Autopsies Performed On Several Old Pipes
- Thread starter misterlowercase
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There is an impressive amount of "meat" still in the walls even though some look fairly charred. Very cool and most impressive.
From the OP's translation"
Anyone have an opinion on the cause of the bent's chamber's very thin bottom? I think gouging while reaming with a pocket knife.
"breaking one's pipe"= the big sleep. So the admonishment is a pipe well cared for will last longer than you!
Anyone have an opinion on the cause of the bent's chamber's very thin bottom? I think gouging while reaming with a pocket knife.
Very cool to see those photos! I've always wondered how saturated the wood gets on a well smoked pipe.
Interesting article that settles much in my mind. It does prove the durability of the venerable briar.
These pipes are relatively pristine compared to my dad's pipes, by the time he recycled them. He was a chain pipe smoker, just after breakfast until bedtime, including his train commutes in "the smoking car" reading "the Trib" going and the "Daily News" coming home. Puff, puff. He used only one pipe at a time until it was not smokeable. Usually the briar split right up the bowl, often brim to near the bottom, so burning ash would almost escape. Then he'd go to a newsstand and buy a new pipe. Those pipes may have had some residual briar somewhere on the bowl, but the bowl was shot, integrity gone. In his language, the smokers of these autopsy pipes were "pikers" by comparison. Granger was his leaf. Anything else was fussy and unnecessary. TAD for him was a new pouch of Granger, never a can. I think pipes lasted for him about 18 months to two years, but I'm remembering back decades.
Jpmcw, I think that pipe was probably drilled that way. Notice the airway goes straight down to the bottom. If it had been reamed thin, I would expect the airway to be high compared to the bottom of the bowl.
Thanks for the link! That was pretty cool; the pipe absorbed less than I thought it would. Then again, I can't even imagine only getting 9 months' use out of a Country Gent. Maybe I baby mine too much, or maybe they like the low humidity here in southern Arizona. Either way, I put more mileage on mine with less swelling. I guess that's why it's a good idea to have spares of the shapes you like, though.
You are welcome. I guess he smokes the same pipe few times a day for a long time. I have been smoking my cobs (4) for more than a year and they are still doing fine.
This thread should be instantly available for anyone to find. It's a great reference thread that addresses several myths about pipes.
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