep 08, 2014 1:42 am
I bought a reasonably cheap Meer about 6 months ago
A nice pipe in it's own way but I've had a rough relationship with it. The engineering was a bit sloppy with the draw hole bored too deep causing wet and inconsistent smokes toward the end of a bowl. So out came the trusty dremel and I fixed the depth by grinding the bowl deeper. This was possible because the pipe had a good thick bottom on it. The problem then was that because the bowl was deeper and the bowl diameter on the smaller side that I'd get wet and unsmokable tobacco in the bottom still. So same problem but different cause. So out came the trusty dremel
I've been widening the diameter mm by mm over a period of time until I reached a point where I could smoke this with only the minimal amount of dottle in the bottom. I think I'm there now.
The good thing and what I love about meerschaum is it's neutrality, resilience and patina forming qualities. I put all my new tobaccos through the meer first as to get a good gauge on the tobacco alone without influence from wood.
I smoke this pipe nearly everyday and this is how it looks now after 6 months.
(This is both sides I just mirrored one pic in my editor so it looks like it's been shot from the one side twice)
A nice pipe in it's own way but I've had a rough relationship with it. The engineering was a bit sloppy with the draw hole bored too deep causing wet and inconsistent smokes toward the end of a bowl. So out came the trusty dremel and I fixed the depth by grinding the bowl deeper. This was possible because the pipe had a good thick bottom on it. The problem then was that because the bowl was deeper and the bowl diameter on the smaller side that I'd get wet and unsmokable tobacco in the bottom still. So same problem but different cause. So out came the trusty dremel
I've been widening the diameter mm by mm over a period of time until I reached a point where I could smoke this with only the minimal amount of dottle in the bottom. I think I'm there now. The good thing and what I love about meerschaum is it's neutrality, resilience and patina forming qualities. I put all my new tobaccos through the meer first as to get a good gauge on the tobacco alone without influence from wood.
I smoke this pipe nearly everyday and this is how it looks now after 6 months.
(This is both sides I just mirrored one pic in my editor so it looks like it's been shot from the one side twice)