"Why do you have so many pipes?"

I could certainly make due with a lot fewer pipes and I really can't remember buying a pipe (good maker, good grade) during the last twenty years I thought was a really bad smoker. Some most certainly smoked better than others but none were truly bad. What seems to bring me back to the market time and time again is the idea that out there somewhere is the perfect pipe and I just have to find it. Some have come pretty damn close but I'm still looking or at least that's what I tell myself

The answer to that question, on almost any subject, is that it was the experience of the previous item that lead to buying the next.

If I could have started collecting pipes with the experience of having owned a pipe of every shape and make, I would probably have only ever bought half a dozen instead of the two dozen I'm at now.

I think it's telling that the president of the NASPC eventually sold off the majority of his collection, only keeping his best smokers.

Given that we cannot look at the future in hindsight owning many things is a necessary evil until you've settled in and found your place within the subject at hand.

Just because. I like them and they put a smile on my face. Right now I'm averaging 2-3 new pipes a month while I build my collection up. I really don't need that many but it is fun aquiring and then smoking them. Eventually I will slow my acquisition to 3 or 4 a year or I will run out of room. Maybe special ocassion PAD...birthday, Christmas, father's day and anniversary?

Besides the need to let the pipe air-out. I just like different pipes on different occasions. Smoking a pipe exclusively since Jan '14 Ive tried almost all styles.

I would have to agree ...

No one knows how a pipe will smoke until it is smoked. marcel

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...except maybe in my experience a Savinelli always seems to have the perfect draw to me. Ive had some Peterson System pipes which seemed no better than a Wellington or a hard to find Swiss Dry Smoker.
Now sometimes for me its just the novelty of a new pipe that intrigues me or even a crude one Ive put together myself.

"The Ritual", "The Tobacco", and "The Occasion" always enters into the equation as well, overshadowing other aspects at times. Id say one should have at least 7 pipes, one for each day. I smoke a bowl from one then another and change up again while sitting at the desk here.

Some of my best smokes are in the older pipes, so I don't think I'm operating on compensating for insufficiency. Rather, I think choosing (in my case at some length) a pipe, ordering it, waiting for it, receiving it, unwrapping it, packing it for the first time, and admiring it from time to time thereafter is a sufficiently pleasant experience it encourages me to repeat it many times. I certainly have too many pipes, but not so many that they aren't all on display, and they all get smoked in a rather long rotation.

mso, that's at least a half dozen really good reasons to keep adding to the collection!!!!

mso489 you explained the enjoyment sequence right to a T. Well put indeed. ::

When I was going through my second phase of pipe acquisition after I sold an entire lot of of both mid to high grades that were OK smokers but not phenomenal, I then started buying old London estates. I figured I was playing the odds and trying to work them in my favor in the attempt. My theory was I'd be getting older, better briar and I mean briar at the time of manufacture. I also had developed an affection for classic shapes and some of my previous collection had some wonky Freehands and Oom-Paul's and some long Canadians.

Has my plan worked? Yes and no, I did manage to average about 50% success with the winners being terrific smokers and the others being serviceable enough to stay in regular rotation. I've since picked up a couple high end hand mades, some classic mid grade machine mades and I'm happy with all of those. Realistically, I'm in need of 4-5 more really great pipes and I'll be content for a while, maybe.......
This is just my response and I get all of the above replies. I mean who doesn't love contemplating getting a new pipe even if you don't really need it? I work in a shop that sells pipes and I get a very generous discount on anything I buy but if I opted to just grab every nice pipe that came through the door I'd end up needing another job to afford this one! Lol. I had that problem once when I worked in a sporting goods store, (hunting/fishing), it's a terrible cycle if you fall into that trap.

A pipe needs to dry out between smokes. How many days depends on how good a smoke you want. Ideally 14 days is a good time, though much shorter rests are possible. If you smoke 8 pipes a day, 8x14 =112. So you need at least 112 pipes.

Why do some people have so many spoons with the names of states on them; would not having just your home state be enough?

foggymountain, your logic is impeccable. I forwarded a link to my wife!

Why do women have 37 different panties in every color, pattern, and style?
Men buy two 5-packs of tighty whities and call it good.

Because truth be told, I despise smoking more than one blend in a pipe. I do have a couple of genre pipes, but for the most part, I have a pipe dedicated to a single blend. And marcel, pull the trigger on a Don Carlos. Recently acquired a Don Carlos volcano and love it.

Foggy, your reasoning is irrefutable.

I agree with Foggy also, but I try to allow an only 7 days minimum, some other members advocate 21+ days.

And if you divide your pipes into genres (or have even single blend dedicated pipes), the number is going to multiple.

@mso489 couldn't have said it better.

Why do women have 37 different panties in every color, pattern, and style?
Men buy two 5-packs of tighty whities and call it good.

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They do make couture underwear for men as well and once you wear a pair you'll understand why women have an obsession with Victoria Secrets or La Perla. They're a lot more comfortable and flattering than those 5 packs of tighty whities or boxers from Wal-Mart.

I just got into VaPers and I'm very glad my collection is around 35 pipes. I was able to alcohol clean 8 of them and rid them of the aromatic ghosts so I could dedicate them to the VaPers. If I ever grow a fondness for Latakia I'll be glad to have even more I can clean and dedicate to those blends.