Hello all, from a new member

Welcome!
Just a heads-up that discussions of hookahs aren't allowed on this forum. Thought it was worth a mention, since it sounds like you're a fan.
Bob

Welcome to the forum, Hawke.

Welcome!!

Welcome!

Welcome.

Welcome Hawke !!! See ya around the site.

Welcome mate.

Welcome

welcome aboard

Welcome to the board! Always great to meet some new folks.
Careful using the orange peels, I hear they can start to mold your tabaccy. Get yourself a moisture disc and they work pretty great, and you won't run the risk of ruining your tobacco.

Welcome.

As far as looking on eBay for some estates you want to ensure they are cleaned really well by you or a pro. Doing that can run up a bill if your trying to start out and not spend a lot. Look for a good cob pipe they smoke pretty great and won't break a budget. I'm not connoisseur on tobacco, so I can't assist much there. I smoke a little bit of everything, I'm fond of hobbits weed it seems sweet to me and Sherlock from my local B&M isn't super strong but I enjoy it.
Church wardens will give a slight different taste, but that depends on how you smoke. If your like a train it will still get fairly hot. Good luck again!

Welcome to the group.

First, let me offer you my standard advice: Smoke the best tobacco in the best pipes you can afford. It will enhance your smoking experience.
I would strongly suggest that, since you are new to the pipe world, you buy your estate pipes from a reputable dealer. Check out some of our sponsors. I can recommend Briar Blues without reservation. Smoker's Haven has a ton of estates; I have not purchased pipes from them but have purchased tobacco, and recommend as well. Buying cobs (Missouri Meerschaum) can help get you a rotation, but,unless you are smoking your pipe regularly,you won't need much of one.
Finally, meers may look cool but are fragile, as you have discovered. I'd avoid them until you have some idea what you are doing.

Good luck,and enjoy the journey. ::

Hawke:
"Im interested in "sweet" tobaccos and Im wondering about the Virginia Flakes. Cutting off pieces intrigues me. I also like a stronger nicotine tobacco."
I think you may be confusing "flakes" with "plugs." Flakes are thin, pre-cut slices of (typically) blended tobacco that has been pressed into a block. Depending on the constituent leaf, they may or may not have any more nicotine than any other Virginia-based blend. Plugs and twists are different beasts altogether and will provide some of the highest-nicotine smokes available. (I don't enjoy high-nic blends, so I've never traveled into plug/twist territory.) They do need to be cut and, perhaps, rubbed out in order to be smoked in a pipe.
I don't think you asked for my opinion - -- but my advice would be to hold off on flakes, plugs, and twists until you've at least got a handle on the basics of pipe smoking. If you're breaking meerschaums in the course of smoking them, you still have some things to learn! Smoke slowly, don't "puff." Learn how to properly pack a bowl for a variety of different kinds of blends; you'll find as you "smoke around" that different blends require different packing techniques in order to get the most from them. Do you have to do this? Of course not. But I think you'll be able to appreciate flakes, twists, and plugs only after you've laid the foundation for how to smoke and how to taste pipe tobacco.
To get started, since you're looking for higher-nicotine blends, I'd suggest you try Dunhill Nightcap and GLPease Haddo's Delight. But I'd also encourage you to get a grounding in some of the different major categories of blends: English, Balkan, Virginia, Virginia/perique, oriental. Not everyone wants to taste like this, of course. But if you're open to exploring a variety of blends -- and not just finding one blend and sticking to it -- I'd suggest the following:
English: Dunhill Standard Mixture

Balkan: G.L. Pease Caravan

Virginia: Rattray Old Gowrie

Oriental: Presbyterian

VA/Perique: Escudo (This is an easy-to-rub-out spun cut, meaning, it looks like a coin. Think of it as one step away from being a flake.)
Of course, every member here could give you a different list of "standards." But these will definitely do the job and get you started.
Bob

Hi Hawke. Welcome to the group. I'm a fairly new newbie myself so I won't make any recommendations. Looks like you've gotten plenty of good advice already. I think you'll find that you may get several different opinions on different tobaccos, pipes, methods, etc. But in all this you will through practice and a lot of patience find something that works for you, and that is what is important. However, the common thread in all of the advice is to give yourself plenty of time to learn, take it slow, and be patient. Good luck!

Hello Hawke, Welcome!