1. Remove the stem only by turning it clockwise.
2. Stick a fluffy pipecleaner into the now stemless shank and, thru, into the bowl.
3. Fill the bowl about 85% full of kosher coarse salt. Shalom.
4. Solidly secure the salt-filled, stemless bowl tipped so the shank opening is a bit higher than the rim of the bowl and the pipe cleaner points more-or-less upward.
5. Add Everclear or 91% rubbing alcohol to the bowl with an eyedropper.
6. Stop adding alcohol when you can see it seeping around the top of the salt fill. Do not overfill and don't dribble it on the outside of the bowl - it'll strip finish and leach out woodstain. If the shank opening is higher than the rim of the bowl nothing will be dribbling out when the bowl is 85% full.
7. Let sit for an hour or so. The alcohol will evaporate up the pipecleaner and take grunge and stink and germs with it. Replace pipecleaner and add more Everclear.
8. Repeat until pipecleaner looks clean. Salt may get grungy (or not). If it does, let the bowl dry out for several hours or overnight, dump the salt out and refill with clean salt and booze.
9. Some guys use cottonballs instead of salt.
The treatment leave a pipe clean and fresh smelling.
Clean out the stem with a bristle-type pipecleaners dipped in Everclear until they come out clean. If the stem is not black-black it can sit in bleach for an hour or so (after cleaning the inside) and then be rubbed with a paper towel and a bit of olive oil to make it shiney. Sometimes a good rubbing with toothpaste or a Magic Eraser will take out grunge and small scratches to improve the sheen.
stogiefresh photo//