Pipes

[bindibadgi]

Does anybody here smoke a pipe?

I have always wanted to, but the anti smoking culture is so prevalent in my circles (and especially my wife and my parents) that I am too hesitant to start. Also I do not know any pipe smokers personally. I do own a vintage pipe, and I love to smell the bowl.

I should say that I hate the smell of cigarette smoke, and even cigar smoke, but I just love the smell of pipe smoke - and I'm not just talking aromatic stuff; I like the smell of every pipe I have ever encountered.

What is the general feeling around here?

Oh, I should state my age because it seems that for a twenty-six year old it is seen as not only unhealthy but also pretentious to smoke a pipe.

 

[Nick Charles]

Try this link. I started a thread when I first joined http://www.thefedoralounge.com/showthread.php?t=1442&highlight=pipes

 

[Twitch]

Bindi you can use a very nice aromatic tobacco found everywhere called Captain Black. No one will be offended by its sweet aroma. I'd caution that an outside setting is best these days. Experiment with some other blends for when you aren't outside in public.

Most new pipes are based on age old classic designs so you don't need to smoke up your vintage one. Just find a tobacco shop and you can acquaire all the accessories you'll need- pouches, cleaners, scrapers and such.

 

[Shaul-Ike Cohen]

I'd like to warn you, though, that many, if not most tobaccos that have a nice "room note" taste horribly, worst case like a mouthful of sticky chemicals, best case like flavourless paper.

To many smokers, in particular those that didn't smoke cigarettes before, a sound dose of Latakia is quite appealing - that's the smoky one. It looks dark and has a strong smell you should check with your partner before (or avoid if you're looking for one), but in fact, it contains much less nicotine than the brighter, fresh looking Virginia that is also used for cigarettes.

Forget about the pretentiousness thing! That is entirely a matter of attitude, and I've seen enough of people in your age, let alone high school kids, that look ridiculously pretentious with a cigarette. If you handle the pipe naturally, and don't feel self-conscious yourself, you might still attract a glance or two, but usually nobody will keep staring at you, and you might well earn a sympathetic smile or two.

Still, keep in mind the stuff you breathe in is not healthy, so I'm not recommending smoking! (There are reasonable studies, not commissioned by tobacco lobbies, that show people who smoke up to about three pipes a day have a higher life expectancy than non-smokers (!), but I suspect that's because more balanced people statistically tend to smoke pipes more than others, certainly not because smoking is actually contributing to your health.)

A pipeful is about as much as one and half a cigarette, meaning that in the time it takes you to finish it, a cig smoker might be at his fifth cigarette, and apart from the amount, we know what stuff is added to the tobacco in cigarettes. Oh, and you don't inhale.

In some countries filters are common, and they're quite good - keeping a lot of the disgusting stuff and tongue-biting parts out, while retaining most of the flavour. Don't know about Australia, but I think it's more a European thing.

Should you decide to smoke pipes, don't be disappointed after a day or two - it'll take you some time to find out how to pack and stamp the bowl, how strong or light to puff etc.

 

[scotrace]

Thank you for this information about Latakia. My favorite tobacconist, Georgetown Tobacco, carries several blends containing Latakia but not much in the way of explaining why that makes a difference.

I have not picked up a pipe in years. The two I owned have gone missing. And the smell of the smoke has some unpleasant associations for me. But it is very appealing, in a Golden Era way, and looks very relaxing. Some of the long Church Warden stems look fun (maybe even a Gandalf type), but the Savinelli "Bings favorite" may be a good way to go.

I enjoy maybe two cigars in a month. Once you start one, you're committed for an hour or more. I like the idea of being able to let a pipe go out and return to it when I'm ready or able.

Plus - a new thing to discover and learn about.

 

[Nick Charles]

I smoke a Bings Fav. Its nice and has a balsa filter you can either use or not. Nice long stem. One of my favs. Smoked it yesterday while out on a walk with the family.

 

[Blackhorse]

Scott - I've smoked a pipe for years and have a significant collection of both pipes and tobaccos. Let it be known that only SOME tobaccos can be put down to return to at a later time with positive success. It's called DGT (delayed gratification technique) by many.

For the best site on all the many and varied tobaccos out there - reviewed as to all their many and oft subtle characteristics, go to "tobaccoreviews.com" it's a treasure house of info...just like TFL!

 

[binkmeisterRick]

I've always loved the smell of a pipe, though not cigarettes or even cigars. For years I wanted to try a pipe but was afraid I'd "like it too much." Having a grandfather die of lung cancer and bugging my mother to stop smoking for years (which she did 15 years ago) helped keep me away from trying a pipe for many years. Finally, I decided I would try it, but if it felt like something I'd literally get addicted to, then I'd stop. Well, I truly love a good pipe smoke. I own a handful of pipes, but I honestly only smoke a bowl on occasion, usually as a treat or with certain friends in the right social setting.

It does take a while to get the hang of packing a pipe correctly. It's trail and error, but you'll know it when you've got it.

Scotrace, I have a black Petersen church warden pipe (very Victorian) which smokes like a dream. It looks VERY classy, too. It reminds me more of a true Sherlock Holmes style (who never smoked a Calabash until Basil Rathbone ruined the character) than a Gandalf. If you want a Gandalf, go with a clay pipe. I also have a Saveneli Octavia which is a fantastic pipe. The basla filter is nice, especially because I tend to be a wet smoker, so it prevents the girggle and leaves me with a good, smooth smoke.

bindibadgi, I know some smokers who keep one type of tobacco in one kind of pipe so as not to mix aromas. This is a matter of opinion to some, but I find I keep certain blends specifically for certain pipes. Also, I'd recommend finding a pipe shop and looking for a decent pipe. If not careful, a really cheap pipe can give you too hot a smoke and you can burn your tounge. No fun. What I'd suggest, though, is that you ask if they have any pipe seconds. Often, these are pretty good pipes made by fine pipe makers. The only difference is that there may be a blemish on the pipe (which only adds character and does ot affect the smoking of it) and the maker's name may not appear on it. But you can get these pipes for a lot cheaper, and it's a good way to start discovering if you really like pipe smoking. Good luck!

 

[Blackhorse]

Another good idea might be to look for a "pre-owned" pipe. While at first glance this might seem less than desireable, there is a hugh market in pre-owned pipes - many of which are significant collector's items and if well cared for can afford every bit as much (if not more) qualtiy for your investment dollar.

A third, or is it fourth, or whatever, option would be to go with a corn cob pipe. Don't laugh. Cob pipes are THE preferred vehicle for smoking many tobaccos that are either pure or blended burleys. Low in cost, low in public style, they make good options for private enjoyment if one is concerned about image. But the truth that a cob will smoke a burley better than anything else is widely accepted.

Lastly, as we are all creatures of online pursuits, look for a pipe (etc.) online. There are many excellent retailers that offer both new and pre-owned pipes online and some have by far the better range and pricing of tobaccos than any shop in the nation can carry. A quick search on "pipes" or "pipe tobacco" will surely result in finding many resources.

 

[binkmeisterRick]

No, son, don't smoke 'em if theys been in th' outhouse

The corn cobb pipe!lol Wow, I forgot about that one! A while it does sound funny, a pipe smoking friend of mine (who owns some fine pipes) really enjoys smoking a corn cobb pipe. He says they breathe very well. And not only are they cheap, MacAurthur smoked one, so you can still be well distinguished while smoking one.

 

[BegintheBeguine]

I like my corncob pipe. Yukky joke about th' outhouse, though!! lol Funny, I never seem to misplace my corncob pipe when I have misplaced all but one of my other pipes. I get tobacco cheap at the PX.

 

[Shaul-Ike Cohen]

I never found corncobs interesting, or metal system pipes (except for the Art D?©co looks of some), but that's a matter of taste. And trying - though I can confirm briar pipes taste best, I smoke an occasional clay or meerschaum pipe too.

(BTW, I think it was already Gilette who staged with a calabash. Still, the Rathbone series is responsible for irreversibly making the good doctor a moronic fool.)

Oh, another piece of advice for a beginner is to choose a straight pipe first, not a bent. And one the walls of which aren't too thin.

 

[Marc Chevalier]

Some of you may enjoy looking at these past threads:


http://www.thefedoralounge.com/showthread.php?t=12049&highlight=pipes

http://www.thefedoralounge.com/showthread.php?t=7724&highlight=pipes


.

 

[carebear]

Been smoking a pipe for a decade now. I started by copying a fellow NCO. we spent a lot of time puttering around in Zodiacs following divers and needed something to occupy ourselves besides talking that was hands-free. Pipes are deliberate animals. You can't be impetuous and smoke a pipe (leave that to nervous cigarette types).

I enjoy going down to the tobacconists every month and whiling away an hour talking with the other pipe and cigar smokers, trying new blends and enjoying "man time".

Not a lot of busy-bodies butting in on tobacco shop conversations. If they ever did, one would just increase the output.

 

[bindibadgi]

Whoah, thanks guys. This is proving to be most informative, and probably to the great disappointment of my wife, quite encouraging.

I own an estate pipe, I can't remember the brand, but I think it is made in Tanganyika or something. It is a sandblasted briar with a meerschaum lining. When I got it it had a huge cake of ash, even though I understand meerschaum is not supposed to be kept with a cake. I reamed it out so that the cake is as thin as I'm comfortable with (I don't want to damage the meer by reaming any further). It's a prince shape, with a slight bend in it. No filter. I think if I do get some tobacco, I'll most likely go for the Amphora full aroma (the red package) because it's about the only one I can get around here which doesn't get absolutely trashed on tobaccoreviews. Then if I like it (after I am sure lots of practice and failure), I'll experiment with some others I would have to mail order. Tobacco is expensive!!

Well, I do hope to start smoking, but I think I sound much like binkmeisterRick was. I also think that I only plan to smoke occasionally. I don't want this to become an(other) expensive habit!

 

[binkmeisterRick]

You mean I've become a roll model now? :eusa_doh: [huh] lol I have a meerschaum pipe I got at an antique store which smokes nicely. It gives a nice, sweet smoke. Pipe tobbacco is expensive where you are? I guess I'm spoiled by a shop I used to go to that made their own very nice blends. And if you only plan to smoke on occasion, there's no need to get a huge stash of tobbacco, since much might dry out if left sitting unsmoked for months on end.

 

[Tony in Tarzana]

Oh, another piece of advice for a beginner is to choose a straight pipe first, not a bent.

Really? My biggest problem with pipes is that horrid juice that collects in the stem, and a bent seems to do a better job of keeping it away from my mouth.

 

[Orgetorix]

Tobacco is expensive!!

Maybe so, but on the whole smoking a pipe is far less expensive than cigarettes or cigars. You can get a couple of ounces of bulk tobacco (enough for several bowls full) for just three or four dollars at some tobacconists' shops.

I'm 23, and I've smoked a pipe (as well as cigars and the occasional additive-free cigarette) for two or three years. I don't think it's pretentious at all.

Most people who comment on my pipe smoking say they like it, that it smells good, that it reminds them of their grandfathers, etc. Very few people are offended by it, and these seem to be the types who are militantly anti-smoking anyway.

Pipe smoking, while not beneficial for your health, is probably less harmful than cigarette smoking, as pipe smoke normally isn't inhaled. Excessive pipe smoking can still cause mouth cancer, but smoke infrequently enough (one or two times per week) that I don't think the risk is severe. One important thing to note is that the health risks of secondhand smoke are vastly overstated and scientifically credible studies have found no statistically significant dangers from secondhand smoke.

Though it can take a little while to get the hang of cleaning, packing, lighting, tamping, and re-lighting the pipe, there's something about the whole routine that is wonderfully relaxing once you get it down. It forces you to be deliberate and calm, and promotes a restrained elegance of mind and body that suits a gentleman well.

 

[scotrace]

Housekeeping Note

As this topic has been covered, let's not begin a discussion on second hand smoke. Please keep it to pipes and their enjoyment.
Thanks.

 

[Orgetorix]

As this topic has been covered, let's not begin a discussion on second hand smoke. Please keep it to pipes and their enjoyment.
Thanks.

Righto. Didn't know it'd been covered elsewhere.