How is a pipe made? 

The different elements of a pipe

DSince several centuries, pipe smokers have managed to give a refined picture of its use. The object is not for nothing. Beyond its shape, the essence of wood, there is a know-how. Its elements that compose it and the accessories that accompany it will no longer have a secret for you after reading this article. Small technical auscultation of an object almost 10 centuries old for the oldest.

The parts of the pipe: (1) head or bowl, (2) fireplace or stove, (3) draw hole, (4) Rod, (5) Mortise, (6) Floc Yes Post, (7) Hose, (8) Bec, (9) lip, and (10) lens or button.

The components of the pipe's head

Composed of two large pieces, the Head and the Hose, the pipe hides an interlacing of cavities and veins. Exploration in caving mode to better understand its secrets.

cup of a pipe head

The home/ The Furnace (made of heather wood)

Le home is large enough to allow Stuff His Tobacco pipe. What is also known Stovehas been achieved for a long time Let's put it on, from the first stage of shaping wood Heather. The bauchons are manufactured near the wood production sites, and exported. Note that Saint-Claude, the capital of the pipe does not benefit from a geographical proximity to the heathwood. South Africa, a beautiful country, also imports our drafts French. Cocorico.

Heathwood ebauchon (source smoking.fr)

At the heart of the combustion, this king material used in the Roommore precisely comes from the dried brush, between the trunk and the root, a choice that allows a longer lifespan from its generalization in manufacturing in the middle of the 19th century. 

The advantages are numerous, and this material continues to be favoured a century and a half later for its qualities:

• Physical resistance to combustion: Sustainability.
• Respect for burning aromas and aromas: The Bruyère rhizome does not give off a parasitic odor.
• Easy-to-work materials
• Abundant In the Mediterranean basin, the tree heather (Arborea) gives rhizomes in the shape of a large red bulb, often weighing more than one kilogram. 

Heath tree used for pipe fireplace

The stem

pipe rod

Cexploration in caving mode. After the fireplace, tubes of several diameters occupy the mouth of the fireplace: 

• draw hole(4): A thin pipe allows the first smoke to move towards the beak. 
• Mortaise(5): the journey continuess a wider cavity, which accommodates the end of the pipe so that the fireplace and the hose are one.

Long stems are preferred by specialists, a pleasure increased if we believe the smile of some smokers.

Long pipe rod 

The Mortaise

The Mortaise

A at this stage, the explanation looks more like an industrial drawing course. A little bit of mechanics hold both pieces (parts 5 and 6 of the first diagram), and especially to be able to disassemble and clean. Indeed, between moisture, nicotine and tar, a pipe requires is a little maintenance. Two pieces mounted and adjusted to hold together:

• The Mortise The female part, so to speak. It accommodates the tip of the pipe, called floc, we talk about it in the next chapter.
• The bottom of the mortaise (the flat part that announces the draw hole, part in "staircase" due to the change in hole diameter, see the clear part on the diagram above) also requires a cleaning, using a cotton rod. 

The components of the pipe

The floc, the tenon.

Floc, pipe tenon

Nwe were talking about the female part (the mortaise), here is the male part. in addition to fitting into the pipe head, the Post welcomes a Filter, metal (with ball sometimes), balsa, paper. The filter captures some smoke while cooling it. Let's not hide behind the words, the tar sticks to it (thanks to the activated charcoal that soaks the filter, anti-nicotine system in a way), as much less for the lungs.

Filter on pipe tenon

As you can see, there are many systems and proposals. Ball system, single-use balsa filter, screw capacitor...... In addition to the techniques, the debate is ongoing around theHumidity, the "quality" of smoke, systems with or without a filter. Some manufacturers are shaping the floc, for example, with a conical shape to avoid Condensation thanks to better circulation of smoke.

The Bec

Pipe beak

Imaterials are at the heart of the choices. It's a matter of feeling more than taste, l’ebonite and acrylic are now chosen by craftsmen. Easy to work, supple in the mouth. As with other parts of the pipe, the beak requires maintenance to avoid oxidation, taking on a greenish color and a very unpleasant accented taste due to the pain it contains. The shape of the beak becomes an exercise in art, always finer, more ergonomic.

Pipe beaks

The pipe in the beak, think back to all this technicality, at the bottom of your club chair or within a Parisian club. Be aware that there are more than twenty clubs in France.