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Sep 7, 2018
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Hey everyone! I figured I should introduce myself finally. These forums have been an enormous help to me recently. I picked up the pipe about 2 months ago and haven't turned back. I have been a "nail" user for over half my life; about 16 years now. I am down to about 2 a day now, which, coming from a pack and a half a day is pretty good in my book. Hope to kick those couple a day out soon, its just kinda intimidating. That morning nail and before bed are hard ones to kick.
Thanks to the long history here in the forums I feel like I'm a decent pipe smoker now. My bowls don't get overly hot or finish overly quick. The biggest struggle for me was figuring out how much to load into the pipe for my breaks at work. I've about got it down. I half gravity fill my pipe (MM cobs at work) and that seems to be about right.
I've managed to cut back from the cigarettes without any "high nic" blends as well and I can already notice the nicotine when I smoke the pipe. That's something new in the last couple weeks, hopefully that means my nic addiction is lowering.
I started out with a local B&M aromatic blend and a Virginia flake they had. I've since determined the flake is Stokkebye LNF but the aromatic is indeed a house blend. I've found some things that come close; it's almost a mix of Comoy's Cask No 2 and LL RLP-6 but with a little Stokkebye Black Coffee in it.
Once I decided to really give it a try I made an order from SmokingPipes.com of 32 different blends. One ounce each. Many things similar but from different brands as well so I had comparison for those types. The only thing I have discovered is there isn't really any tobacco I don't enjoy :D although I haven't tried any Lakeland blends yet. I prefer Virginias and Burleys while I'm at work, maybe a mellow English come last break. A good Lat forward English in the evening and a tasty aromatic after dinner.
I probably have too many pipes throughout the day, but I'm working on trying to cut that back to a few a day instead of... 8? maybe? I don't really count.
Some of the blends I really enjoy that I have gotten to try are C&D Haunted Bookshop, Engine 99, and Bailey's Front porch. Stokkebye LNF is possibly my favorite of them all, but I haven't gotten into the Bulls-eye yet. I travel for work and "only" bring about 7-10 blends with me to "get to know" on a 2-6 week trip so I have quite a bit of untried, jarred blends sitting in my cedar chest back home. Most notably about 4oz of McClelland 2010 that I hope to enjoy in 5 years or so once I've developed a well rounded palate and can hopefully appreciate it more than if I were to smoke it now.
I'm doing my best to stave off PAD but have fully accepted TAD. I thoroughly enjoy nearly every blend I've tried and can appreciate each of them in their own right. I imagine I will have quite a supply by the time I finish sampling all these blends and start re-supplying as they get low.
I started with a Dr. Grabow Duke, which is now used for aromatics, followed by a Grand Duke that I use for Virginia. Then I found a real store and purchased a Savinelli 606, Peterson 80s, 2 MM Legends, and 2 MM Washingtons. I can safely say I am underwater in the pipe world now and see no signs of surfacing. Oh well, the wife likes it and that seems to put me in the minority. I wouldn't want it any other way, well, other than to be able to convince the rest of ya'lls wives to like it. If I could, I would haha.
If you've made it this far, thank you. Any advice, recomendations, or comments are more than welcome. I haven't tried any tinned tobaccos yet so I'm open to recommendations beyond the usual. I plan on trying Escudo, Presbyterian, University Flake, PPP (if its ever stocked), SPC Plum Pudding and a couple others I can't remember at the moment. I'll probably work my way through most bulks before long. I noticed PipesandCigars has a larger selection on bulks and cheaper C&D. Anyone know if their Nightcap bulk is like the tin? I want to try some before it's all gone and if the bulk is the same I might jar up a wee bit.
Thanks again! You've all been a wonderful help even if you didn't know it.
-Some Dude from Kansas that's in Wisconsin and will be Lord knows where next week.

 

techie

Part of the Furniture Now
Jul 20, 2018
589
10
Welcome to the forums! I'm also new to pipes (about 6 weeks) and like you, have been buying and trying numerous blends. Most of mine have been English so far.
One helpful thing I did was to purchase several straight tobaccos, such as straight virginia, burley, latakia, etc. to get a good idea of the aroma and taste of each so that I can begin to pick those out in the blends I smoke.

 

bluto

Part of the Furniture Now
Aug 24, 2018
737
8
Hey , you are way ahead of me , only have a handful of pipes and a dozen tins in storage .
Working thru bulk blends and some blends and flakes I made , but the good news is , I’m such a slow smoker , my tins and jars are going to be aged nicely by the time I get to them.

 

techie

Part of the Furniture Now
Jul 20, 2018
589
10
I’m such a slow smoker , my tins and jars are going to be aged nicely by the time I get to them.
I was just thinking something similar today when, looking over my growing collection, I thought "geez, it's going to take me some time to get through these!". Yet I keep buying more.

 

timt

Lifer
Jul 19, 2018
2,844
22,729
Welcome to the forum! I lurked a long time too. I know what you mean about the cigarettes - yeah, the pipe is a much better place. As far as tin tobacco, I second your notion for Escudo. It's a great VaPer and one of the best things in my opinion about it, is that it's always available. I like Orlik Golden Sliced, which is also readily available, for a grassy, citrus-y virginia flake. Doing a search on different genres and what people recommend will net you lots choices to go for.
You're from Kansas huh? Which part? I grew up in southeast Kansas and have lived in Minnesota now for 27 years.

 
Sep 7, 2018
21
0
I was pretty scared of the English blends when I started, just from the smell. I have since came to enjoy them, although I am partial to the milder, more nuanced side of them. I haven't tried any of my Balkans yet but I imagine I will appreciate them like I do the Lat heavy (to me) Engine 99.
You're from Kansas huh? Which part?

I recently moved to Topeka from the country. I'm enjoying the city life and access to simple things like the grocery store without driving 20 minutes :D. Don't know how long I'll stay but the kids enjoy the larger diversity in the city as opposed to the country so probably at least until they grow up and move out.

 
Sep 7, 2018
21
0
Orlik Golden Sliced
I've been looking at that one a lot. It seems like a reasonably priced tin. I've been kinda turned off by the price of most tins but realize some of them are probably worth it. The Orlik doesn't give me sticker shock tho, It might be the first tinned Virginia I try.

 

timt

Lifer
Jul 19, 2018
2,844
22,729
Orlik was the first flake I tried and I fell for it. P&C had a sale on it for $10.XX for a 100 gram tin and I bought a ton of it. From what I hear from the sages around here, it ages well.

 

jpmcwjr

Moderator
Staff member
May 12, 2015
24,570
27,077
Carmel Valley, CA
Glad you have de-lurked! Welcome.
I probably have too many pipes throughout the day, but I'm working on trying to cut that back to a few a day instead of... 8? maybe? I don't really count.
That may be par for the course; at least it was my experience. A few months in to resuming smoking pipes after a very long layoff, I found my self constantly loading up a bowl and lighting it. Now I am smoking a bit less and liking it more.

 

cwpiperman

Can't Leave
Jun 15, 2018
378
2,390
Welcome! Arg, don't ye forget ta take a sail on yon Frigate! She's a mighty fine ship, and no mistake!!!
CW

 
Sep 7, 2018
21
0
I suppose with all the fuss over it, I'll have to give the Frigate a try sooner than later.
I'll pass the word to Quantrill and the boys.
Oh yeah? What're they gonna do? Not like they can burn down the WHOLE town, right?

 
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