pipemakersforum.com

anyone else go through stems quickly? maybe i'm biting down too hard. if stems wear out should i just get some new ones or do i have to get a whole new pipe?

There's a couple of ways you can go on that.

#1: take a dremel with a sanding drum and grind your teeth flat, or stop sharpening your teeth to begin with.

#2: get one of those nasty innertube rubber "softie" bit thingies, which are designed to keep you from eating the stem.

#3: just make a new stem. Use acrylic this time, that'll break you of chewing on it like a jerky stick. At the very least it'll withstand a lot more chewing than vulcanite.

Just replace the stem. You can get stem blanks from any of the pipemaker supply houses. Look for one that's similar, and all you have to do is fit the tenon to the mortis, and the shank to the stem. Well, bend it if it needs it too. It's not too difficult to replace a stem - typically.

I've got three or four beaters that I keep around for 'working smokes'; when I'm doing something else and not concentrating on the fact that I'm chewing up the stem. I just ignore the fact that they're all chewed up and yellowy. Then I've got the nice pipes that I use for relaxed smoking, where I'm just sitting back and gently sipping at the stem. I've not to date bitten or chewed through a stem all the way though....