Churchwardens For Reading?

zerohunter · Oct 17, 2018

A friend suggested I invest in a churchwarden, as he found it to be an ideal shape for when he's reading. Usually, I smoke lightweight pipes and nose warmers when I read, but my jaw can't sustain long periods of clenching and the smoke tends to get in my eyes. When he told me to try out a churchwarden, it was like ten light bulbs going off in my head. In theory, it sounds perfect: holding the bowl or letting it rest on your body while the stem still maintains contact with the mouth for puffing. I can't say I'm thrilled with the look of churchwardens - they just aren't my style - but the shape of them seem excellent for reading a book while smoking.
Anyone use churchwardens primarily when they read? Should I pull the trigger on one? If so, which one?

ssjones · Oct 17, 2018

I have only one, a 1940's era Kaywoodie. I tried reading with it, and damn near lost it. I suppose you can get used to anything, but reading a paper with a 12" long pipe sticking out of my yap did not work for me.

shanez · Oct 17, 2018

holding the bowl or letting it rest on your body while the stem still maintains contact with the mouth for puffing

I'm usually 50/50 between letting my pipe rest on my body and holding it. There is a reason a churchwarden is also known as a reading pipe.

I can't say I'm thrilled with the look of churchwardens

I've always liked the look of churchwardens. What I never cared for, however, were rusticated pipes. Now, I think my Savinelli Qandale Rusticated 602 KS is the most beautiful pipe I own.

Savinelli_Qandale_Rustic_6mm_602_P124Z_Left_Right_WM__99587.1348170902.jpg

Chasing Embers · Oct 17, 2018

but my jaw can't sustain long periods of clenching

Have you tried an Oom Paul?
I have a few churchwardens, but they can be a bit cumbersome.

shanez · Oct 17, 2018

^^^^ Me likey that meer.

Chasing Embers · Oct 17, 2018

^^^^ Me likey that meer.

Looks like this now.

shanez · Oct 17, 2018

Son of a....
Is that the same stem in both pictures?

Chasing Embers · Oct 17, 2018

It came with a standard stem and a churchwarden stem.

bluto · Oct 17, 2018

While you guys were farting around , I drank the rest of your fullers london pride
.. urrrp

olkofri · Oct 17, 2018

I love them, but I don't find them clenchable. As for reading pipes, well only if you read nothing but books that don't require both hands to keep open (i.e. hardcovers).

aldecaker · Oct 17, 2018

A nice compromise is a Savinelli Bing's Favorite. Not quite Churchwarden length, but mine gets a lot of use while I'm reading.

irishearl · Oct 17, 2018

I find the Stanwell HCA series offers some very attractive pipes.

ray47 · Oct 18, 2018

To go the inexpensive route, you may want to try the Missouri Meerschaum Cobbit Series. I have the entire collection and their great for smoking while reading. Smoking a Cobbit Corn Cob while reading a book by Mark Twain or a Lord of the Rings book, makes for a relaxing evening.

pappymac · Oct 18, 2018

I think the "churchwarden for reading" may be a legend based in fact. I remember reading once that the long pipes were popular because men could smoke one while reading the Bible (one of the myths about why the pipes are called churchwardens). Of course, back then, the books and the Bible were usually large enough that they had to be placed on a table or stand for reading so hands were free to hold a pipe.
I have 4 churchwarden pipes and I don't use them for reading because I would have to hold the pipe in one hand and the book in the other. (Yes, I still read physical books and not on electronic devices.) Usually when I am smoking my pipe while reading, I use a 3/4 bent pipe.

chilllucky · Oct 18, 2018

I've posted this story elsewhere in the forums, but I don't think my fidgity self could have made it through the hundred plus page a day reading assignments of my last two years in college we're it not for a chair that put my body in a perfect position for my giant-bowled churchwarden to rest in my sternum.

cosmicfolklore · Oct 18, 2018

I'm not sure why a churchwarden works out best for reading for folks. I always use my regular clenchers for reading. I wouldn't be able to hold the pipe, the book, and turn a page at the same time. With a clencher, I can do anything.

mso489 · Oct 18, 2018

It depends on your manner of reading. I think a churchwarden is good if you are sitting in a chair with arms and rest your elbow on one arm and sip the pipe at will, with the book or device in your lap, turning pages with the non-pipe hand. That works well. Clenching doesn't work, for me, with a churchwarden. All that stem on a churchwarden gets in the way if you are moving around or using both hands for a task, IMHO.

Churchwardens For Reading?

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