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what do you do with a tight stem? lubricate with yellow beeswax? thanks.

Beeswax might tighten it up further. I find that if a stem is a touch too tight for my preference, buffing it with carnuba can help.

Tiny bit of graphite.

or sand the mortise with some 320 grit wrapped around a pencil, or a drill bit of appropriate size, VERY gently, testing often.

Sasquatch wrote:Tiny bit of graphite.

or sand the mortise with some 320 grit wrapped around a pencil, or a drill bit of appropriate size, VERY gently, testing often.

I think I'd sand the tenon rather than the mortise.

Rad

Another question along this same line.

I had a stem that was white knuckle tight, I put a little yellow bee's wax on it and it went it ok, still tight, but manageable. After inserting and removing it a few times the wood in the mortise seemed to compress and it became loose. Any thoughts?

T3pipes wrote:Another question along this same line.

I had a stem that was white knuckle tight, I put a little yellow bee's wax on it and it went it ok, still tight, but manageable. After inserting and removing it a few times the wood in the mortise seemed to compress and it became loose. Any thoughts?

If you twist a tight stem really fast, you generate heat, and heat can soften the tenon a bit. Left in the mortise to cool, it assumes the diameter of the mortise, and can become a little loose.

Try heating the tenon and then dunking it in water to cool and see if it expands back to tightness.

Rad

Rad, sanding the mortise is dead easy and highly controllable (I'm assuming it's wood and not sleeved in any way, of course). Some tenon materials sand really well, others not worth beans, refried or not, and if the average joe sands a tenon, he is not going to be able to put the factory finish back on, probably, whereas if he takes a tiny bit of material out of the mortise, no one would ever know.

That is why I feel it is at least as good an idea as sanding the tenon.

Thank you. Good night. I'm here till Thursday. Tell your friends.

P.S. or am I missing something?

Using a bar of unscented soap, rub the tenon across the soap bar in a couple places, depositing a small amount on the tenon. The stem should go in quite nicely.

Axel grease. Gobs of it.

Works like a charm.

i think i'll pass on the grease. you get an extra buzz off of that?!

i got some yellow beeswax. it works ok. it's easier to get in and out now.

i have a cheap savinelli factory reject pipe that is wicked tight. i also have a savinelli oscar which is way better. it seems like the better the pipe the more care they put into actually making the tenon fit.

if you have a decent pipe i think all you need is a little wax.

thanks for the tips.

dogwood,

I also had a Salvinelli with a tight stem and used the graphite method. I took a pencil and rubbed all over the tenon and it worked like a charm.

Though I think Kim's idea would work also.

But for me, I give the prize to Mr. Rad Davis Esq. I like his style of "who's your daddy!?!"