Break In Blends

[lordofthepiperings]

Are there any specific blends you use to break in your pipes? I know some probably break a pipe in with a blend they wish to dedicate to the pipe such as an aromatic, English, Perique etc. I usually just smoke whatever in whichever pipe I feel inclined to puff on at the moment. Not too huge on English blends. I'm thinking of using Sherlock Holmes as a break in blend, because it burns pretty evenly for me and always burns down to the bottom of the bowl.

 

[bowhatchie]

Hard to beat Prince Albert for breaking in... Builds a good cake rather quickly...does not Ghost.. burns slow and cool.. and is a good smoke to boot... just my opinion...
I am sure there are others equally as good......

 

[marmal4de]

Frog Morton on the Town for me.

 

[lagavulin92]

Who cares? It's the butler's job to break them in. :mrgreen:
All right, as for the Break-in blend, I think you've answered the question for yourself. It burns down the bowl. That's incredibly important, especially if your pipe doesn't have a squat shape like a prince. Whether you like Sherlock Holmes or not, or that it ghosts, is another matter.

 

[hilojohnny]

My first smoke in a new pipe is always Butternut Burley.... ::

 

[unclearthur]

Prince Albert or Five Brothers will build a cake quickly. I just smoke what I have handy with no problems.

 

[pstlpkr]

I'm having great results with Peterson Irish Oak in my Uncle Arthur pipe.

Generally I think that what-ever it is is just fine. A good proper cake takes time and care/maintenance. e.g. Build up some cake and when you finish your next bowl (while the pipe is warm) screw in a paper towel and smooth out the sides. This will give you a good foundation, and IMHO will reduce the chances of the cake flaking off in the future.

 

[schmitzbitz]

Hmm, I'll have to try swabbing my briars as part of my cake maintainance, I had never thought of that. Damn, I love this board! :D

 

[bubbadreier]

Lawrence is spot on! I use a Q-tip and swab out the bowl!

 

[hobie1dog]

I need to try Irish Oak sometime

 

[unclearthur]

I like it a lot as well as the Irish Whiskey.

 

[cortezattic]

I once read in Sherman's "All About Tobacco", that Perique improves just about every blend. Since I like the taste

of Perique, I use a VaPer or Haunted Bookshop most of the time for the break-in, figuring that any ghosting could

only be a plus in seasoning the pipe.
Lawrence's idea to "screw" a paper towel into the bowl to clean it by soft abrasion is a great idea.

Cake builds very slowly, but it becomes very tough and resists flaking. My guess is that it cleans out the

tars and resins, but slowly builds-up carbon.

 

[jcsoldit]

IMO any good burley does a fine job.

 

[salewis]

There is no best tobacco to use to break-in a new pipe. Simply smoke the tobacco that you like the best at the time and remember to have patience and try to smoke the tobacco all the way to the bottom of the bowl. That said, I would stay away from any tobacco that is too aromatic since these tobacco tend to "konk" up a new pipe that you are breaking in. Good luck.

 

[capnbellamy]

I just go with whatever I happen to have on time. Sometimes it goes well, sometimes not so much

 

[jimbo]

I am trying Lawrence's suggestion of screwing in a paper towel (I use a Kleenex) for a 'slow but sure' cake build-up. I've had trouble with cake flaking off and it makes sense to get a hard cake slowly.
However, I once tried unclearthur's suggestion of breaking in with Five Brothers. (Because it burns so FAST, I thought it would cut the time for break-in.) But after over a dozen bowls, there was hardly any trace of cake build-up, and this was without swabbing out the bowl. Because of that experience, I don't think Five Brothers is a good choice for break-in.

 

[pstlpkr]

There is no best tobacco to use to break-in a new pipe. Simply smoke the tobacco that you like the best at the time and remember to have patience and try to smoke the tobacco all the way to the bottom of the bowl. That said, I would stay away from any tobacco that is too aromatic since these tobacco tend to "konk" up a new pipe that you are breaking in. Good luck.

I agree and disagree... (somewhat)

Good OTC's Aromatics are and can be very good choices if you want to build your cake rapidly.

As to "Konk"ing up your new pipe... if you use a paper towel after each bowl you will find that the cake will develop smoothly. By removing the excess oils and moisture in the bowl by screwing in a paper towel you can build a good carbon base for your cake. But, you may have to let your pipe rest a little more than you would like to. YMMV...IMHO.

 

[jimbo]

OK, Lawrence, questions: :worship:
1) Isn't a tissue (Kleenex) as good as a paper towel for screwing into the bowl after a smoke during break-in?
2) You said, "... you may have to let your pipe rest a little more than you would like to." How long is this? I usually try to smoke a break-in pipe a couple of times a day, allowing several hours between smokes. Is this too often?

 

[pstlpkr]

Hey Jimbo,

I'll try to answer your questions as I see the answers.
1) No. A Kleenex is simply not strong enough to take a good solid "screwing-in". I have tried them and they leave bits of paper in the bowl.
2) The length of time to let the pipe rest is only long enough to allow the remaining moisture in the carbon to dry. For me... that is as little as a half an hour. The immediate repack, relight, and smoke might produce a soft carbon base. (Of course this is opinion based on anecdotal experience.)