Restricted draw (vintage Peterson 307)?

[Benzadmiral]

Morning, all,

I had planned to smoke my venerable smooth Peterson 307 from the '80s today. Not my oldest pipe, or the oldest with me, but the oldest I still smoke regularly. But I've noticed the last few times I've smoked it that the draw seems more restricted than I recall it ever being. I broke it down and ran a bristle cleaner through it and up into the stem, and a regular pipe cleaner with refresh fluid after that. Right now I'm letting it dry. I guess there could be something blocking the air flow at the P-Lip end, and I'll check on that.

Have any of you had restrictions like this pop up on a bent Peterson? Or could it have always been that way, and my more recent vintage and new pipes simply have more open draws?

 

[gpjoe]

I can't offer much, other than to ask if you've tried a whiskey-tipped feather.

Sorry.

 

[Benzadmiral]

No, not a feather, but both a BJ Long pipe cleaner and a White Elephant. The WE is tapered and slid into the P-Lip opening with only a little trouble.

I also ran a thin stream of water through the stem from the wide end. Water streamed easily out of the P-Lip. And blowing and sipping through it afterward certainly seemed to improve the draw.

Looking around here, I see I had this same trouble last year and solved it the same way. I guess this particular pipe needs a little extra TLC every so often. Odd, since I do a basic wipe and pass-through with some kind of alcohol after each smoke, once the pipe has cooled, on all my pipes.

 

[Price]

I had a similar restricted draw issue crop up in the past. Mine turned out to be an accumulation of cotton bits from pipe cleaners which had lodged right in the crook of the stem - I was still able to pass a cleaner, so it was very puzzling. Eventually it dislodged with a shank brush, and the draw was immediately restored. Now I always run my fingers up and down a pipe cleaner to shake off the loose fibers before inserting into the stem.

 

[Columbo]

I had a similar restricted draw issue crop up in the past. Mine turned out to be an accumulation of cotton bits from pipe cleaners which had lodged right in the crook of the stem - I was still able to pass a cleaner, so it was very puzzling. Eventually it dislodged with a shank brush, and the draw was immediately restored. Now I always run my fingers up and down a pipe cleaner to shake off the loose fibers before inserting into the stem.

This. I do this of habit now with every cleaner. The newer ones seem to be a bit lintier.

A couple ill-advised dips into the Everclear vial many years ago is all it takes to show the benefits of a finger pass first.

 

[Columbo]

Morning, all,

I had planned to smoke my venerable smooth Peterson 307 from the '80s today. Not my oldest pipe, or the oldest with me, but the oldest I still smoke regularly. But I've noticed the last few times I've smoked it that the draw seems more restricted than I recall it ever being. I broke it down and ran a bristle cleaner through it and up into the stem, and a regular pipe cleaner with refresh fluid after that. Right now I'm letting it dry. I guess there could be something blocking the air flow at the P-Lip end, and I'll check on that.

Have any of you had restrictions like this pop up on a bent Peterson? Or could it have always been that way, and my more recent vintage and new pipes simply have more open draws?

I don't have many Petes. But some of them are just prone to this. The feather trick is sometimes a good one.

Sometimes, with just a stem clog, soaking it in sweetener for a while can help dissolve and loosen things, too. If it's further into the shank bore, then the options are more limited.

I'm not a fan of running a traditional cleaner through a more complex path. Because the wire end can do some scratching if you planned it wrong. I'll curve them for a curved stem to avoid those scratches whenever possible. My suspicion is that a scratched up airway is just going to dirty up again a little faster. But I have no evidence to prove that.

 

[Benzadmiral]

I've been smoking the 307 this morning (a combo of St. Bruno and some Stirling Flake), and it draws fine. When I clean this one up after my puffing session, I'll be sure to run a thin stream of water through the stem and let it drain and dry thoroughly before using the pipe again.