Love them. My oldest meerschaum was a Christmas gift in 1984 - a CAO Cavalier and I still have and used the original stem. I have had to replace the tenon though. I have 5 total that I smoke and one that I found at a flea market, unsmoked for $10 that is just a display piece now. I smoked it once and found two cracks in it.
Like many other meerschaum smokers, I found there is a lot of myths about the pipes such as you have to clean the bowl every time you smoke it to prevent any cake build-up, you can't touch the bowl with your bare hands, etc.
I don't worry about cake build up because it's okay if there is a little. I double a pipe cleaner and run it around the bowl after smoking and usually about once a week I will dip a paper towel in grain alcohol and lightly rub the inside of the bowl.
As long as your hands are not filthy and coated with dirt, grease and grime, then I have found no problem with handling the bowl while smoking a meerschaum. I was once told that if you touch the bowl it will affect how the pipe colors. I was also once told that each pipe is going to color differently no matter what you do and that is part of the character of the pipe. I chose to believe the later.
My CAO is 32 years old. I lost the case 15 or 20 years ago so it's a little battered and scratched from being kept in my work desk. It has obtained a nice caramel cream patina that is uneven in places. But it smokes like a champ.
I love my meerschaums. I normally smoke them more than my briar pipes. As PappyJoe commented there are many different myths out there about meerschaums of how to clean them and how to handle them. The one I am most curious about is that cleaning them with alcohol can actually remove the patina they take on by removing/cleaning the tars and oils. Personally I have a few meerschaums that I will never smoke and are just for looks but the ones that I smoke the most are Peterson Rock meerschaums that are older than me and were made with a scratched beat up look that I just love the feel of and since they have that beat up look I don't care to much if I scratch them or if they get dirty. The one thing I do try to make sure I do is to not let them cake up by cleaning the bowl with a pipe cleaner or two after each smoke. If I am bad and don't clean them right away I will use my tamper to gently scrape any build up on the walls off. I learned through trial that meerschaums smoke better, at least mine, with no cake. I have heard of some that swear by letting cake build just like in a briar and have had to clean that cake out of several estate pipes I have gotten (I was surprised the amount of cake build up hadn't caused the pipe to crack). Like with anything I try to enjoy them for what they are, pipes, that will normally get a little scratched, dinged, and dirty over the use and if I don't want them to I keep them safe in a case out of sight... that defeats their purpose though.
I have two carved Meers,one I smoke occasionally the other is mostly a shelf piece.I one I smoke has a repair to the shank, and the bit is newer than the bowl.But it has a small delron tube tenon smokes wonderfully.The other is around one hundred years old is in original condition,no cracks or repairs,original bit.But it has a stinger and the manner that the draft hole was drilled is hard to pass a cleaner thru.The second one while being a really nice pi[pe is a poor smoker so only gets pulled down maybe once a year.I use my meer when I'm smoking an english blend,the flavors come thru so much more and have made a bleh smoke into a nirvanna zen expierience.
Nice merchs guys! I never knew the fact from myth, so thanks @pappyjoe. I always heard and thus assumed that you were not to get cake in them, but you proved to be a myth buster. Also, I know there are different types like carved and pressed (I think thats what they are called). I am guessing to with the carved if I ever venture into that world?
@PipeProfessor - Technically they are all carved but what you thinking is whether the pipe is a traditional shape or a figural. Both of the ones I show are considered figural.
What you want to look for in a new pipe is that it is carved from block meerschaum instead of pressed. Block meerschaums are those carved from actual blocks of meerschaum while pressed meerschaum is made from meerschaum dust which is pressed into blocks using a binding adhesive. For a new pipe you want the block meerschaum in my opinion. However, Strambach makes high quality pipes using a procedure the company developed to make meerschaum mass.
I have read that someone has discovered a process of growing sepiolite (the scientific name for the mineral) in a lab but don't know much more than that.
I have four Meerschaums which I smoke a couple times a month but I yet to notice any major discoloration on them other than around the rim. How long does it usually take for a pipe to change to that deep mahogany I've seen on some older Meerschaums.
For some reason my text refused to load with the above picture. Notice that the color usually starts near the stem where moisture and tars gather. Black Cavendish works best at coloring. Moister tobaccos work faster, The more you smoke the faster it colors. Many people treat their meers with hot beeswax which brings out hidden color there's a technique to it, you don't usually dip them, they apply hot wax with a brush and use a heat gun to work it in and wipe off the excess. Don't get any wax in the bowl or airway or you'll taste wax forever.
I was under the impression that part of the joy of watching your Meerschaum gradually change color was through the natural aging process as you smoke. It seems like using artificial methods to speed-up or bypass the natural aging process would result in more of a faux finish than the natural mahogany tones I've seen in genuine vintage Meerschaums. Seems a bit dishonest. A sort of counterfeit method similar to a novice pipe smoker coating the sides of their bowl with blackened sawdust to create the illusion of a heavily caked bowl from extensive smoking.
The Beeswax allowed the color to work its way out, the person had been smoking it 3 times a week for over a year. Meers often come with dark coloration around the top of the bowl as my Peterson 312 and 314 did. the 312 was milk white when I got it.
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and the bit is newer than the bowl.But it has a small delron tube tenon smokes wonderfully.The other is around one hundred
years old is in original condition,no cracks or repairs,original bit.But it has a stinger and the manner that the draft hole was
drilled is hard to pass a cleaner thru.The second one while being a really nice pi[pe is a poor smoker so only gets pulled
down maybe once a year.I use my meer when I'm smoking an english blend,the flavors come thru so much more and
have made a bleh smoke into a nirvanna zen expierience.
This the older of the two.