Do Larger Bowls Burn Hotter?

tamer291 · Aug 27, 2013

Do larger/deeper bowls burn hotter?
The reason I ask is I finally was able to smoke my first bowl in an estate pipe that I cleaned. It's an Ascorti New Dear KS. The bowl is rather deep. I smoked some HH Anniversary Kake and I noticed the bowl (especially around the top) was getting really hot. Not sure if its my packing or smoking technique. Or if its just that deeper bowls burn hot.

rigmedic1 · Aug 27, 2013

I can't imagine, especially an Ascorti, which is not a cheapo pipe. Ambient air temp, puffing too hard, etc, is more likely the culprit. Might be sucking extra hard or too loosely packed for a bigger chamber. My big chambered pipes smoke cool, but I pack them a little tighter and seldom fill them all the way.

cortezattic · Aug 27, 2013

I think bowls of a larger diameter will burn hotter, of necessity: the gleed is larger -- or it should be.

Large diameter bowls also admit more oxygen into the mix, so one can view the bowl's diameter as a sort of fixed size carburetor.

I don't see how a deeper bowl can affect the build-up of heat, though.
There's an interesting post by Lawrence floating around in PipesMagazine Forums cyberspace on the heat transmission

properties of straight grained pipes. Maybe he can repost, or at least recall the text of it. It has something to do

with the wood's heat being conducted upward along the grain, and a straight grain does it most efficiently -- or

something like that.
(BTW, I've been waiting for about 6 months to find a context in which I could use the word "gleed".) :rofl:

petes03 · Aug 27, 2013

There are a lot of variables, blend, moisture in said blend, packing technique, lighting technique, smoking and tamping technique, and the pipes design and engineering. I'm sure there's some things I left out, but you get the picture.

tamer291 · Aug 27, 2013

Yeah, I'm sure its my technique (I hope). Cause I love the pipe. Thanks for all the info guys!!

pstlpkr · Aug 27, 2013

Hey Cortez... that was a long time ago... probably close to three years ago.
I hypothesized that the direction of the grain can either allow easier heat movement through the briar.

"Flame grain or straight grain" may allow the heat to rise more easily to the top of the pipe, where a cross grain may restrict/impede the upward migration of the heat.

One possible effect of a cross grained pipe as opposed to a flame grain, is the radiation of heat through the sides of the pipe making it actually "feel" hotter than would a straight grain where the heat would more easily rise toward the top thus making the pipe "feel" cooler.
Of course; it's probably total BS, but it seems to me that it may have a "grain" of truth. :D

: puffy

:

numbersix · Aug 27, 2013

+1 on technique.
However, a really old estate could be over smoked, which I believe could account for it burning hot.

pstlpkr · Aug 27, 2013

+1 on technique.
Here are a couple of tips that may be of some help:
1) Keep your ember as small as possible.

Just because the bowl is large, doesn't mean that you have to have a big ember.

2) A technique sometimes referred to as ember chasing will greatly extend the duration of the smoke.

Tip (1) is part of ember chasing. By frequent gentle tamping, you can control not only the size of your ember, by restricting the air flow to the ember you can hold the temperature down. Also, the ember will move around the bowl.
Here are some links to an old Blog post I wrote about my "experimentation" in an attempt to extend my "slow smoke" time. Remember; these are comments and thoughts only, NOT RULES.

Maybe you can take away a nugget of information that will help you in your explorations.
Slow Smoke Experiments #1
Slow Smoke Experiments #2
Slow Smoke Experiments #3
Slow Smoke Experiments #4

cortezattic · Aug 27, 2013

Thanks for pointing to the blog entries. You've got some good slow smoking info there -- even for those like me, who

don't see themselves as contest level smokers.

papipeguy · Aug 27, 2013

Interesting conversation. I would think that the disapation of heat is realted to surface area. The smaller the hotter. Towit, it seems that rusticasted pipes smoke cooler than flat surfaced pipes. If that's the case then it can be argued that since the surface area of the rusticated pipe is greater than the plain pipe and it should be cooler.

dalby · Aug 27, 2013

I'm still very new, and establishing my technique, so I can't weigh in on the issue from personal experience.

the slow smoke experiments are an intriguing read though!

cigrmaster · Aug 28, 2013

An Ascorti pipe is a high quality product and if smoked properly will give you a cool smoke at all times. I don't care what size the bowl is, you can get a cool smoke with the proper technique. I have had massive bowls that smoked cool as well as small ones. I have heated up a great pipe by using lousy technique so as long as it is a quality piece of briar( like the Ascorti) you should get a nice cool smoke. Dry your tobacco properly, pack the bowl so there is some good resistance and sip away, you should be good to go.

waxmojo · Aug 28, 2013

I have seen some guys skip the charring light, put the fire to tobacco and puff away. I like to get the top going then let it go out and cool down. Then tamp and light it again gently drawing the flame to the tobacco and puff slowly.It could also be the way you pack the pipe but as far as bowl size, I have more of a problem with a small bowl getting hot than a large one.

smokeybear · Aug 28, 2013

I dont think the bowl size affects it much. solely on my experience with the pipes i own i found that my larger pipes actually smoke cooler then my smaller ones. i may be the pipes them shelves and the brand however.

mso489 · Aug 28, 2013

There are probably some principles of physics that answer this question, and that would not

correspond to my experience. I have several really large-bowled pipes, and none of them

smokes hot. There's more tobacco burning, so why wouldn't they burn hotter? I think because

there is more material in the bowl and shank to dissipate the heat, and more surface at the top

to vent it. It is more fuel, so it is probably burning hotter, but the heat is handled by the pipe

itself. If a large pipe smokes hot, it may just be not as well designed, even if it is a good pipe.

Incidentally, one of my cool smoking big pipes is a "house pipe" that cost little, but it is well

designed and dissipates the heat very well.

Do Larger Bowls Burn Hotter?

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