Inhaling pipe smoke - What a waste!

Welcome to the Forums, unadopted!
Actually, I think inhaling is pretty rare among pipe smokers. As you discovered, it dramatically reduces the amount of flavor you're able to perceive during a smoke.
Bob

Consider yourself 'adopted'!! LOL
Everything you say is true, and it's great that you have worked it out for yourself!!
Happy piping!!!!

Hmmm, now I have to hope for a chest cold? I am just happy I am off smokes and down to four bowls a day. Yes I believe I still use it as a nicotine fix, but slowly trying to stop inhaling. Fighting a 40 year habit is tough. It's still to cold out to fully enjoy a bowl outside, but I hope once warm weather hits I can start to savor the smoke rather then inhale it.

I'm going to go out on a limb here -- and I truly don't wish to offend anyone here -- but I can't help thinking that nicotine addiction and pipe smoking simply don't go together. In my opinion, pipe smoking should be a relaxing hobby that you turn to for solace, reflection, and enjoyment. Those things become secondary when smoking a pipe becomes a physical need or merely the means to a an end (the "end" being a nicotine hit).
Judging from all of the posts here about folks looking for high-nicotine blends, though, I realize that my view may not be the majority opinion. But I can't help thinking that if a pipe is merely a nicotine delivery device, then the smoker is missing out on 9/10 of what makes pipe smoking such a pleasurable hobby.
Bob

I've never really thought that much about it. Being a cig smoker for many years, I do admit to inhaling. Maybe every tenth puff or so, not all the time. I guess it's just second nature.

Pipe smoking, for me, is about the relaxation and ritual more than the nicotine. I've used tobacco in about every form imaginable over the years, and pipe tobacco (no matter the blend) usually doesn't have much of an effect on me in the Nic department anyway.

Like I said, I think inhaling is just a reaction for me, not a conscious decision.

Bob, that is exactly what is am trying to achieve with switching from coffin nails to a pioe.
I want to enjoy the moment, not have the need to. Sit somewhere and contemplate why I am not out fishing more
I am so tired of always firing up a smoke, just for the sake of it, cig smoking is just to convenient.
I also have an inherent fear of quitting for good, two very close friends quit cold turkey only to develope stage 3 cancers after 1 yr and passing on shortly thereafter. My dumb mind says "maybe if they didn't quit?"
One week without a cig n those habits still pull me me in certain situations.

Wow. I'm breathing a sigh of relief: You guys read my post exactly as I intended it. And it's great to hear the perspective from "the other side," unadopted. I have a much better idea of where you're coming from now.
Bob

There are many that use the pipe as a nicotine delivery system. Look at hundreds of years of men going all day with a pipe hanging out of their mouths, men buying their one brand for their one-pipe, Missouri Meerschaums being marketed and sold along side big bags of RYO (this was my start into pipes). Even today, most pipe smokers in my area are men who stop at the convenience store and buy a box of Carter Hall and go home to smoke in private in front of the TV, or burn their favorite RYO in a cob while mowing the yard. I see them in traffic with pipes hanging out of their mouths. More than you'd think. Maybe It's just here, but maybe not.
However, I have transcended this level of pipe use to what I believe is a higher plane of pipe hobby. I no longer inhale. I enjoy finer tobaccos, and read about the gourmet enjoyment of such. And, I come here. You're right Bob. It shouldn't be an addiction, but even with not inhaling and trying to take things to that gourmet level, if I had to go a few days without smoking, I'd probably SMASH, CRUSH, DESTROY beautiful things, and that would not be good. Even with just taking in moderate levels of nicotine through the small blood vessels of the mouth as we do with pipe smoking, I am addicted. I can't speak for everyone, but I would have a hard time putting my pipes away and forgetting about them for forever. And, not just because I "like" them. I'm just honest with myself.
I'm addicted. But, is that so bad? If addiction is bad, then throw away your smart phones, give away your cars, stop using central air conditioning, stop drinking :::shivers::: coffee, sodas, candy bars, chips, sugar, etc... We are addicted to many things, why is the pipe hobby such a terrible thing to admit being addicted to?
I never let alcohol cross my lips. I don't use drugs. I never eat fast food. I grow, raise, and hunt ALL of my own food. I've limited all white sugars from my diet. So, the pipe and a bit of coffee are my addictions, oh and my cell phone. Eh, so what? I'm proud of it.

As I've been kicking cigarettes I've caught myself taking an inhale or two near the end of the night. Would prefer not to.
That said, just smoking the pipe can help with the cravings I have, without inhaling. Nicotine definitely plays a role in the enjoyment of a pipe, I think. A good coffee, a good blend, and just getting in the zone... gotta love it.

My dad chain smoked a pipe but did not intentionally inhale. We all inhale some pipe smoke, but not by

heaving it into our chests like well-addicted cigarette smokers, not the majority of pipe smokers. It's not

part of the tradition and doesn't enhance the experience. I don't go after the nicotine buzz at all. When it

crops up, every sixth or tenth bowl, depending on the blend, I take it as a pleasant experience, but I don't

go after it. For folks who are transitioning from cigarettes, or for those who just tend to drag (inhale) their

pipes, I don't disparage them. But I do think that not inhaling is the way to go, the best way of enjoying a

pipe. When I have to go a few days without a pipe, it does not affect my mood or nerves. That's the right

balance for me.

+1 MSO, but my own personal opinion.

I just don't see the point in smoking when you have a cold, especially if you aren't looking for a nic fix.

I tend to inhale about half of my puffs depending on the blend and the funnest thing for me is that while I have dramatically cut down my cigarettes I find myself only inhaling half the puffs with them as well.

As a life-long non smoker who got into smoking a pipe recently, I can't even imagine inhaling intenionally. The bits you accidentally inhale by having so much smoke whirling about your head is more than sufficient. Even without inhaling I usually get a good buzz on, and the day I don't I'll know I'm hooked. I've deducted that inhaling is completely unnecessary - I just don't get what the hurry is to get that nicotine sensation.
Dot
P.S. What would a newbie like me know anyway?

I have never inhaled pipe smoke as the stuff I smoke would blow your lungs out! That being said my friend Andre AKA Mr. 1920s does actually inhale Condor pipe smoke. I very rarely smoke cigarettes unless they are hand rolled Golden Virginia tobacco which is not available here in the US. Probably for the best I would imagine!

My Uncle in England smokes about a pouch a day of Condor and inhales.
I have actually been trying to be more conscious of inhaling, and I noticed that I have been inhaling quite a bit since I switched my every day all day to milder tobacco's in December. (Hal O' the Wynd, Virginia No 1, Prince Albert).
For the last few days, as an experiment, I have gone back to smoking Ennerdale Flake all day long, and am no longer inhaling, yet feel fine.
I smoke a pipe primarily for nicotine, with flavor being a great side benefit. If there was no nicotine, I would not smoke at all, and would not see the point. I am trying to cut down. My wife wants me, too, and I agree that it would be a good idea. If I can get it down to 5 or 6 bowls a day, we'll both be happy.
Another thing, since switching to milder tobacco's, I have been consuming on average 100 grams/4 ounces or more per week. This is much more than my usual.
When I smoked Condor, I used small pipes, and a 50 gram (2 ounce pouch) would last me nearly a week. A 500 gram bag (pound) of Ennerdale would last me 2 months.
I'm hoping that going back to stronger smokes will reduce my intake, and I felt a lot better before as I rarely inhaled.