Lots of tamping, am I just packing it wrong?

frostsandx · Jan 13, 2014

Hi everyone,

I'm new to the forums here and really enjoy the podcast. I have been smoking a pipe since the middle of the summer, maybe once or twice a week and extensively enjoy it.

I seem to tamp more than anyone I know, maybe very firmly tamping every 5 mins or so because my draw gets so light that the pipe goes out and won't take a light. Am I simply packing it wrong or does anyone else tamp a ton? I try my best to pack it like the videos and articles I find since my friends who smoke pipes know about as much about it as I do. Also I tend to get a thick layer of fine gray ash on top of my tobacco in the bowl, is this normal or do you use your tool to dump out some of the ash when it builds up? I feel these questions are related somehow. Thank you for your help.

phred · Jan 13, 2014

I'm still something of a novice myself, but it almost sounds like you're over packing and over tamping - if there's no space for air, the tobacco won't combust. Not quite sure how you're getting a draw "so light" if you're tamping "firmly" - I normally tamp using pretty much just the weight of the tamper to even things out. When you draw on the pipe, does it feel like sipping a soda through a straw, or more like a milkshake? If it's more like a milkshake, you're almost definitely packing too tight and over tamping.
As for the ash, recommendations vary. Some folks just tamp it a little and keep smoking until the whole bowl is nothing but ash and maybe some dottle, while others tap out the ash partway through.
As with anything, it all comes with practice. Keep it up, and you'll find what works best for you. Good luck!

latbomber · Jan 13, 2014

Welcome aboard! As phred said, keep trying and it will eventually work out. Try experimenting with how dry the tobacco is, different packing methods and smoking cadence. If my pipe is running well I usually tamp after the true light, about halfway down the bowl, and right near the end to get the last bit of tobacco. I usually dont dump out any ash unless something goes awry and I have to stir the tobacco/clear a stoppage.

frostsandx · Jan 13, 2014

Thanks for the quick response

Phred - I have been very curious about actual packing pressure and how hard to tamp, I am always worried that I am not packing hard enough as I tend to have a very light touch, but maybe there is something to packing too tight or my tamping to hard messing up the balance of the tobacco packing. So what you're saying is in general tamping just requires pressure to level out the top of the bowl?

latbomber - That's a good point as well, the moisture differential in tobaccos is bewildering at best to me and an impossible conundrum at worst. I should defintely work on my cadence technique, I never seem to have the same tobacco smoke quite the same way twice, which makes me think it's me more than the tobacco, or is that just part of the unique experience and art of smoking a pipe?

bryanf · Jan 13, 2014

Yeah, probably packing issue. Probably too loose. Sometimes I go through an entire bowl without tamping at all. The most I'll tamp is usually once or twice through a bowl, and that only to get an ember going that has been dying, applying no actual pressure. I use my finger most of the time.

rangerearthpig · Jan 13, 2014

I don't know bo diddly, but I rarely tamp my smoke. If it starts to fade out, I lightly tamp the inner perimeter of the bowl. Aside from that, I only tamp if I start sucking too much air. I never tamp hard, though. That seems to always work well for me. Good luck.

allan · Jan 13, 2014

Frost
Welcome to the forum. If the issue isn't packing, it could be moisture. Do you live in a humid climate?
The issue of moisture in tobacco hasn't occurred to me lately, living in the Northeast where the humidity is very low right now.
In the summer however, I have found that most of my tobaccos are way to moist, and very difficult to keep lit unless I have allowed them time to dry out before packing. During that time period, if I am on the way out, I will frequently use a hair dryer to gently remove the moisture before packing.
Good luck and the technique will come. Trust me.

ravkesef · Jan 13, 2014

+1 on Phred's remarks. My three rules are:

1. The tobacco should be dryer than you think it should be.

2. The tobacco should be packed looser than you think it should be. (Way looser)

3. The tobacco should be smoked slower than you think it should be.
I tamp very lightly, have very few relights, and enjoy my tobacco down to the bottom of the bowl and generally have no occasion to dump the ash in the pipe while smoking it.

When I'm packing the ports filter for my espresso machine, I bear down with 30# of pressure. When I tamp my tobacco, I let the weight of the tamper do the job.

cosmicfolklore · Jan 13, 2014

Some tobaccos I like to leave loose and some I like to pack tight, but never so tight that I have to do more than usual breathing to draw some smoke. It just depends on the blend and my experience with it.
I never tump the ash till the end of the bowl, but I smoke mostly Vas. I hear that some burleys can get an ashy taste if you don't tump occasionally.
As for the tamper, I only tamp before a relight or if I am starting to get ashes blowing out. And, I just use the weight of the tamper. I never "press" it down. I try to keep the initial pack as tight as it was to begin with. I tend to get a good burn to the bottom without much effort this way. But, the key is a good pack right off the bat.
It takes some practice. I'm no veteran pipe smoker. I've only been at this for over a year now. But, I've learned tons from smoking my pipe with others. If you have a pipe shop or tobacco bar near by, I recommend hanging out, making friends, and learning from watching and asking. If not, this forum is the next best thing. The best part about having somewhere to smoke with others, is trying blends of friends, and getting to actually smell the aromas coming from other pipes. It makes the whole experience twice as enjoyable.
Welcome to the forums!!! : puffy

:

frostsandx · Jan 13, 2014

thanks everyone. I will definitely have to think about my technique. I think I will pick a day when I have plenty of time to smoke the same pipe twice with the same tobacco, with a good break in between and try one bowl packed tighter than usual and one packed lighter than usual, and tamp as lightly and infrequently as possible. and maybe if the pipe gods are on my side I might have a better idea of what I'm doing wrong. Smoking a pipe is definitely turning out to be a long yet enjoyable learning process for me.

cosmicfolklore · Jan 13, 2014

It gets a wee bit obsessive, LOL. Keep at it. Try lots of suggestions. I still like to try new things. Just have fun and enjoy it. I'm not afraid to dump a bowl and start over with a repack if it's not enjoyable.

Just have fun!!

ravkesef · Jan 13, 2014

f the pipe gods are on my side I might have a better idea of what I'm doing wrong.

. Maybe "wrong" is too strong a term. You're in the learning phase, and we've all been through it. The good news is that there's lots of reading to be done on this forum that will help you as you move along the path. Read, experiment, ask questions. The other good news is you're already one of us. You don't have to win your spurs for that. Welcome.

branzig · Jan 13, 2014

What method are you using to pack the pipe?
I had problems keeping my pipe lit until I switched to the frank method myself.

frostsandx · Jan 14, 2014

allan - I actually live in the northeast myself in north jersey, but I do find that many tobaccos I try are way more moist than I think they should be. I generally try to let a small amount dry a bit on the table or something but get impatient after about 35-40 mins or so of smelling the aroma.
ravkesef - I will definitely take both of your posts into suggestion. I like the 3 rules I will try to remember them next time.
branzig - when I first got curious about pipe smoking I bought a pipe, a tamper, a pipe rest, pipe cleaners and a small bag of paladin cherry at my local cigar shop to try out as my first attempt. (my friends dad always smoked some cherry cavendish I have yet to discover since I haven't seen either in years but it certainly wasn't that one) And I asked the store owner what his method for packing it was and he said that while he doesn't enjoy smoking a pipe, the method he felt to recommend was, take a pinch and shake a baby's hand, then take a pinch and shake a woman's hand, then take a small bit and shake a man's hand... so that's the cryptic method which I try to reproduce. I have also tried the Mac Baren/Per Jensen method for packing flake a few times (orlik golden) which I saw on youtube to absolutely catastrophic results so I gave that up.

branzig · Jan 14, 2014

the method he felt to recommend was, take a pinch and shake a baby's hand, then take a pinch and shake a woman's hand, then take a small bit and shake a man's hand... so that's the cryptic method which I try to reproduce.

Yep that's the 3 step method that I was taught to use at first as well, and it gave me nothing but fits for my first bowls. I started to look into different packing methods and have tried a few, but have found that the "frank" method has given me the most consistent and flavorful smokes thus far. I suggest you check it out on Youtube and try to replicate it.
For flakes I usually just fold and break it up a bit. I'll admit flake has been a bit tricky for me thus far as well...but man is it some of the tastiest tobaccos I have ever tried!

dmcmtk · Jan 14, 2014

The thing I'm curious about, is what kind of pipe are you smoking? Is the draw open enough? Everyone else have all made good suggestions, you'll get the feel for it, but if the pipe doesn't have a good draw, that could be part of the problem.

cosmicfolklore · Jan 14, 2014

I seem to have acquired a ragtag group of pipes, ha ha. Each one I've fallen in love with, but they each smoke very differently, with most, I'm still learning. Most of the pipes, I can clinch, and they have very open draws. Some are sippers, and some... well... some I smoke out of shear sadistic self torture, either too hard to draw, or smoke like I'm drawing on the Grand Canyons. I think of them like cars. Some take curves, some leak oil, and some get me to work. For me, part of the pleasure was learning how to drive each one. Some, I'm still learning.
I probably should have had a plan in collecting what I have, like all billiards or bulldogs, but just went with what called to me.
You'll learn your pipe, and I hope you enjoy getting the hang of it. Just try not to grind the gears :D

phred · Jan 14, 2014

So what you're saying is in general tamping just requires pressure to level out the top of the bowl?

Sort of. :D I usually press around the edges to compress any uncombusted tobacco into the bowl so it will contact the ember, so the top isn't really leveled out, but ever so slightly domed. The idea is to keep the ember in the middle for even burning, fill in any air pockets that develop during the combustion process, and so forth.
For a while, I actually consciously overpacked my pipes so that I could tell what was going on when the pack was too tight - difficult draw, lots of relights, uneven burning, etc. Then I backed off little by little until I went too far the other way and started having issues again. It's a learning process.

trailspike48 · Jan 14, 2014

ravkesef, I like your advice. I'll keep in in mind and use your tips.
frostsandx, On the left border of the forum page near the bottom as you scroll down are "featured articles". There are two articles on pipe packing, they have helped me and might help you.

frostsandx · Jan 14, 2014

trailspike48 - I'll definitely check that out.

cosmicfolklore, phred, branzig - thanks guys, you realy made me feel better, I'll definitely just keep trying.

dmcmtk - I have several pipes, from straight pot and billiard to a couple bends and half bends and a freehand, it seems they all smoke differently, which may be what's slowing me down with learning my technique, should I stick with one pipe for a while till I get better at it? I have two which tend to be my favorite but try to smoke them all equally in a rotation.

Lots of tamping, am I just packing it wrong?

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