New in The Lounge: SELECTING A PIPE BASED ON HOW YOU SMOKE

NicoleSTGLaneLtd

Let's assume that we have a table full of pipes that all appeal to you. Now you have to consider how you smoke to help you make a good selection.

https://thispipelife.com/tpl-article/29/

ghostsofpompeii

Great article and a good guide for newcomers to the hobby. A lot to consider.  

motie2

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Why one settles on a particular pipe or pipe shape depends on three preferences:  Purpose, Aesthetics, and Price.

Purpose -- Some want a pipe they can take everywhere. For them, the best choice is a pipe of sturdy construction, lightweight and comfortable to clench, easy to maintain, and resistant to wear or damage.  (Or a cob!!!) Others pipe smokers prefer a pipe for relaxing at the end of the long day.  For them, it's important to consider how large the bowl is (for longer, uninterrupted smokes), how comfortable it is to hold (or clench), how cool it smokes, and how much craftsmanship went into fashioning it.

Aesthetics --  When pipe smoking was more common, the pipe was one of the few acceptable forms of male jewelry.  How a pipe looked was an important consideration.  It doesn't hurt to check out how a pipe "looks on you."

Price --  The initial investment can be intimidating; one is often advised to buy "the best pipe one can afford (or a cob!).  Fortunately, there are many affordable options to choose from.  Good quality pipes are available for purchase at reasonable prices, so purchasing a decent pipe is relatively affordable.  No matter your budget, there are fine smoking pipes available.  And if you buy a cob, but a good cob; perhaps one sold under the Missouri Meerschaum name.

motie2

Hey, what the heck is all that formatting stuff?

NicoleSTGLaneLtd

@motie2 Did you try to add an image?

motie2

@NicoleSTGLaneLtd -- No, Milady. And I'm able to include pix when I want to. This formatting gibberish just seems to show up now and again. I'm careful to only post plain text and not formatted or copied from formatted text.

LumberjackWizard

The first pipe I ever bought, a 2016 Peterson 69 Fishtail - St. Patrick's Day Edition, has become the only pipe I smoke Latakia blends in. I was interested in really only Latakia blends when I started at the beginning of this year, and as my pipe collection expanded, I didn't care to ghost my other pipes with Latakia. I have a Moonshine Poker that is almost exclusively used for Virginia or VaPer blends (occasionally used for this 1 aromatic I just absolutely love). The rest of my collection gets whatever I care to smoke in that moment (except Latakia blends), which is usually a Virginia-based blend.

I made the mistake of smoking some Captain Black's Cherry through a few of them (I was curious about my girlfriend's grandpa's favor tobacco), and that ghost just won't leave those pipes.

I know cobs aren't supposed to take on flavor, but is that y'all's experience with cob and heavy aromatics?

motie2

I disagree: My experience is that cobs take on "flavor" more and faster than briars.

Londy3

how do you get rid of the flavor in a pipe?

PappyJoe

@motie2 - you are a contrarian. (LOL. but so am I at times)

A lot of people will tell you they don't ghost. I think that is a misunderstanding based on the claim that to get the true flavor of a new tobacco you should smoke it first in a cob. What that leaves out is that it should be a relatively new cob. 

Cobs will ghost and once a cob ghost, your choices are either to dedicate it to the tobacco that ghosted it or throw it out and buy a new cob. You cannot remove a ghost that has made itself home in a cob because the normal salt and alcohol treatments will destroy the cob. 

I personally like the Missouri Meerschaum Legend corn cob pipe for trying new tobacco. I usually find them for under $7 each and I will use it until it ghosts.  I have 4 of them currently. 

motie2

@Londy3 -- https://pipedia.org/wiki/Pipe_care/cleaning#What_can_I_do_when_my_pipe_.22turns_sour.22.3F

<<What can I do when my pipe "turns sour"?

A pipe, properly cared for, will probably outlast its owner. Occasionally, however, a pipe may begin to taste bitter or "sour." Sometimes this is caused by not allowing the pipe sufficient time to "rest" between smokes; other times, no cause can be determined with certainty. In any event, such a pipe can usually be rejuvenated by applying the "Professor's Pipe-Sweetening Treatment," publicized by Dennis Congos.

First, find some salt (non-iodized is preferred, but not essential), some alcohol (preferably "Everclear," or some other form of near-pure, non-denatured ethanol), and a place to rest your pipe in a semi-upright position. Insert a pipe cleaner into the stem of the pipe so that it extends into the shank. Fill the bowl to the rim with salt and drip or carefully pour alcohol into the bowl until the salt is just saturated. Try not to get any alcohol on the pipe's exterior, as this may damage the finish; any spills should be wiped up immediately. Leave the pipe alone for a day or two. After this time the salt will have turned brown from the absorption of "tars" from the bowl. Thoroughly clean all salt from the bowl and set the pipe aside overnight to dry completely. Your pipe will now be revitalized, and all traces of bitterness should be gone.

WARNING: Many people swear by this process, but the procedure is not risk-free. Some people have had pipes crack after this treatment, particularly when they allowed the salt and alcohol mixture to enter the pipe's shank and/or when they left the mixture in the pipe for several days. Any pipe with significant monetary or sentimental value should be sent to a professional pipe repair person.

You might also want to give the stem draft-hole a thorough cleaning by periodically cleaning it with a scrubbing bristle pipecleaner dipped in alcohol or a "pipe sweetener".

G.L. Pease also offers a more effective method:

"I reamed the pipe almost back to bare wood, pre-heated my electric oven to 220°F, and turned it off. After removing the pipe's stem, I filled the bowl with activated charcoal pellets purchased from the local aquarium supply shop. Placing the pipe on a soft towel in the oven, I left it to sit while the oven cooled - about an hour... No perceptible difference was detected.

A couple of conversations with Trever Talbert, friend, pipesmith extraordinaire, and constant experimenter with briar, provided an important piece of information; briar heats very slowly. He explained that it could take several hours for a piece of briar's temperature gradient to reach equilibrium with the ambient temperature. Clearly, my pipe's short stint in the Sauna was insufficient to do the job.

I reheated the oven, this time setting the thermostat to 180°F, knowing from my tests that the temperature in my empty oven would vary between about 180°F and a bit over 200°F, well below the temperature at which the briar would scorch. Stemless and empty, I placed the bowl on its towel in the oven, on the upper rack, far away from the source of radiant heat, where it would be left to sit for three hours.

After removing the now hot pipe, I filled the bowl with the activated charcoal, and placed it back in the oven for an additional three hours. When the pipe was finally removed, and emptied of the charcoal, there was absolutely no trace of its prior scent ... After allowing the pipe to cool overnight, the stem was refitted, the bowl filled with a favored blend, delicate enough to allow any vestigial flavors from the pipe to come through clearly. I sat down to experience the fruits of my labors. Success! Only at the very bottom of the bowl was a slight hint of the previous aroma, and this disappeared completely after a couple of smokes.">>

Woodsman

Pappy Joe's "Coffee Method" worked very well for me, When I've used the Salt method I've found that my stems seem to be a little looser after the treatment. 

motie2

From http://pipesmagazine.com/python/pipe-smoking/pipe-smoking-tips/

•Make sure that your pipe is cleaned from your previous smoke before loading and packing fresh tobacco.

•Use Less Tobacco Than You Think You Need

•Pack Looser Than You Think You Need To

•Always Check the Draw of the Pipe Before Lighting

•Always leave at least 1/8 of an inch (I prefer closer to 1/4 of an inch) of space from the top of the tobacco to the rim.

•Perform a Charring Light

•Fully Light the Tobacco

•Tamp Less Frequently and With Less Pressure

Detail at website

xDutchx

I agree that not only will cobs ghost, they also build cake. I remember reading years ago that you can't build cake in a cob. I'm not sure what they were smoking, but I am guessing it wasn't tobacco.

While most of the cake will come out of a cob with distilled spirits easier than briar, there are many small nooks an crannies in a cob, that will hold on to cake, making it easier to ghost.

I always dedicate cobs to a particular genre, and sometimes exclusively a particular blend.

motie2

How Hot is Too Hot? The Thermodynamics of Pipe Smoking

http://www.apassionforpipes.com/classic-blog-posts/the-thermodynamics-of-pipe-smoking.html

<<It was eye opening. I knew that combustion temperature affected flavor, as most tobaccos will pick up a chemical taste if pushed too hard. I will often smoke too fast and puff too frequently, driving the burning temperature higher until it creates an acrid aroma and harsh taste. 

I started to pay attention to how I lit and smoked my pipes. I can honestly say that it has made a real difference in my enjoyment, and it has added an element to how I approach blending. Once I’ve settled on a blend, I then use different methods to light it, and smoke it at different levels of intensity so I can either modify the blend or warn the smoker if high temperatures will drastically distort the flavor. 

The concept is to use the lower amount of heat possible while smoking to get the truest and most enjoyable flavor, as you not only get the taste of the burning tobacco, but also from the volatile organic compounds (VOC) as they vaporize before combustion. When the temperature gets too high, some of the flavor of the VOCs go unnoticed as they’re changed by the greater heat. 

So, now some of the old wisdom makes sense. Older pipe smokers always told me that they would light with a match unless there was a wind. Matches have the lowest temperature for lighting your tobacco, which translates into the most flavorful smoke. 

Another thing that sprang from this is that I now try to light my pipe in the very center rather than to get the whole top glowing, because as the heat spreads outward to the unlit tobacco, more of the flavorful VOCs are released which adds layers and dimensions to the experience that I had never encountered before. 

So, gather up those long wooden matches and strips of cedar, go lightly on the heat, smoke slowly, and a whole new world of flavor can be found. I guess that a lot of times new research goes to prove that the old timers often knew better.>>

BriarThePipeSmoker

I've found the in which I smoke, which is to say fast and lots of thick clouds, certainly leaves me leaning towards thick-walled and big bowls. Whenever I've deviated from it I've wound up not liking the pipe as it will become too hot to handle.

I think this is also why I tend to stay with latakia, aside from it just being my flavour preference, as naturally you can just continually puff latakia and all that really happens (in my experience, anyway) is that it tastes smokier.

motie2

OK, then. Time for a repost of perhaps the best pipe smoking advice ever:

motie2

https://www.smokershaven.com/pipe-guide/

Purpose, Aesthetics, and Price -- Part 2 (excerpt)

Selecting Your First Pipe

There are several options available for those wishing to take up the tobacco pipe, each with their own benefits and drawbacks.  What leads any individual to settle on any particular pipe depend on primarily three preferences:  Purpose, Aesthetics, and Price.  If you haven't considered these preferences for yourself, here are a few thoughts on each point:

Purpose

Every pipe smoker enjoys the ritual of pipe smoking in the context of his or her own daily routine and how they want a pipe to be a part of their life.  Some desire a pipe they can take everywhere and do everything with – for this kind of pipe smoker, the preferable pipe is often of sturdy construction, relatively lightweight (or comfortable to clench), easy to maintain, and resistant to wear.  Others may only want a pipe for relaxing at the end of the long day without combining the pipe with much other activities.  For them, it may be more important to consider how large the bowl is (for longer smoking sessions), how comfortable it is to hold (if they don't like clenching), how cool it smokes, and how the pipe is styled.

Aesthetics

When pipe smoking was more common in Western society, the pipe was considered to be one of the few acceptable forms of male jewelry.  How a pipe looked was an important consideration for each pipe smoker's personal style and wardrobe.  What you may find to be a pipe you like for its own sake may later disappoint you when it comes to wearing it.  Although many pipe smokers today may not have a preference, it always helps to check in a mirror to see how a pipe may suit you.  Most aesthetic preferences do not have a major impact on the way a pipe may smoke, but it is also important to consider how your aesthetic preference may conflict with your intended purpose (e.g., you want to go on long walks with your pipe for which a smaller pipe is generally more suitable or comfortable, but you prefer the look of a large pipe).

Price

Compared to other forms of tobacco, pipe smoking is the most economical in the long run, but the initial investment can be intimidating.  Fortunately for the new pipe smoker, there are many affordable options to choose from.  Tobacco pipes are also a commodity which has the highest return in quality in the lower echelons of price, so purchasing and collecting high quality specimens is relatively affordable. No matter your budget, there are fine smoking pipes available.