fernan Posted January 5, 2011 Share Posted January 5, 2011 Hello everyone, Ive been using a cheap no-name frankenstein hookah composed of various hand me down and mismatched parts replaced as things broke. Finally decided to take the plunge and go to a more name-brand hookah that seems well liked here after doing tons of research at various vendors and on this forum I decided to treat myself finally to a good hookah. I picked a KM model found at what seemed like a good price, there was a review here on the same model that seemed positive. Upon unboxing I immediately noticed corrosion on the heart around the joint where the mouth piece pipe is joined to the stem. The corrosion is mostly white like battery corrosion looking with some green colored stuff present also. The patch of corrosion is about a good inch or so at the widest point. This was immediately concerning,but, hoped it was just on the outside. Looking down that pipe I see what looks like a kind of pock mark texture all inside of that pipe. It really doesnt look corroded, more like just rough metal, but, it is really hard to see inside past the curve. I removed the blow off valve and looking down that small pipe I see what seems to be corrosion also, its actually somewhat in the middle of that little air-clearance chamber. There is also corrosion at the joint of the pipe that goes into the water and the heart and at the two underneath holes that lead to the mouthpiece and blow off valve and even looks like some of the plating peeled off where those holes are. I also see some dusty dingy stuff on the gasket... possibly leading me to believe it sat in a warehouse for a long time.. possibly. Holidng the whole thing up to the light and looking through the main downstem pipe I also see little dots of some type of substance coating the entire inner wall of the pipe.... It looks a lot like the first hookah I ever got looked... someone gave it to me and I don't think it had ever been cleaned after years of use, so , had a buildup of various substances all through the pipe which did seem to come off on that one with a good cleaning. I otherwise have to reason to believe the hookah is used, so, I don't know if this is more corrosion, or, just some type of manufacturing residue.... I took a brush and rubbed just right near the top of the pipe, and like my old hookah, this stuff does seem to come off, but, why is it there? Is the to be expected from a brand new name brand KM hookah? If not, What would you do if you received one in this condition from a well known (not someone on the banned list or anything..) online vendor? Would it be safe to clean up and use or am I just asking for trouble? Even if it would be "safe" I still feel like this cant be right for a brand new premium brand hookah... even after years of use and leaving water in the vase almost all of the time my old cheapy hookah doesnt have this type of corrosion anywhere. Other than this corrosion it looks like this thing sure is nicer than my old one. It is so much heavier and has more intricate detail. I don't see the KM name anywhere on the actual pipe, but, do see it on the removable ash tray... I assume it is a genuine KM and not some cheaper knockoff. Thank you for any help with this and ideas about what should be done. fernan Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fernan Posted January 5, 2011 Author Share Posted January 5, 2011 Sorry, I made a mistake: Meant to say I have no other reason to believe it has been used (no obvious shisha smells or anything), but, it looks very similar to what some used ones I have seen look like without cleaning. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
joytron Posted January 5, 2011 Share Posted January 5, 2011 I am not going to read the whole thing so I may be off. But I am assuming you mean it seems dirty? Keep in mind these things are not cleaned before they come to you, they could be packaged away for years and are shipped over seas with countless other pipes. Just give it a solid cleaning before you smoke. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rani Posted January 5, 2011 Share Posted January 5, 2011 Because KM's are hand made, they do have a tendency to be notoriously dirty. I've personally been very lucky and have purchased pipes only from vendors to tend to check and clean them carefully before shipping. But your experience is not unique. Remember that welding metal pipes requires some sort of substance (at a loss for words at the moment - guys, what the hell is that stuff called?) that is brushed over the metal before applying the welds. So it's entirely possible what you have a a pipe that needs a very good cleaning. I would clean it first really, really well. And then check it again. If you still have concerns after the cleaning then contact the vendor as a return/replacement potential. Most will have no problem with an exchange or credit - especially if they're a reputable vendor. 'Rani Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fernan Posted January 5, 2011 Author Share Posted January 5, 2011 I can be a bit long winded -- Whoops. I suppose one could say it is "just dirty," but, it seems what in my judgement would be a bit beyond "dirty," for something brand new, even, keeping in mind they arent cleaned after manufacturing, etc... But, beyond buying a few cheap pieces (none of which looked this bad to me) I don't have the experience to tell.... Thanks for your reply, joytron. I'm hesitant to try cleaning it if this is abnormal, as, I don't want to cause any problems or make it look used if I do have to return it. Believe me I want to clean it up and use it really bad..its killing me not to be able to use it (which made this a huge dissapointment..) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rahl071 Posted January 5, 2011 Share Posted January 5, 2011 Solder, Rani, I believe. What everyone has said here, pretty much applies. A good scrubbing/polishing needs to be done before every hookah's first session, because nobody knows what's on it. if you polish it up, and the metal's been damaged, that's different. Large pitting marks, dents, machine errors, etc. But a little corrosion is just part of owning a pipe. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
joytron Posted January 5, 2011 Share Posted January 5, 2011 Rahl great quote. Also keep in mind these pipes are made in Egypt. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nargile Posted January 5, 2011 Share Posted January 5, 2011 I would like to air my thoughts and opinions on the Handmade issue ..today in the manufacturing proccess no one is sitting aroung on work benches forming or forging hookahs by hand with tools, all components are machine made and pressed, the actual assembly welding and so forth is by hand, can we consider this handmade? now to the subject of our members issue with corrosion agreed i can say yes we all overlook some minor faults and dirtiness on our purchases, and granted that weld marks some are unsightly and some are quite good, but to be perfectly honest i have so many hookahs both branded and non branded and have never ever recieved or bought a piece in the condition that our member has described above... i,m sure the person who packaged it before sending saw what condition it was in.... i would say at the end of the day it,s your decision my friend what to do with it... do what you feel is right as an end consumer..... cheers Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Genie Posted January 5, 2011 Share Posted January 5, 2011 Everything but the corrosion sounds pretty typical to me. I wouldn't hesitate to clean it up and use it and see how it hits. Without photos it's kind of hard to really make a good judgment call on whether to advise you to ask for a refund or not. Taking some photos before cleaning it might be wise just for proof if you do decide to return it. A little corrosion won't hurt a thing, however. Not as far as smoking it, anyway. If you just can't bear to look at the pipe and see all the faults, you might do better to just send it on back. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Travis Posted January 5, 2011 Share Posted January 5, 2011 [quote name='Genie' timestamp='1294220904' post='493418'] Everything but the corrosion sounds pretty typical to me. I wouldn't hesitate to clean it up and use it and see how it hits. Without photos it's kind of hard to really make a good judgment call on whether to advise you to ask for a refund or not. Taking some photos before cleaning it might be wise just for proof if you do decide to return it. A little corrosion won't hurt a thing, however. Not as far as smoking it, anyway. If you just can't bear to look at the pipe and see all the faults, you might do better to just send it on back. [/quote] Genie is right. A little dirt/corrosion isn't going to affect your smoking experience to dramatically. Then again, like she said, it's hard to determine the extent of the problem without any photos to see for ourselves. I say take some pics, then clean it up and see what you think about it. If your still displeased, call the vendor back and try and work something out. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tom1 Posted January 5, 2011 Share Posted January 5, 2011 Post pictures. The last KM I bought was disgusting and the whole downstem was completely coated with black goop which I assumed was from the manufacturing process. (Wasn't bought from a vendor) I cleaned it and everything was good. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fernan Posted January 5, 2011 Author Share Posted January 5, 2011 Hello everyone and thank you for all of the great responses, definitely a lot of insight. I am trying to get some pictures uploaded now. The aesthetic issues are not my primary concern. Though I would like it to look as nice as possible, I bought it to use, not to look at. I don't display my hookah(s) as display pieces or anything and when not in use they are more likely to be stashed out of view than the opposite. My main concern is if it is defective or otherwise was mistreated (for example stored in a overly damp warehouse for a loooong period of time). I am concerned it could continue to deteroriate leading to it becoming unusable and/or leaching dangerous substances into the water and the smoke. Also just would like to have it in the condition that I paid for it in. I still don't know based on the responses if I am blowing it out of proportion or that this is just to be expected and normal. Hopefully some pictures will help. My gut still says it doenst seem right. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Genie Posted January 5, 2011 Share Posted January 5, 2011 Maybe you should already be talking to the company you bought it from then. You aren't happy with it, does it really matter why? The customer is always right. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fernan Posted January 5, 2011 Author Share Posted January 5, 2011 Looks like I can only upload pictures of 120K or less and these are much bigger. I have put them on photobucket here: http://s1122.photobucket.com/albums/l537/fernancls/ Unfortunately it looks like photobucket resizes them to be fairly small but hopefully they are viewable and there is a zoom option to go a bit bigger. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Genie Posted January 5, 2011 Share Posted January 5, 2011 I have that exact same stem and mine looked pretty much the same way when I got it, minus some of the crap in the downstem and your hose port has a little bit more corrosion/discoloration than mine did. If it were mine, I'd clean it right up and use it without batting an eye. Oh, yours had a little bit more of the plating worn away than mine too, but it's still relatively typical of an Egyptian made stem. This hookah stem is in about the same condition as any other KM stem like it that you would get. If it bothers you, however, you have the right to contact the company and ask for one that hasn't seen such a rough ride. If it were me, I'd just use it and consider that it came with a little mileage. I love this stem and I don't care about the little faults. I care about how it hits. It's a solid stem, I had to use a Dremel tool on it in a couple of spots when I got it, and it's been a dream of a pipe ever since. The spots where it appeared corroded (and, yeah, the inside of my KM's hose port looks like hell too) have never gotten worse. Cleaning it up made it look much much better. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tikhman Posted January 5, 2011 Share Posted January 5, 2011 The pipe looks fine. It looks to be with in the normal variation of neatness due to them being hand assembled. Also, as mentioned before, its not corrosion its the weld/solder marks and discoloration. If you got it from a reputable vendor you can send them an email with the photos, but it looks like a perfectly acceptable pipe to me. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rani Posted January 5, 2011 Share Posted January 5, 2011 [quote name='rahl071' timestamp='1294210301' post='493402'] [b][color="#FF0000"]Solder[/color][/b], Rani, I believe. What everyone has said here, pretty much applies. A good scrubbing/polishing needs to be done before every hookah's first session, because nobody knows what's on it. if you polish it up, and the metal's been damaged, that's different. Large pitting marks, dents, machine errors, etc. But a little corrosion is just part of owning a pipe. [/quote] [b][color="#FF0000"]Nope, soldering is welding at a lower temperature, similar to brazing. (Former plumbing PM so soldering is kind of part of my knowledge - kind of.) I want to call it flux, but I believe flux is the coil of metal melted and used to form the fusion points - those actual puddles of metal we call welds. It's some kind of semi-liquid substance that is brushed on metal pipes beginning the welds. I ask about it because it matches the pictures exactly. It' leave a whitish powdery residue that is usually wiped off with a damp cloth once the metal has cooled and the joins are solid. Just can't remember what the hell the stuff is called. Comes in a can like PVC pipe glue about 6 inches high with a brush attached to the lid. And if not cleaned off looks exactly like the pictures.[/color][/b] 'Rani Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Arcane Posted January 6, 2011 Share Posted January 6, 2011 Rani, you're right. It's flux. Flux is used to prep the metal before welding, along the lines of cleaning a surface with alcohol before applying a decal/sticker. I can't say for sure without examining the hookah, but it doesn't look like it's corroded. The bridge area may be on the verge of corrosion, but I can't tell unless you clean it up. If there's significant pits in the metal, then it's starting to corrode. It can be halted with proper care. If it's just green/white powdery substance, it’s probably developed a patina, which is just oxidation. No big deal. Given that it’s a brass, which is fairly resistant to corrosion, I’m guessing it’s the latter. Same thing goes for the host port itself, mixed in with dirt and grime. The inside of the inner tubing is just plain old dirty. A stiff brush (or rifle barrel brush) will work wonders. As was mentioned, most of these pipes are stored at ground level where dirt, grime, and grit blow into the crevices and tubing. It doesn’t really have anything to do with being handmade, as much as it is with being stored/staged before it gets into the consumers hand. You should be cleaning a hookah prior to its first use anyways. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fernan Posted January 6, 2011 Author Share Posted January 6, 2011 Thank you to everyone that replied, sounds like this is nothing out of the ordinary. I feel a bit better now about it. I am going to try giving it a good cleaning and see what it looks like. Thanks again! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Genie Posted January 6, 2011 Share Posted January 6, 2011 [quote name='fernan' timestamp='1294278301' post='493507'] Thank you to everyone that replied, sounds like this is nothing out of the ordinary. I feel a bit better now about it. I am going to try giving it a good cleaning and see what it looks like. Thanks again! [/quote] You know we're going to want a follow up, right? Pix of the cleaned pipe. A report on your first session. Don't leave us hanging. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Create an account or sign in to comment
You need to be a member in order to leave a comment
Create an account
Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!
Register a new accountSign in
Already have an account? Sign in here.
Sign In Now