I'm officially a cob convert. Didn't intend it this way. I started with a Country Gentleman. It was a good pipe but it didn't move me away from briars and I didn't particularly like the stain finish. Makes it look old but cruddy.
A couple of months ago, I ordered a MM Freehand, a Mark Twain and a Diplomat 5th Ave to use to test new blends recommended by my tobacco crawl buddies. I really liked the 5th Ave but I LOVED the Freehand. I like the texture of the naked cobb, it smokes cool, and is almost - but not quite - light enough to be a clencher,even with a Forever stem.
It wasn't long before I was smoking the cobs almost exclusively. I usually smoke the Freehand twice a day, during commutes. When tying flies or fishing, I've been invariably going with the Mark Twain or the Diplomat, at least until recently. I took the Diplomat on a trip and somehow lost both the pipe and the Forever Stem. Damn.
I ordered a second FreeHand, but in naked red cob, a General, a Patriot and a Mizzou from Mars cigars and pipes. They don't seem to answer or return phone calls but I took a chance and placed the order. Got everything within two or three days, so service was very prompt and I would order from them again. And their cob prices where a good 30% less than any other vendor I checked, including the usual PM vendor supporters.
I like the General almost as much as the Freehand and in someways, I like it better. It is capacious but light enough to clench, at least with the original stem. Adding the forever stem makes it a border line clencher. The honey finish is attractive and cleans easily.
While I like the feel and look of the naked cob on the Freehand and the Diplomate, it does get dirty quickly and I wouldn't want to take my Freehand to a formal affair. When smoking a pipe, there will always be some ash and the cob will get gray, unless you handle them with gloves like some Meerschaum block pipe smokers do. Somehow, the idea of wearing gloves to hold a cob is so ludicrous, that event the picture in my minds eye makes me want to laugh. So, I'm reserving the new Freehand to smoke at home and will use the older, dirty looking one in my car or outdoors.I'm hoping MM will offer the Freehand with the classic honey finish. If so, I'm all over it.
All my cobbs smoke at least as well as my briars and the Patriot, the General and the Freehand smoke better than most.
Dave at Briarworks agrees. He tells me he believes his Freehand smokes as good as any of his briars, some of which would sell for hundreds of dollars.
I'm hard-pressed to tell you which I prefer, the General or the Freehand or even the Patriot. But cobs are so affordable, I can buy the Freehand, the General, the Patriot, and the Mizzou, plus tobacco for the same price as one of my briars, and get change.
The only real deficiency in a cob, for me, is that they just don't have the aestheics or convey the sophistication that briar does. And aesthetics do matter. But the economy and performance of cobs make up for it, and I'm beginning to appreciate the homely charm that cobs offer in their own right.
I haven't given up on briar pipes but am finding my PAD is being satisfied with briars. Now, I just got to figure out how to store them. Right now, they're all jumbled on a shoe box lid. I just don't want to spend more on pipe rack than I did on the pipes.
Pax
A couple of months ago, I ordered a MM Freehand, a Mark Twain and a Diplomat 5th Ave to use to test new blends recommended by my tobacco crawl buddies. I really liked the 5th Ave but I LOVED the Freehand. I like the texture of the naked cobb, it smokes cool, and is almost - but not quite - light enough to be a clencher,even with a Forever stem.
It wasn't long before I was smoking the cobs almost exclusively. I usually smoke the Freehand twice a day, during commutes. When tying flies or fishing, I've been invariably going with the Mark Twain or the Diplomat, at least until recently. I took the Diplomat on a trip and somehow lost both the pipe and the Forever Stem. Damn.
I ordered a second FreeHand, but in naked red cob, a General, a Patriot and a Mizzou from Mars cigars and pipes. They don't seem to answer or return phone calls but I took a chance and placed the order. Got everything within two or three days, so service was very prompt and I would order from them again. And their cob prices where a good 30% less than any other vendor I checked, including the usual PM vendor supporters.
I like the General almost as much as the Freehand and in someways, I like it better. It is capacious but light enough to clench, at least with the original stem. Adding the forever stem makes it a border line clencher. The honey finish is attractive and cleans easily.
While I like the feel and look of the naked cob on the Freehand and the Diplomate, it does get dirty quickly and I wouldn't want to take my Freehand to a formal affair. When smoking a pipe, there will always be some ash and the cob will get gray, unless you handle them with gloves like some Meerschaum block pipe smokers do. Somehow, the idea of wearing gloves to hold a cob is so ludicrous, that event the picture in my minds eye makes me want to laugh. So, I'm reserving the new Freehand to smoke at home and will use the older, dirty looking one in my car or outdoors.I'm hoping MM will offer the Freehand with the classic honey finish. If so, I'm all over it.
All my cobbs smoke at least as well as my briars and the Patriot, the General and the Freehand smoke better than most.
Dave at Briarworks agrees. He tells me he believes his Freehand smokes as good as any of his briars, some of which would sell for hundreds of dollars.
I'm hard-pressed to tell you which I prefer, the General or the Freehand or even the Patriot. But cobs are so affordable, I can buy the Freehand, the General, the Patriot, and the Mizzou, plus tobacco for the same price as one of my briars, and get change.
The only real deficiency in a cob, for me, is that they just don't have the aestheics or convey the sophistication that briar does. And aesthetics do matter. But the economy and performance of cobs make up for it, and I'm beginning to appreciate the homely charm that cobs offer in their own right.
I haven't given up on briar pipes but am finding my PAD is being satisfied with briars. Now, I just got to figure out how to store them. Right now, they're all jumbled on a shoe box lid. I just don't want to spend more on pipe rack than I did on the pipes.
Pax
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