Seems like the majority of the bowls I smoke are rather mediocre for the first 1/3 of the bowl. Bowl type or shape/size doesn't seem to matter much. Seems to be worse on ribbon than flake but not much.
So I'm guessing it is how I'm packing my pipe. Could be the light but I doubt it. I usually dry my tobacco before smoking, I probably error on more dry than less. I let the first load be fairly loose, second load more pressure, last load I push down fairly firm. Again, if I'm guessing, I may not be putting enough pressure on the second and third load and am relying on tamping after the light to get it right. But rather than fighting this until I figure it out on my own through trial and error, thought I'd ask here. Thanks.
So I'm guessing it is how I'm packing my pipe. Could be the light but I doubt it. I usually dry my tobacco before smoking, I probably error on more dry than less. I let the first load be fairly loose, second load more pressure, last load I push down fairly firm. Again, if I'm guessing, I may not be putting enough pressure on the second and third load and am relying on tamping after the light to get it right. But rather than fighting this until I figure it out on my own through trial and error, thought I'd ask here. Thanks.