My first Pipe in 15 years! Or my first real pipe smoke.

[bsslack]

Well....Here We go!

I joined the pipe Room last month out of Curiousity. Then Brother Zach Hit Me with a Pipe Bomb! In addition to the regular trade stuff!

Zach, hit me with a complete Pipe starter Kit, Too Cool!

So, after some tips from Him I'm Lighting Up!

I'll follow with results & impressions!

Very Cool! Thanks Zach!!!



Slack

[Bocephus]

Alright! Another piper Nice move, Zach!

[Deriffe]

Welcome

[tborren]

Welcome to the world of pipes bsslack. Very nice move Zack

[tedski]

Welcome to the OTHER dark side ....

[bsslack]

Well as expected I made a few Mistakes but nothing serious.
A completely different type of experience.

I only loaded up the pipe halfway(after I gave it a thorough brush through) I couldn't get the draw to tighten up, so I went with it anyway. (was afraid to really tamp it down firmly) So, I lit (with full size wooden matches, burning well past the sulfer tip) and I puffed and I lit and I puffed and I lit and I puffed and I lit and I puffed. I could not get it to hold a light. I didn't want to tamp it more with ashes on top.
So I repeated the light and puff drill for awhile. I did get some good Smokey flavor!
After awhile I was getting only Hot air so I figured that I was done. I mean I only filled it half full anyway, right?

So, I let it set and 10 min later, I start scraping the bowl. Slightly less than half a bowl of unburnt tobacco spilled out into the tray.



Sooooooo, I will try this again tonight and apply what I have learned. 1) Don't be shy with the tamper. 2) don't spare the puffs when Lighting.
And 3) Give it more time.

Well, I knew like all things it's a learning process.
So, I'm learning the process.

Thanks for the Welcome's Gents!

Again, Thanks to Zach!


Slack

[tedski]

Slack ... a few more pointers (like you really need them with THOSE ears):

1. I normally tell folks to let the tobacco sit out of the tin to dry out a little before loading ... but as you are in a mildly humid environment (71% in Anchorage), I guess we'll have to skip this part. Unless of course your house is drier than outside.

2. It sounds like your bowl is packed too tight. What you might want to try is chopping your tobacco up a little so that you have lots of stubby little pieces (sharp knife or food processor works well). Then gravity feed your bowl ... by this I mean pour it in until the bowl is overflowing. Then gently press down to the 1/2 way point. Then gravity feed again and press down to the 3/4 point. Done.

3. Try puffing on the pipe before lighting. If the airflow seems really restricted, it's packed too tight ... dump out and start over.

4. When lighting, move the match over the top of the tobacco until you get a real good light across the entire top surface. Keep puffing while you use your tamper (gently). It's not a crime to use another match at this point.

5. You will need to puff more frequently at first until the burn is established. However, try not to let the pipe get too hot ... if you cannot hold the bowl comfortably in your hand for 10 seconds (without an oven mit), it's too hot.

6. It's OK to use your tamper to lightly compress the ash down into the bowl. Best to just let the weight of the tamper do the job.

7. It's OK to have some unburned tobacco at the bottom of the bowl. If the moisture / PG content of your blend is on the high side ... the bottom tobacco is acting as a filter to trap some of the excess. It takes a lot more heat to burn wet tobacco ... and the taste will just be hot and harsh anyway.

Keep plugging away. You'll find it comes more easily the more bowls you smoke.

Enjoy!

[bsslack]

Thanks for the Tips Ted!

I'll let Ya know how it Goes!





Slack

[Master Gates]

youre on the slippery slope there Brian! just when you thought you couldnt be corrupted any further.....

what kind of tobacco are you smoking?

[bsslack]

OK,

Much better results this time. What a huge difference in flavor! This time I packed it more firm got a good light and a nice rythym on the Puff. It lasted twice as long and I actually enjoyed it. I even got a little body rush.
When I cleaned it afterwards I still had a good bit of unconsumed Tobacco, but Like I said I'm still learning.

I have only the bag of tobacco Zach so generously sent. He called it McClellans 2040(i think) a very woody and smokey aroma coming off the tobacco. I'm gonna look around here and see what's available and maybe snag a few samples to try, Too.

I never realized How much Stuff there is out there for Pipes.

Yup, I'm in trouble.....I can tell already!




Remember ALL!!!

Slack