Are Small Bowl Briars Better for Heat and Humidity?

[makhorkasmoker]

And, if so, small in what way? Wide and shallow? Narrow?

I smoke outdoors, in Florida, where conditions are hot and humid much of the year. My solution is a cob. A clay or hardwood does pretty well under these conditions too. But I find briars under hot and humid conditions more challenging.

I have experimented a lot with the usual solutions—drying, pace, wider drafts, etc. But my briars just don’t smoke as well in jungle weather as do cobs.

I read an article at smoking pipes on smoking in heat and humidity. They too suggest the cob. But they also mention that small bowl briars can work better under these conditions.

What do you think?

 

[ThermionicScott]

Small bowls don’t seem to smoke any drier for me, but that could just mean my technique sucks no matter what.

 

[didimauw]

Hot and humid, you want meerschaum. They can still get hot to the touch, but no issue for burnout or moisture.

 

[Doctor Chopper]

Hot and humid, you want meerschaum. They can still get hot to the touch, but no issue for burnout or moisture.

^^^^

 

[sardonicus87]

Hot and humid, you want meerschaum. They can still get hot to the touch, but no issue for burnout or moisture.

I can second this. It's hot and humid where I live too, and my meerschaum does better in the heat and humidity than my briars do.

Even still, you just have to slow way down. If I rub out 2/3 of a typical flake and sufficiently dry it, it will still take at least an hour, if not up to an hour and 20 minutes, to finish it without overheating.

Another option is to switch to blends that naturally smoke cooler. Virginias and Virginia-based blends tend to smoke hotter, as well has heavy aromatics. Switch to lighter aros, some of them can smoke relatively cool. English blends also tend to smoke cool, but for some reason I don't care for them when it's hot outside. Burley blends also tend to smoke cooler. These are generalities though, you'll have to experiment with what you have to see which blends tend to burn cooler.

Another option is to just take more breaks, let the pipe go out, wait for it to cool down a little, then relight.

As to smaller bowls, I don't know that would make much difference. I'd imagine the thickness of the bowl around the chamber would make more of a difference than the overall size, but probably not much and I can't say if thinner or thicker walls would be better. My Chacom bent apple is a beefy boy and it doesn't seem to smoke any cooler or less wet than my Savinelli prince that has a significantly thinner walls. They both also hold about the same amount of tobacco and the Chacom is more narrow and deeper while the Savinelli is less deep but wider.

 

[makhorkasmoker]

Thanks to you all for the replies.

I love the idea of a Meer. But as I’m often smoking on a concrete patio, or in asphalt parking lots, or on other hard rough surfaces , often while doing other things, I would worry about breaking it. It is tempting tho.

To be clear, the issue for me in hot humid weather is a wad of wet tobacco in the bottom of the bowl—and the off flavor this produces. A hot pipe does not seem to be the problem.( I regularly smoke a clay slowly enough that I can hold it by the bowl without discomfort). I smoke almost exclusively unadorned burley—very dry , cool burning tobacco . And again there is no issue except with briar pipes. I do love briar tho—as this first blast of cool dry fall weather is reminding me. I’d love to find some way to extend the briar smoking thru our virtual monsoons

 

[OzPiper]

Sydney, Oz can get rather humid and it can be difficult getting the tobacco sufficiently dry at times.

Shag and ribbon cuts smoke more easily. And packing looser.
I use meerschaum chips of Nording Keystones.
Definitely reduces gurgles and dottle.

 

[sardonicus87]

Thanks to you all for the replies.

I love the idea of a Meer. But as I’m often smoking on a concrete patio, or in asphalt parking lots, or on other hard rough surfaces , often while doing other things, I would worry about breaking it. It is tempting tho.

To be clear, the issue for me in hot humid weather is a wad of wet tobacco in the bottom of the bowl—and the off flavor this produces. A hot pipe does not seem to be the problem.( I regularly smoke a clay slowly enough that I can hold it by the bowl without discomfort). I smoke almost exclusively unadorned burley—very dry , cool burning tobacco . And again there is no issue except with briar pipes. I do love briar tho—as this first blast of cool dry fall weather is reminding me. I’d love to find some way to extend the briar smoking thru our virtual monsoons

Yeah, you're not going to avoid the wet dottle really.

Maybe try those Nording Keystones. It'll give the wetness somewhere to go below the tobacco.

Personally, I never end up with wet dottle. By the time I get that far, the dottle is dry. It's un-smokeable and is a brittle, crunchy mess. Even when it's 95° outside and the RH is 50-60% or even at night when it's 85% RH, my dottle still isn't wet, even with wetter smoking and less dry tobaccos.

You're sure you aren't smoking too fast or packing too tight?

 

[Epip Oc'Cabot]

While I do not notice any difference in the use of a small or large pipe in hot & humid conditions….. I can say that when it IS hot & humid, I find that if my pipe tobacco is is even MORE dry than usual….. it is much more enjoyable.

I tend to like my pipe tobacco quite dry overall…. but in high heat & humidity environments….. a drier pipe tobacco tastes sweeter to me and is much, much less prone to tongue bite (IMO).

 

[makhorkasmoker]

From the article:
"Small-chambered briars and corn cobs are perfectly suited to warm-weather puffing, with cobs being the preferred tool for those residing in areas that are prone to extreme humidity; corn cob pipes smoke cool and dry, and do a great job of absorbing unavoidable moisture."

The article: summer pipe.

 

[makhorkasmoker]

While I do not notice any difference in the use of a small or large pipe in hot & humid conditions….. I can say that when it IS hot & humid, I find that if my pipe tobacco is is even MORE dry than usual….. it is much more enjoyable.

I tend to like my pipe tobacco quite dry overall…. but in high heat & humidity environments….. a drier pipe tobacco tastes sweeter to me and is much, much less prone to tongue bite (IMO).

My usual tobaccos are 5 Brothers, C&D Dark Burley, sometimes D&R products--extremely dry tobaccos--often drier than the air here.

 

[bullet08]

Let's think this through. Briar doesn't absorb moisture. When it's humid, moisture will collect inside of the pipe. Even if you have dried you tobacco, chances are good tobacco will pickup environmental moisture. So what do you need to do? Moisture management. Use pipe cleaner to clean out the moisture often. Simple solution. But let say you are not into swabbing the draught during smoking. Try cigar.

 

[sardonicus87]

Let's think this through. Briar doesn't absorb moisture. When it's humid, moisture will collect inside of the pipe. Even if you have dried you tobacco, chances are good tobacco will pickup environmental moisture. So what do you need to do? Moisture management. Use pipe cleaner to clean out the moisture often. Simple solution. But let say you are not into swabbing the draught during smoking. Try cigar.

This is a good point too. I forgot to mention, but whenever I am smoking a bowl and I get about halfway through, I run a pipe cleaner down the stem to absorb moisture every time I smoke.

Usually I only have to do this once half way, sometimes I have to do it twice at 1/3 and 2/3 of the way through. Definitely when smoking briars. I do it about 70% of the time with my meer as well, but never have to do it more than once half way through and half of those times, I probably didn't even need to do it at all.

 

[VDL_Piper]

Let's think this through. Briar doesn't absorb moisture.

Hmmmm, not so sure about this. All timber is hydroscopic and swollen (wet)/shrunken (dry) stummels would seem to confirm this happens. I would think that relative humidity would definitely change the smoking characteristics of briar but happy to be corrected here.

@makhorkasmoker as others have said there a two good options (cob/Meer) for very humid smoking conditions and then I’d look at small briars.

 

[ThermionicScott]

From the article:
"Small-chambered briars and corn cobs are perfectly suited to warm-weather puffing, with cobs being the preferred tool for those residing in areas that are prone to extreme humidity; corn cob pipes smoke cool and dry, and do a great job of absorbing unavoidable moisture."

The article: summer pipe.

Okay, so the article doesn’t actually say that small briars handle moisture better than larger ones. It says that on a hot day, you will probably want a shorter smoke, hence a smaller pipe. The article is confusing for a couple of sentences because they’re trying to make two unrelated arguments at the same time.

 

[mso489]

My oft repeated schtick, but if you want a longer smoke from a smaller chambered pipe, go with cuts like flake, coin, plug and rope. The more solid mass of tobacco burns slower and longer whatever the humidity is.

 

[bullet08]

Hmmmm, not so sure about this. All timber is hydroscopic and swollen (wet)/shrunken (dry) stummels would seem to confirm this happens. I would think that relative humidity would definitely change the smoking characteristics of briar but happy to be corrected here.

@makhorkasmoker as others have said there a two good options (cob/Meer) for very humid smoking conditions and then I’d look at small briars.

Wood of any kind are porous. But depends on the type of wood, how dense they are, and how much moisture it will absorb is different. If briar absorb any meaningful moisture during the smoke, I doubt there will be much wet pipe cleaners at the end of the smoke. From my smoking experience, moisture being produced during the smoke usually stay in the pipe with almost none of it being sucked into the briar. Peterson System pipes and its water trap can be a good example. If briar does suck up that much moisture, and you imagine what those pipes going through alcohol and salt treatment will taste like?

 

[Searock Fan]

Hot and humid, you want meerschaum. They can still get hot to the touch, but no issue for burnout or moisture.

Get one with a textured finish and it should solve the hot touch problem.

 

[didimauw]

Get one with a textured finish and it should solve the hot touch problem.

I'm going to have to try that theory out! Lol

 

[RudyG]

Dublins and bowls which narrow down from the top smoke hotter for me and require a more careful technique. Especially the bottom third of a smoke.