F.A.Q.

- How can I use the Brebbia solvent for pipes?
It is a solvent to remove tar ( and bad taste ) from smoked pipes.
You can use it to clean the bowl inside with the help of a paper cloth and inside the smoke air draught too with the help of the pipe-cleaners.
Cloth and pipe cleaners have to be moistured with the solvent before cleaning.
Do not put the solvent directly into pipes.

- Bourn out pipes.
Briar is a wood that is hard to burn but unfortunately it burns if used at higher temperatures than standard.
Another reason could be that there is a fail inside the briar wood that as it is a natural product and could have hidden fails.
For this reason we give a guarantee for 1 free substitution but we have to check and cut the pipe to verify if there are hidden fails or if the pipe has been smoked at a higher temperature than it can support without burning.
Briar is a wood that is hard to burn but unfortunately burns if used at higher temperatures than standard.
I have a lot of briar wood cut in small "ebauchons" ( old stock ) that I burn in the fire-place at home but only with the glass down ( in stove position ) as at standard temperatures can not burn at all .
A good test to verify if you smoke too hot is to count down for several seconds ( say 8 to 10 ) holding your pipe-bowl firmly in your hand during your smoke.
If you can't because is too hot, your pipe is at risk ( and is not good for your mouth too ).
Believe me , in your case , it is not a problem of putties but more of thickness of the cake.
If it is more than 6 mm. , to burn a pipe is quite impossible.
A way to set up a thick protective cake of a new pipe ,is to cover the bowl inside with honey and let it dry up before smoking . Pls. do it several time until the cake is thick enough.
But, as for any problem is possible to find a solution, I suggest you to taste a briar pipe with a meerschaum inner built-in bowl like our series Sun.

- How can I place an order of pipes ?
To order pipes for the first time, I agree, it is a little complicated but you have to consider those simple concepts.
Those concepts are basically the same for every pipe manufacturer.
First of all you have to know that our pipes are made by first quality Mediterranean briar wood that is very expensive .Even if we buy first quality ebauchons only as it is a root that grows under the hearth it encloses more or less fails like small holes or impurities.
On the consequence we try to use almost all turned bowls covering fails with stain and mastic or sandblasting or carving the pipes.
The price of a pipe is generated from those following priorities in order of importance:
1)Quality of the wood from the " Pure " that means without fails or mastic to the cheapest Sandblast.(All finishes are made to cover fails of the briar wood. Generally more the pipes are darker and more they cover fails and less they cost).
Our Golden natural finish is a light color in which mastic is well detected.
The problem comes out when you smoke the pipe and it becomes darker and darker except the mastic that is acrylic and does not change in color.
This has nothing to do with the smoking pleasure , it is more an aesthetic problem that comes out with the time.
2)The size of a pipe ( the more the briar wood is big the more it costs and there is more risk of fails.
3) Difficulty to realize shapes.
4) Mouthpiece type ,rings and embellishments.
Pls. note shapes or models of the same series and same finish cost all the same.


Straight grain *** is the top level finish ( the grain of the wood is thin like Angel's hair 4/ 4 all around and it is worked from straight grain platoes of briar wood ( super rare and expensive ) ** and *are cheaper choices .

A Straight grain pipe has to be clean or pure as standard.
This way we cut the shape ( free hand) and we reduce it in size until all the visible surface is mastic free " pure " and only after this we make the hole of the fire -place in the middle.
This way the more the shape is classical and symmetrical the more it is difficult to make and costs. Points from 2 to 4 are valid for Straight grains too.
We never know if there are fails in the not visible part of the root.
This way we give a guarantee against burns.
To order pipes pls. specify in the following order:
1) series name 2) finish 3) quantity of every single shape and total 4) price of each pc.
For ex at page 70 :
Series 1960 Golden Natural 3/624 2/ 4001 1/1005 2/8006 total 8 pcs. at Euro 15 each.
As option you also can write 8 shapes assorted.
Where the shape numbers are not specified are at our choice generally half straight and half bent.
-Pls. place the trial order in free form and we will ask you more info if it will not be clear for us and after this we will send you the order confirmation.
-You can order accessories at the same terms.
- We will try to find something and send it to you
-Pipes are generally packed in single boxes with a pouch ad international guarantee.

- How can I use the Brebbia pipe-polish?
You can use our polish with a soft cloth to clean the mothpiece expecially if it is made by vulcanite to keep it always shiny. If you polish it regularly, it takes few minutes.Pls. note that the cloth has to be soft and clean to avoid scratches.
If you have really grey mouthpiece you need to rub a lot but they finally will shine like new .To speed you up you can use a buffer on a driller.
You can use the same polish for the heads to remove tar and dirt but very gently not to remove the stain.To clean the heads it is better to use a soft cloth and bee wax that is less aggressive and refurbish your pipe w/out removing the stain.
We sell a double felt soft cloth.One is pre-impregnated to wax the pipe and the other one is to polish the pipe.

- Why some mouthpieces turn color from black to brown ?
You bought a pipe with vulcanite mouthpiece ( NATURAL RUBBER VULCANIZED WITH SULFER POWDER).
The advantages are that the mouthpiece is more tender, elastic pleasant, slim and comfortable if you hold the pipe with the teeth.
The sulfur is a strong antiseptic and anti microbe but unfortunately with the day light turns the color of the mouthpiece to grey but only superficially.
The only thing to do is to refurbish it with a specific polish and a soft cloth or if you cannot get it from your dealer a common car polish.
If you polish regularly it takes few minutes.
In Europe we generally prefer this kind of mouthpieces for the above written reasons and also because it costs less but I realize that in US it is not so popular anymore.