Meerschaum Refurb & Rewax

[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.