Why/When/How did you start smoking a pipe?

PappyJoe

I started in 1972 while floating around the icepack in the Bering Sea during what was  called a "Summer Cruise". I had a el cheapo drugstore pipe and what ever OTC the ship's store carried. Other than my grandfather who smoked a pipe, I didn't know any other pipes smokers before that but we had maybe 15 or 20 on the boat. They would sit around on the fantail or on the mess deck and smoke their pipes when off duty. This was back when the only time you couldn't smoke in the dining area was during meals. So I joined them.

LostMason

I started in 1983,stationed at Schofield Barrcks,I have smoked cigarettes since 78 and pipes
were and are the pinnacle of mature smoking.Now I just really like the flavors and relaxation
that comes with the ritual.

Topaz75

Straight from a couple of pipes given to me by my grandfather in 1965. He smoked some dreadful tobacco that cost about 15 cents a pouch, which was ridiculously cheap even in those days. I gladly accepted the pipes, but rather quickly found my own sources for tobacco.

I actually did once make the mistake of trying to smoke some of his tobacco. All I remember is that it was awful, and that my mother developed a nosebleed just from sitting in the same room.

judandhispipe

I started in 1968, as a freshman at Michigan State, because I thought that pipe smoking was part of being a  "college man", to use an old-time term.

mhajec

I started way way back in 1996. My Uncle Stan is the reason I took up smoking pipe. I remember visiting my grandmother in Utica, New York, my Uncle owned the building and lived in the unit below her. Anyway, he smoked pipe, and his place smelled so amazing that I'd go down stairs and sit with my Aunt Peggy while she would crochet and watch her shows just so I could take in the smell. I never knew what tobaccos he smoked so I am constantly on the search for tobacco that takes me back to those times. Unfortunately my aunt and uncle have since passed and I don't contact with my cousins so I will never truly know.

PappyJoe

@mhajec - I have been told that my grandfather favorite pipe tobacco was George Washington up until he couldn't get it. They stopped making it in the early 1970s and it was a burley blend I've been told. After that he smoked Prince Albert or Carter Hall I think. 

Kcwarthog

I started smoking in 2012 and I am definately still learning. My Uncle who died in the Line of Duty as a Fireman used to smoke a pipe and I loved the aroma of his pipe and I wanted something to remind me of him.

drac2485

I started somewhere around 2006 with a basket churchwarden and a house blend Irish Puff (its not sutliff's unfortunately).  I got the basics from the clerk at the B&M tobacco store, pretty good lesson too as I remember the first couple bowls going off without a hitch.  I got into it because I was smoking way too much at the time, 2 packs a day, and wanted to smoke something better.  Unfortunately, it didn't fit with my active gogogogo style and being in a nonsmoking household so I didn't stick to it.  I got back into it about a year later when I bought a new basket pipe, smoked it once, and didn't smoke a pipe again for a couple years.  I finally got back into the pipe about 4 years again when I got into civil war re-enacting and have done it off and on since.  I finally quit cigarettes over a year and a half ago and started smoking pipes much more, only about once or twice a week.  Being part of this group and learning from everyone has gotten me into smoking my pipes a lot more.  I love that it forces me to slow down.

thewanderingdude

1999 and I was about to go on a fly fishing trip on the upper Kern River. I stopped at a local Thrifty and bought a Dr Grabow and a pouch of Captain Black. It just seemed fitting for a guy with a whole day of fly fishing ahead of him to have a pipe and tobacco on him. Off I went and tried to smoke that damn thing all that weekend and never could figure it out. Fast forward a few years and a lot of internet learning and here I am. I must say I really have only been serious into the hobby for the last three years or so.

JosiahWN

I started in 2013 with a Dr Grabow and a big bag of cheap tobacco, which I later found out was one of those tobaccos that is for rolling but they label as pipe tobacco. I was always drawn to the aesthetic of the pipe but was worried about smoking because I am a vocal performer. At this time I was living in Duluth Minnesota, my backyard led straight into the woods that had a great creek in it, and my room had rooftop access that look out over all of it. I wanted nothing more than to sit, smoke, and stare at it all. So I got over the worries of damaging my vocals, because with pipes it really doesn't damage you, and I bought a pipe and I've been in love ever since. Thankfully I switched to much better tobaccos soon after that and I learned the difference between rolling tobacco disguised as pipe tobacco and actual pipe tobacco.

PappyJoe

@josiahwn - And to think about all those old rock & roll stars and pop singers of the 50s - 80s who never thought about damaging their vocal cords by smoking and drinking. 

pipeman83

1983,when I turned 21, my uncle smoked a pipe and I thought it was cool.

DanielCSan9592

I started last year as a 47 year old former pastor.  

Mangoandy

1986 - Freshman in college. Great tobacco shop in the college town. Savinelli Roma and their best selling Village Blend. 

thebadgerpiper

2012. I've been facinated by pipes my whole life, despite never meeting any beforehand. As a writer, I've always wanted to be like the bookstore owner from The Neverending Story, an old pipe smoking book fan that introduces others to the wonders of stories.

Bought a Peterson from smokingpipes.com, some pipe tobacco from Boswells, and dove into the hobby, never looking back.

JosiahWN

@pappyjoe Haha! I know it's a kinda funny thinking back on that now.

PappyJoe

@josiahwn - unless you were an opera singer.

JosiahWN

@pappyjoe Not an opera singer. Musical theater and some classical styles. I still sing and smoking hasn't changed a thing in that regard.

daveinlax

I was in high school in the late 70's. Hef smoked a pipe so I figured I should too. I had a slim Dr G billiard, silver and faux black onyx Zippo and a pouch of Mixture 79. LoL! I was the the tall picture of the elegant ladies man. I've moved on but I still have the pipe and lighter somewhere in the davecave. 

dstrib

In 2008. Was predominantly a cigar smoker back than. At five to ten dollars a cigar and up and a cigar or two a day it really started adding up. Was at the B&M and noticed a few pipe smokers which seemed to be enjoying themselves. Took a look at all different house blends most of which were aromatic picked up a sample and a Bijarne Viking pip. Didn't love it at first. Was never taught how to pack the pipe properly. Being a Gen Xer I took to the Internet trying to learn more about pipe smoking taking in as much as I could via YouTube and Fourms. Since I didn't want to put much money in to pipe smoke in to start I found a love for Cob pipes and Estate pipes. Tobacco wise after the first sample from the B&M I started my OTC phase and still to his day enjoy a bowl of carter hall or Prince Albert. Was not a huge fan of Captian Black and Sir Walter, that is not to say I wouldn't pass up a free bowl of them. Back in 2009 I ordered an eight blend trail back from Cornell and Diehl back when you could order directly from them. It was as pleasure working directly with Craig and Patty. To this day I wish I took more advantage of their knowledge. They did help me pick some really good blends. And man has their web page changed. Just looked it up using the Wayback machine internet archive. (Link below). Might be a easy way to see what they had around in 2007 if you are interested. Took a hiatus the from both pipes and cigars between 2010 and 2015 due to job changes, moving, getting married and home brewing beer. Have come back to pipe smoking in 2015 find it relaxing which is something I will need if I can find time in the upcoming months with our first child on the way.

http://web.archive.org/web/20070529073825/http://cornellanddiehl.com/index.html

lesliesrussell

I have enjoyed reading this thread. It is neat how similar many of these stories are to my own.
My grand father (a frightening man) smoked a pipe. He had a pipe rack that held seven or eight pipes, and had a green glass humidor in the center. He smoked either walnut or Granger, depending upon what was available. The odd thing was that he used the humidor to store his pipe cleaners and matches.
He only ever smoked out of a corn cob pipe.
I was always afraid of him. But one day I screwed up my courage and told him I wanted to smoke a pipe.
This stern man became a different person. I had never seen him smile or tell a joke, but that day he explained how to smoke a pipe. Why he had so many pipes. How he cleans his and much more that I have since forgotten. He promised that when he died I could have one of his pipes to keep.
He died in the early 1970's. I never got that pipe, but I did start smoking soon after.
I remember the ritual that he used to go through before each bowl. I wish I had known him better.

judandhispipe

George Washington pipe tobacco, for those who might be interested.

PappyJoe

@judandhispipe - I almost bought an empty tin at a junk shop this weekend... until I saw they were asking $40 for the empty tin and it was rusted pretty bad. I'm going to have to research it and see what the tobacco was like.

judandhispipe

Yeah,that's pretty steep for a rusted tin, @pappyjoe. Good luck searching for info!

drac2485

@distrib I forgot about their site looking like that.  As much as I like what C&D has been able to do since they were bought by Laudisi I am sad that the first blend I fell in love with was no longer produced after the buyout.

joshbishop

I smoked my first pipe when I was 20 or so (that'd be 14 years ago), but I didn't get into it in earnest until maybe two or three years ago. I was going through a pretty low point in my life and decided to spend more time doing things that bring me joy. Smoking a pipe was toward the top of my list.

My dad smoked a pipe when I was young — I still think of him whenever I smell cherry cavendish. That's probably why I started. I love the literary associations (J.R.R. Tolkien, C.S. Lewis, Sherlock Holmes), and for some reason it seems to be popular in the theological circles I run in (youngish, Reformed).

My first pipe was a Dr. Grabow. I still smoke it from time to time.

Elruletero

Started smoking a pipe in 2013/14, two years before that smoked cigars. Before then it was just cigarettes. One day after talking to a friend of mine that works at cigar shop about pipe a few weeks later thought I would give it a try. I knew my father tried pipe smoking in trying to give up cigarette in the early 80s. But never got to talk to my father about pipes, so pretty much everything has come from YouTube and podcast.

Woodsman

My Dad smoked a pipe, he passed when I was 9. I picked up the pipe at 15. Saved up and bought a Kaywoodie. (Lost it in the Service.) been doing it on and off since 1956.

johnscs

I was a pre-teen when I decided I'd smoke a pipe, influenced partly by a beloved grandpa, partly by the irresistible allure of aromatic pipe smoke, and partly by my impression that pipe guys were on to something special. The pipe smokers I knew were easy-going, even-tempered, and just plain cool. After experimenting with some of my grandpa's Sir Walter Raleigh and Amphora in one of my dad's ratty briars (and figuring the smoking experience had to be a little better than that), I bought a Medico billiard and started fresh with Borkum Riff. I was 15 and gradually learned how to pack, light, and smoke my pipe without burning my tongue. By the time I started college, my pipe rotation included a Dr. G and a no-name basket briar (which I still smoke). Meeting other guys my age who enjoyed a pipe lowered my inhibitions and encouraged me to relax with my briar more often. The pipe was a helpful study aid and always a great conversation starter. Also branched out from mass-market tobaccos to higher-quality bulk blends - discovered a new level of smoking enjoyment, for sure. 

SuppressedRage

I think this might be my favorite thread that I came across on here.

I was a heavy smoker in high school smoking, 2 packs of Marlboro a day and chewing 3/4 to 1 tin of Copenhagen a day. I quit smoking cold turkey in my mid 20s, (I just turned 41 this past August), though because my girlfriend at the time but future wife to be was allergic to cigarette smoke. I quit chewing in my late 20's because I kept getting little white sores in my mouth so that scared me.
Fast forward to April... or maybe it was May of 2016. I was trying to think of ways to stay awake while driving truck through the night, (getting tired of the struggle after about 14 years of doing so), without going back to cigarettes, (not even an option in my mind. NEVER again), or chewing in fear of getting those little white sores back. I decided that a pipe might be an option. I investigated it rather heavily on the Internet and decided the health risks were minimal enough that I'd give it a try... or at lest somehow break it to the wife that I wanted to give it a try.
So sitting around one of our weekly or so campfires out in the front yard, I just mentioned to her that I thought it'd be fun to try smoking a pipe for something to do while sitting around the fire and trying to stay alert while driving. Expecting to get shot down right away, she said, "I like the smell of pipe smoke". Wait, what?! You're ok with me doing this. (Oh, I didn't mention that she's a nurse. It was fitting that we met up since I was a bull rider on the APRA circuit).
Well, that settled it right there and then. I watched countless hours of how to videos and tobacco review videos and whatever else I could look up over the next couple days, Went out and found a local b&m tobacco store and picked up a Missouri Meerschaum Country Gentleman pipe and a couple ounces of Maple & Rum, I think made by Lane tobacco. After watching a couple more how to videos on YouTube I figured the 3 step packing technique out after only a couple of try's. Since then I've ordered several different kinds of tobacco deciding I don't care for burly tobaccos because they taste to much like cigarettes, (I despise that taste and smell now) but very very much enjoy English and Balcan tobaccos.
I since met a fellow pipe smoker at church but don't ever get to smoke with him due to my intense work/driving schedule.
O.K. I better cut this story off now, that got more lengthy and detailed than I planned.

IndyJG

Started back in 2012 when I was 33. Was a cigar smoker and wanted to try pipe smoking as I remember the wonderful memories of my grandfather smoking his pipe from my childhood. He was a traditional single pipe owning man smoking his one drugstore blend always. So I did some online searching, and bought a new Radice pipe and some Cornell & Diehl tins from Smokingpipes.com, and it has just progressed from there. I wish I had started earlier.