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I have ordered some sodium silicate solution and some carbon powder to coat the bowls of my pipes. Just on a whim. I've watched LL's video on how to do it and will practice on one of my earlier pipes this evening.

But, I have a couple of related questions. 1. When during the pipe making process would you normally do this? Do you do it before final sanding and polishing? 2. If I am going to try it on a finished pipe, will this stuff stain the outside of a bowl that has been polished?

Thanks,

George

It’s the last thing I do. I use sour cream and charcoal powder. If I get some on the rim, I just wipe it off.

I will be using sodium silicate so I'm not sure if that makes a difference. I will test it on an old pipe.

I use it on finished pipes all the time without problems. A rubber-glove-coated finger will lift any overage with a quick upward-rotating wiping motion (no rotation = smear).

Coating the bowl is the last thing done before photography for me. I don't get a lot of overage, but what does happen cleans up with a tissue.

Thanks guys. Tried it on an older pipe (that I made). Sanded the bowl. Cleaned it up. Used LL's method of mixing the stuff. It got a little thicker than he recommended, maybe because it is cold in my basement. It went from perfect to too thick really fast. Probably added too much at a time as well. But, it applied well enough and I rubbed it in for a long time with a rubber-gloved finger. Coverage was not perfect but next time I will add smaller amounts of carbon at a time to get the perfect consistency. I might do it in the house next time where it is not as cold.

I don't know if this is something I will do on every pipe that I make but to me it does give the pipe a more finished look than raw wood. Other than looks I'm not sure how critical it is.

The little that I got on the rim of the bowl wiped off easily and without staining anything.

Thanks again,

George

Yeah, it takes a couple test drives to truly "get" the moment the right flowable thickness has been reached, as well as how fast the too-thick corner is turned when adding carbon. In short, colloids that harden linearly with time---lava one minute, and too thick the next---are weird to handle because they aren't often found in daily life.

The good news is both powdered charcoal and SS are inexpensive so practicing costs almost literally nothing. And once you know the feel it's reliably repeatable with little effort and becomes just another tool in your kit.

I tried it this evening on a pipe I recently finished. It went much better but still reached that rubbery consistency very quickly but I got it right or close to it. Coverage was good but not perfect in terms of uniformity. I think I need to apply it when it is a tad thinner than what I had this time. I think third time should be the charm but as you say, easy enough to practice.