i done did it...

[bdub]

I bought a pipe!!! Its a rather simple Nording, but, she holds real well in my hand. The shop tossed in the cleaning stuff, and a good sized bag of tobacco. its a house blend. not too shabby at all. this pipe thing is great. where cigars make my car smell like a turd, this thing makes smell as if i keep it clean. my humi might spend some time wondering where ive gone.

Now, so i dont screw it up, do you all have any key advice.
Break in(ive only done one bowl), cleaning, and whatever else is necessary to make sure i dont ruin my new toy.

Brandon

 

[Brendan]

Some say a new pipe should be smoked in increments; like the first 5 smokes just fill it 1/3 full, next 5 smokes 2/3, then full bowls. Others say just fill it up from the start. Most all agree that you should puff lightly and smoke the bowl all the way to the bottom each time. Depending on tobacco blend/type and moisture content you'll want to smoke slowly to keep the pipe and tobacco "cool", this helps keep the bottom of your bowl dry. this is where excess moisture will build and make the pipe gurgle and hard to smoke.

If it gurgles, stick a pipe cleaner down the stem to soak up the moisture, and resume smoking. Try and smoke at a speed that keeps the bowl below a temp that makes it too hot to touch. If you can hold the warm/hot bowl to your cheek for 5 seconds you're doing fine. Cool smoking is also a key to reducing the odds of togue bite; thats when you smoke it too hot and it burns your tonque a little.

Pipe smoking takes practice, ask questions here or at your pipe shop. There are also some good books by Hacker, Newcombe and others on pipes and smoking.

Enjoy!

 

[Brendan]

As far as cleaning goes, I just run a pipe cleaner down the stem and into the bowl, running it back and forth a few times. Remove and insert the other end and repeat. Then I fold the cleaner in half and lightly swab the inside of the bowl. Only once in a-great-while do I take the stem out of the bowl for a thorough cleaning with some grain alcohol to remove tar build up. Unless you get a pipe with a military bit, like a Peterson or others. These bits can be removed anytime even when the pipe is still warm (something you should never do to a regular stem/bit as it could loosen the stem's fit or break the shank)

Most smoke a briar pipe only once every 24 hours, a meerschaum can be smoked many times a day everyday. I have smoked a briar 2-3 times in a day, but then I'll ket it rest for a few days or a week before taking it up again. This is a good reason to buy more pipes, and I believe is the reason for the seven day set or why you'll see many pipe holders hold 6 pipes. 6 pipes in the rack, one in your hand 8)

 

[Maggot]

As far as cleaning goes, I do the same as Brendan. One thing to make sure of is to make sure you don't tap the bowl on a hard surface when emptying it. I just turn it upside down and tap the side on the heel of my hand.

For breaking it in, try doing an internet search, and you'll come up with a ton of ways to do it. I've seen where people put honey, burbon, or some other stuff in the bowl with the tobacco the first time they smoke it, but I don't really think that's necessary. I just smoke new bowls slowly, and they break in just fine.

As Brendan said, try not to let the bowl get too warm. If you can feel the heat biting your tongue, you're going too fast. Smoking a pipe takes a bit of practice, so expect it not to stay lit for long the first few times you smoke it, and have plenty of matches on hand.

Welcome to the world of pipes!

 

[Xeke]

Get a pipe tool with a tamper. Then tamp the tobacco down in the bowl as it's smoked. This keeps it lit, but also keeps the tobacco burning to the bottom of the bowl.

You can smoke a pipe two, three, even four times a day, but you need to keep the heel from getting wet.

NEVER take a warm pipe apart -- regardless of what sort of bit it has. Moving the bit in the hot shank can break the shank.

When I'm done with a bowl I stir up the ash, hold my thumb over the mouth of the bowl and coat the interior of the bowl with white ash. This helps develop a cake inside the bowl. Also, the dry ash helps dry the interior of the bowl.

Run a pipe cleaner down the stem and shank, into the bowl. Turn the cleaner end for end and run it again. Then set the pipe with the stem facing up so the moisture in the stem can run into the bowl and evaporate.

Smoked pipe should get to "rest" for a few days. A week is nice. Seven day pipe sets are made with this in mind. Most smokers have several pipes. I rarely smoke a pipe more than twice in a day.

If your pipe is getting a damp "wad" in the bottom of the bowl it's time to clean it and give it a rest -- more than time actually.

Breaking in --

Dust out the bowl with a damp cotton swab, remove the factory and shipping dust. Run a moist pipe cleaner through the stem for the same reason. Water is fine. Bourbon or brandy is nice if you have some. Personally, I wouldn't waste the liquor.

Small pinch in the bottom of the bowl and smoke it completely. Let the bowl cool before smoking again.

About five smokes and then 2/5 and five smokes, 3/5 bowl and five, 4/5 and five, and finally fulll bowl. Don't rush!

You want to build a cake in the bowl from the bottom to the top. And you want the cake dry and hard, not gummy, wet.

Get a decent pipe lighter and learn to light the tobacco with the flame. Don't flame the top of the bowl. I see pipe bowls that are scorched and burned away from lighting.

There are books out on pipe smoking. They're worth reading. Pipes and tobacco are nice to smoke and relaxing if you're willing to learn how to care for a pipe.

Most pipe smoking books discuss tobaccos, and that's a whole world unto itself.