Is it Okay to Partially Fill My Pipe?

eibhir · Jan 21, 2013

I'm not sure I like the tobacco after I've lot it several times in my pipe. It tastes funny. Is it safe for my pipe to be filled only part way and more often? It takes me half a day to finish a bowl and I don't want to waste the tobacco because I can't smoke ot all in one go. So far I'm doing good with it and can actually keep it lit for ten minutes now! Your tips really help!

thesmokindragon · Jan 21, 2013

The issue with doing this is building uneven cake, so it might

be better to switch to a smaller pipe...Or just fill the pipe and

come back to it later/might even taste better or what we call

DGT

mlyvers · Jan 21, 2013

sure, fill 1/2 way and smoke all the way to the heel. this method is common when breaking in a pipe. yes partial filling is ok my firend. i do agree a smaller pipe may be your best bet.
mike.

eibhir · Jan 21, 2013

Thanks! Definitely getting a smaller one soon. I was worried I could burn the top off if I only filled it halfway all the time. After half a day of relighting it just tastes weird and sticky.

zonomo · Jan 21, 2013

I kinda do the same thing elbhir - Sometimes I have the time to just smoke the entire bowl but sometimes I get busy and realize i have quite a bit of tobacco left in the pipe so I relight. I haven't done the half bowl thing yet but I just smoke until its done. Sometimes its taken me and entire day and on a few occasions, the next morning.

ocpsdan · Jan 21, 2013

I would say yes. It's important to build a cake from the bottom, up. Something I've learned is not to give up on a blend right away. Give it some time, and don't throw it away if you don't like it! Come back to it in a few months and perhaps your tastes will have changed!

hans · Jan 21, 2013

Lots of good advice in here.
The only thing I would add is to try and smoke a whole bowl when you can as often times the flavor and experience changes throughout the bowl. Many tobaccos smoke and taste differently during one part of the bowl than the other.

Different burn temperatures, air pockets, different leafs in the blend burning at different times make for a journey like experience with many tobaccos throughout the bowl.

yadan · Jan 21, 2013

I go along with the smaller bowl method (as in a small cob) when either trying out a new tobacco or just getting in a really quick smoke. : puffy

:

winton · Jan 21, 2013

If you are only going to smoke part of the bowl, I highly recommend filling the bottom half of the bowl, rather than the top half.
Winton

eibhir · Jan 21, 2013

Good one Winton! I think my problem is I bought really cheap tobacco as my first one. It's great value amaretto. It's a bit weak to start then when I go back 2nd time it's good. After 4th relight it's funky. Just got an ounce of highland whiskey from a cigar/ pipe store and no problems with funk today.

Thanks for all the great advice!

thesmokindragon · Jan 21, 2013

I use a clay (Dutch Gouda style) for quick taste'in and shorter

smoke times/about 20-30 minutes and since no real cake building

being done with a clay there are no worries

they are also pretty

inexpensive around $10/ea...but whatever u do "don't" touch a clay

bowl when it is fired up and if you forget this advice you will remember

it when u feel the burn :-(

atboth · Jan 21, 2013

I often do half bowls. Sometimes the pipe I want to smoke is too deep for the time alloted. And while some smokers will talk about delayed gratification when relighting a pipe hours later, that really doesn't carry any wieght for me.

englishdave · Jan 21, 2013

I am a follower of the DGT, and find that when I cannot smoke the whole bowl due to time or other constraints, I just set it aside. Often I'll pick it up hours later, sometimes the next morning.
There is little to no lill effect, and often the tobacco has taken on an all together more nuanced quality, like a stew tasting better some days later when the ingredients have melded.
As a bit of advice, I make sure to tamp the ashes down and swab the stem with a pipe cleaner so that any moisture is removed before coming back to re-light.

martiniman · Jan 21, 2013

+1 David.

eibhir · Jan 21, 2013

Now that I have better tobacco I will just let it go out and relight as desired. Thanks for all the advice!

eibhir · Jan 21, 2013

Those clay pipes look awesome!

chopz · Jan 22, 2013

it's fie to only smoke half bowls. use matches not a lighter.

turtlewoman · Jan 22, 2013

Hi. I'm glad to know there are others who smoke partial bowls and then go back and relight. I thought maybe I alone in doing that. I do find that the tobacco tastes different at various levels of the bowl. I hadn't thought about it until I saw it mentioned here but it's really true for me.

Is it Okay to Partially Fill My Pipe?

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