Hey, how do you guys pack your pipes? I mostly go with the air pocket if I'm not smoking a reverse calabash, or in that case I do the frank. So how do you prefer your packing?
How do you guys pack?
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Not with much style. With loose tobacco, I will often just angle the pipe into the jar and scoop it full
with my thumb, layering a little as I go if I'm smart. Alas, it's true, if you take more time with packing,
you will get a better smoke, usually. If I am trying a tobacco for the first time, I will take more time, and
layer it in there in three or four pinches, settling it tighter toward the top layers. If I groom it a little before
I do the first charring light, sometimes it will stay lit and I'm off to the races. Packing is where it is easy to
get lazy, or eager. But I encourage beginners to do it carefully, because it is discouraging to have to re-light
and tamp a lot before a bowl is properly lit. Don't follow my bad form. I want points for honesty here.
with my thumb, layering a little as I go if I'm smart. Alas, it's true, if you take more time with packing,
you will get a better smoke, usually. If I am trying a tobacco for the first time, I will take more time, and
layer it in there in three or four pinches, settling it tighter toward the top layers. If I groom it a little before
I do the first charring light, sometimes it will stay lit and I'm off to the races. Packing is where it is easy to
get lazy, or eager. But I encourage beginners to do it carefully, because it is discouraging to have to re-light
and tamp a lot before a bowl is properly lit. Don't follow my bad form. I want points for honesty here.
mso489 -2 points Who's keeping track of these points? LOL
I like the gravity deal. Drop some in, tap it on a cork to pack, 3 tiers of same. Then fire it up. As it burns I will knock the ashes off and relight as I let it sit between puffs and it goes out. I only one tamp near the end if I dont just dump it depending on how much is left. My bowl stays nice and cool this way and thats where the best flavor is to me.
I like the gravity deal. Drop some in, tap it on a cork to pack, 3 tiers of same. Then fire it up. As it burns I will knock the ashes off and relight as I let it sit between puffs and it goes out. I only one tamp near the end if I dont just dump it depending on how much is left. My bowl stays nice and cool this way and thats where the best flavor is to me.
So Hawke, you knock the ash out as you go? I was doing that at first then read that you should leave it in as it helps to keep the tobacco lit. Towards the end of the bowl it seems like it's easier to relight if you first knock out a little ash.
Have to admit my mind was way off, thinking Bond Derringer 410 or 45 shells, and a cold steel Tanto. Those would be hard to light. LOL But been doing it for so long I don't think about it, fill, poke finger in, fill do it a little firmer, fill and final press down, little bounce back and light up. Took longer to type it than do it.
I usually put the pipe down to the top of the tobacco and then use my indexed finger, middle finger, and thumb to roll or twist the tobacco into the pipe. I don't use any pressure just allow it to kind of roll into the bowl. I then tilt the bowl up to see how much loose tobacco is hanging on to the tobacco that is rolled into the bowl. If there is about 1/3 the bowl depth the full diameter of the bowl hanging out I just use my thumbs and push it in and down to the top of the rim and flatten it out and make it neat and tidy. I push it slightly below the rim imagine a dimes edge if ya will and then char and light. If ya do it just right it kind of looks like the end of a cigar before ya light it.
Depends on the cut, for my old faithful carter hall I just use the finger and scoop until it's full. For most other cuts I fill my Palm and then place the pipe on top and rub it in a circular motion until the pipe is full. I have the best success with that method.
I too do the circular motion fill. I recently was told about this method and it really works out well for most types of tobacco. It's even easier when you have a pouch or a baggie that's holding the tobacco.
I use a three to 4 step method. I put the tobacco in to the top, press down lightly, put more in to top, press down a little firmer, again to top and then really press down. I then check the draw. I want it to have good resistance, like sucking a thin milk shake through a straw, if I don't get that, I may have to add more tobacco and press even firmer. I smoke flakes 99.9 percent of time. If I am smoking any other cut, I do not press as firmly but I do make sure there is some resistance.
It's highly dependent on the blend for me. For example, latakia blends and blends with burley for me tend to be better with a looser pack.
I rub out almost all flakes, and am even rubbing out some ribbons these days. Cube cutting sometimes works for me, but like with folding and stuffing, I tend to get a really inconsistent burn. I think that the packing technique is really interdependent with your smoking technique, so one method of packing will work for some but not for others based on other factors, including stuff like ambient humidity. I live in a dry climate so most of what I smoke is ready right out of the tin, but stuff like the Gawith flakes, Stonehaven, and Gaslight needs a little drying time.
I rub out almost all flakes, and am even rubbing out some ribbons these days. Cube cutting sometimes works for me, but like with folding and stuffing, I tend to get a really inconsistent burn. I think that the packing technique is really interdependent with your smoking technique, so one method of packing will work for some but not for others based on other factors, including stuff like ambient humidity. I live in a dry climate so most of what I smoke is ready right out of the tin, but stuff like the Gawith flakes, Stonehaven, and Gaslight needs a little drying time.
Yes woopigsooie. Packing the ash will allow a coal to build Ive noticed but I dont care for all that heat. I let it go out. If I try to re-light with the ash intact, it just doesnt get the air it needs. If I pack it down the coal lump is too big/too hot.
This is just my method, right or wrong. I also like to dry the tobacco out quite a bit. Ive been thinking of making a humidor and see what humidity it is I like. Now as others have stated, much of this depends on the blend. Some do better packed tighter, while others loose. I think I like the dry loose pack best as stated above. Just me...
One must find his/her own method. It will come to you.
This is just my method, right or wrong. I also like to dry the tobacco out quite a bit. Ive been thinking of making a humidor and see what humidity it is I like. Now as others have stated, much of this depends on the blend. Some do better packed tighter, while others loose. I think I like the dry loose pack best as stated above. Just me...
One must find his/her own method. It will come to you.
I use the 3 layer method, but I twist with my thumb as I pack it. That way I dont have to relight as much- I set my pipe down to rest alot during a smoke. :wink:
I normally pack my tobacco by spreading it out on a flat surface and pinching enough with three or four fingers to create a plug that ideally fills just the chamber opening. Basically I'm trying to imitate what you get when stuffing in a folded flake where everything is neatly suspended at the top of the pipe.
It's kind of a simplification on the Frank method, and as I get better I should be able to do it straight out of a tin.
It's kind of a simplification on the Frank method, and as I get better I should be able to do it straight out of a tin.
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