First Brigham

fitzy · Nov 8, 2013

I've wanted a Brigham for some time and finally got one. Took advantage of the P&C sale in October and bought a Mountaineer 3 dot bent Dublin. I'ts a beautiful pipe but the draw is horrendous on it. It's the tightest draw of any pipe I've ever smoked and by far.
Are all Brigham's this tight? It's not quite as bad as sucking a shake through a straw but not too far off either.

I've never seen anything like this. It's not possible to just sip on the thing like I would with any of my other pipes.
I need to smoke it without the filter this weekend to see if that makes any difference but that completely negates the whole purpose of smoking a Brigham.
If this is the way Brigham's are this will be my last one.
Edit: Maybe I'm just spoiled by my Caminetto(Thanks Harris) and my Savinelli's.

pruss · Nov 8, 2013

Hey there Fitzy. Sorry to hear about the draw on your Brigham. That's a surprise to me. All the Brigham pipes I have run across have been wide open. Have you pulled the filter to check the draw without the rock maple insert?
-- Pat

ghost · Nov 8, 2013

I've never had draw issues with any of my Brighams, with or without the filter. They smoke just fine without the filter, so IMO no worries if you try that. Most of mine I leave the filter out, but that's just a personal choice.

gtclark · Nov 8, 2013

If it wasn't a bent, I'd say run a 5/32 bit through there. Is the problem in the stem, rather than the bowl?

fitzy · Nov 8, 2013

Pruss I was planning on giving that a shot this weekend to see if it's how it's drilled.
The draft hole does seem small when I look down the shank(thinking of drilling it out a bit). Also it's really off set at the top of the shank. Plus the draft hole is before the end of the shank almost like a miniature version of a Peterson system. I assume it's off because it's bent but none of my others except my Peterson are like that and all my pipes are bent.
Sam when I pull out the stem the filter stays in the stem. I thought that's the way it should be vs staying in the shank. It is a bit tight when I pull the filter out of the stem only until the metal bit is cleared of the stem.

fitzy · Nov 8, 2013

gt I think it's the size of the draught hole that might be the problem.

rigmedic1 · Nov 8, 2013

When I find a pipe has a tight draw, I take a 3.5 mm drill bit, and turn it by hand with a pair of pliers through the air hole in the shank. One has to be careful and look for the bit to enter the chamber in the bowl, as not to scuff up the bowl. If you don't want to attempt that yourself, there are many pipe repair services that will open the draw for you.

brdavidson · Nov 8, 2013

I have several myself, I would honestly look a returning it before you smoke it and exchange it for another. I have had 4 new Brighams this year and none of them with the draw as you describe it.

northernneil · Nov 8, 2013

I had an issue with one of my Brigham's where the draft hole didn't line up properly with the shank. Simply filing down the draft hole so it lined up fixed the problem. Kind of a pain in the butt when a new pipe needs to be modified to work.
All that being said, if this is a new pipe, I'm pretty sure Brigham will fix it for free within 30 days of original purchase. Why not try contacting the seller, or Brigham directly?

quincy · Nov 8, 2013

I love my Brigham. I have Caminettos too. I agree that the draw is a little bit more open in my Italian pipes, but I absolutely love my Brigham. I would contact them or maybe shoot Brian Levine an e-mail or message on here asking him about it.

fitzy · Nov 8, 2013

I'll have to give that a shot Sam.
I've already smoked a bowl which is when I found out about the draw so I probably can't return it.
I'll have to smoke another bowl with and without the filter to see what it's like then maybe make some adjustments.

northernneil · Nov 8, 2013

If the pipe is faulty, the fact that you smoked through it shouldn't matter. It is not like your smoking drilled the pipe poorly

fitzy · Nov 8, 2013

Thanks everyone for the input. I'll let you know what happens after my tinkering this weekend.

cigrmaster · Nov 8, 2013

fitzy, I would just send it back for a replacement, you should not have to fix a faulty pipe. Glad you are enjoying the Caminetto, that does have a pretty wide open draw.

fitzy · Nov 8, 2013

I'll think about that Harris. I'm going to just test a few things out this weekend and if I can't figure it out I'll send it back.

drwatson · Nov 8, 2013

I dont think I would send it back. I have alot of Brighams (16), and all but one needed some sort of minor adjustment to make them great. Most common I have noticed that there is some of the bowl coating covering/blocking the draft hole in the bowl. Easy fix, run a drill bit through it. I have also noticed at times some debris inside the draft hole in the stem from drilling out, pipe cleaner fixes that. My worst was a chinook that just wasn't drilled right, had tenon replaced. Now it is non filter pipe, and is fine. I have also noticed to some degree that some of the maple insert have too narrow of opening. They are great pipes once you get the kinks worked out.

rockymtnsmoker · Nov 9, 2013

I had a weird issue with a Brig, though an estate pipe, that sounds similar. I ended up pushing a small piece of plastic through the draught hole into the bowl when I was probing around with a drill bit. Not sure where this little bit of debris came from, but it was almost completely blocking the airway when the stem was fully engaged. Rigmedic's approach above would work if it's the same issue. Let us know how you resolve it.

tanless1 · Nov 9, 2013

Im sure they will take good care of you.

peckinpahhombre · Nov 9, 2013

I have smoked a couple of old Brighams (thanks to Pat) in recent weeks and I have had no draw issues whatsoever, even with the filter. Either you got a dud or the new Italian made Brighams (which I have never tried) are not up to snuff generally. I hope it's the former.

lordofthepiperings · Nov 10, 2013

I just bought my first Brigham at the West Coast Show. It's a Mountaineer 309 straight apple. I've had a few bowls in it already and the draw on it has been wonderful.
I'd say contact the company about it before tinkering with it yourself.

First Brigham

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