How long for a typical bowl

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wfin73

Might Stick Around
Aug 7, 2014
56
0
So, I'm about a month in to smoking a pipe. I'm having decent success at packing and keeping a bowl it. My question is, how long should it take to smoke a bowl? I'm using a MM Legend cob right now, and an hour in I still have a good amount left in the bowl. If I smoke with my brother-in-law, he's already done by then. I think I sip at a decent cadence. So far, I've mostly been smoking Captain Black white and Sir Walter Raleigh. I know there's no real answer to this, just curious how long it takes everyone else on average to smoke a bowl. Thanks!

 

ravkesef

Lifer
Aug 10, 2010
2,912
9,179
81
Cheshire, CT
First things first, Wfin--a hearty welcome to the forum.

Now to your question – you're right, in recognizing that these things very from smoker to smoker, depending upon the pipe, and the tobacco, but from my perspective I'd say you're doing things just right. Sounds to me like you're a slow sipper, and in my judgment that's the way to get maximum enjoyment from a pipe. It will also ensure that your bowl stays relatively cool to the touch. I'm a slow sipper like you, and I can easily get an hour or better from a cob. I think that allows you to savor the taste of the tobacco, because the cooler the tobacco is, the more of the essential flavor components will be toasted rather than burned.

 

ericthered

Part of the Furniture Now
Jul 29, 2014
511
2
Suffolk, VA
My typical smoke will last between 1 and 2 hours. My preference aesthetically is for larger bowled pipes, but I need to pick up a couple smaller sized pipes for those times that I only have 30 or 40 minutes to smoke.

 

brokenkrayon

Might Stick Around
Jul 17, 2014
50
0
I am a new smoker as well. I think I am smoking too fast, and still get 1-2 hrs on a small bowl Dr Plumb Churchwarden. I am still breaking in a couple of new pipes with larger bowls, and seem to still get over 1.5 hours on a half bowl. At times the bowl gets hot, which seems like I am going too fast. Could be just a cheap pipe, or bad packing.

 

docwatson

Lifer
Jul 2, 2009
1,149
9
New England
A standard group 4 sized pipe lasts about an hour for this piper. My Magnum sized pipes are good for an entire baseball or football game!!!

 

condorlover1

Lifer
Dec 22, 2013
7,994
26,608
New York
I seem to get hours out of my pipes. The reason being is I will smoke a pipe and then get distracted and put it down somewhere in the office and then pick up another pipe and fill that with tobacco. As the cycle progresses throughout the day I can find myself with three or four half smoked pipes which I then gather up on my desk at days end and smoke in the evening whilst finishing up the days work load before cooking supper. If I was to guess-timate the time factor for a pipe full given that I smoke a mixture of slow burning tobacco I would have to say about an hour or so.

 

tunberg92

Lurker
Aug 10, 2014
3
0
I have only recently started pipe smoking, but I seem to have trouble keeping my pipe lit for longer than 15 seconds. I have tried the 3 pack gravity method (hope that is the right term). If anyone can give me any suggestions regarding packing methods, or lighting methods I am all ears. Looking forward to anything anyone has to share.

 

brdavidson

Lifer
Dec 30, 2012
2,017
5
I had lots of trouble packing as well tunberg92 and here is the method I use to get the most consistent packing. It has served me well and is just about the only way I'll pack a bowl. As for the OP's question I'm in the hour to hour and a half range on my bowls.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0XHYPso7TXs

 

tunberg92

Lurker
Aug 10, 2014
3
0
Thank you brdavidson, I had never seen or heard of that method before. I will definitely give it a try when I get some time tonight to sit back and enjoy my pipe.

 

brdavidson

Lifer
Dec 30, 2012
2,017
5
Check out the rest of the James Fox videos too, the guy is just great to listen too and you'll pick up a few good pointers.

 

ravkesef

Lifer
Aug 10, 2010
2,912
9,179
81
Cheshire, CT
Brian is right on target. David McGrane has a marvelous speaking voice. I have found, however, that is packing method requires that to tobacco be at least slightly moist. By the way, check out the prices – they're not bad, especially when they knock off the VAT.

 

mso489

Lifer
Feb 21, 2013
41,210
60,433
It depends so much on the tobacco. Dry, fast burning tobacco like Five Brothers rarely sticks around for more than 20 minutes,

and 10 may be more like it. If you pack flake artfully in a large bowl pipe, you might puff gently for two hours, one for sure.

A bowl can be stretched if you take breaks between relights, but that's not continuous smoking, and I presume that's the discussion.

 

nhpro

Starting to Get Obsessed
Aug 12, 2014
116
11
Welcome Wfin,

I'm a fairly new piper myself.

For me, relaxing and enjoying my pipe is top priority, even if it means smoking only half a bowl.

But, to answer your question, you are right, it depends on the individual. Myself, I tend to draw slowly and enjoy the moment.

A standard bowl of Half and Half in my cob will last me about an hour.

 

wfin73

Might Stick Around
Aug 7, 2014
56
0
Thanks for the input everyone! Looks like I'm falling right in with the average of about an hour!

 

carcosa

Starting to Get Obsessed
Oct 21, 2013
207
85
Just smoked some 3 Oaks while playing a game of chess, took me 1.5 hours...

 

brass

Lifer
Jun 4, 2014
1,840
7
United States
Regarding the comment about acquiring smaller pipes for those times when one wants a quick smoke. IMHO, I don't think you need to buy pipes for short smokes.
I thought similarly at one time but then, I found that if I wanted to cut a smoking session in half, the trick was to fill the pipe half-full.
Now, I don't bother with that. I just fill the pipe, smoke what I want, then lay it down and come back to it when I want to finish it. With rare exception, the smoke quality suffers not all and in many cases, it improves. Old timers sometimes lay their partially smoked pipes aside deliberately, not to shorten to smoking time but believing it improves the tobacco, calling it DGT (Delayed Gratification Technique).
However, I do have several bowl pipes, not because they are good for short smokes, but to my taste, some flakes smoke better in smaller bowls. At least, that's how I rationalize my own PAD. (Pipe Acquisition Disorder)

 
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