Breaking in a New Pipe

[JSPiper71]

Title edited- capitalize important words. -jpm

There are no fewer than 2500 threads on how to- or not to- break in a pipe. And many do not like the term "piper", often reserved for bag pipers.


Hi Pipers. I did a search and couldn't find anything on this, but I can't imagine this discussion will be new. I treated myself to a new 2018 Chacom Christmas pipe for Christmas that my B&M had lying around. It's bowl is bare briar. I would like to begin breaking it in, but was told to stay away from VaPers for this task due to the hotter burn from sugar content. From what I've read, I'm supposed to use a more Burley based blend (Muttonchop Piper) due to it's slower, cooler burn characteristics. Yet, my goal is to smoke copious amounts of my beloved Cringle Flake every Christmas in this pipe. Won't the Burley add a different flavour profile to the pipe? How many bowls in a virgin pipe are necessary before it's considered broken in and I can switch to my hot smoking VaPers? Please help me navigate this with your thoughts and experience.

 

[Morrison Jeremiah]

Just smoke it

 

[smokeymo]

I'm with Morrison. If you want to smoke a VaPer then do so. Just don't steam train it. Smoke it nice and slow the first few times to get an even burn.

 

[Chasing Embers]

I'll forgive you for calling me a piper.

but was told to stay away from VaPers

Someone didn't know anything about smoking a pipe. Pick a blend you enjoy, fill that pipe and enjoy.

I'm supposed to use a more Burley based blend

If that's what you enjoy, have at it!

(Muttonchop Piper)

?‍

You control how hot a pipe smokes. Smoke it slowly, letting it go out to cool if it gets too hot and there shouldn't be any problems.

How many bowls in a virgin pipe are necessary before it's considered broken in

That's dependent on the pipe.

 

[jpmcwjr]

As stated variously above, load and enjoy. Slow and cool.

 

[JSPiper71]

As stated variously above, load and enjoy. Slow and cool.

It was a little vigorous wasn't it! I thought we were in the Rookie section?! Point taken though. There is quite a bit of this cautionary narrative on the Internet about this, but sounds like as long as I'm not an idiot about it, I'll be fine. Want to keep this pipe for Vapers predominantly so I'll just slowly break it in with them.

 

[JSPiper71]

It was a little vigorous wasn't it! I thought we were in the Rookie section?! Point taken though. There is quite a bit of this cautionary narrative on the Internet about this, but sounds like as long as I'm not an idiot about it, I'll be fine. Want to keep this pipe for Vapers predominantly so I'll just slowly break it in with them.

various, not vigorous.

 

[mso489]

Whatever blend you like, pack, light it, go slow.

 

[cosmicfolklore]

It was a little vigorous wasn't it! I thought we were in the Rookie section?! Point taken though. There is quite a bit of this cautionary narrative on the Internet about this, but sounds like as long as I'm not an idiot about it, I'll be fine. Want to keep this pipe for Vapers predominantly so I'll just slowly break it in with them.

You are going to run into a lot of pipe mythology that keeps getting promoted on the internet. Like, never get a pipe wet, pinch your tobaccos to make sure they are wet enough, and so and so and so... lots of them. Most of t5hese, we have found to be utter nonsense. I rinse my pipes out every night with warm water and dry my tobaccos to almost crunchy. And, only with really old, decades old tobaccos have ever found a stale tobacco.

Break all of the rules to see which ones are nonsense for you. Breaking in a pipe... I enjoy my pipes from the first smoke forward. The pipe is always in flux, and it wasn't until I found bad bowl coatings did I understand this concept. YMMV
Just enjoy yourself.

 

[Andriko]

I've been smoking a pipe regularly for a few months now, and I have come to the conclusion that a lot of pipe smokers are a bit like 'audiophiles' and their turntables, who insist that you simply must put the player on a diamond encrusted pedestal in the middle of the room, use a spirit level to make sure it's truly aligned with Earth, then hook it up to platinum coated cables so as to be able to get the true audiophile experience from your Kylie Minogue LP.

Smoking a pipe isn't all that complicated - stuff it and smoke it.

 

[JSPiper71]

I've been smoking a pipe regularly for a few months now, and I have come to the conclusion that a lot of pipe smokers are a bit like 'audiophiles' and their turntables, who insist that you simply must put the player on a diamond encrusted pedestal in the middle of the room, use a spirit level to make sure it's truly aligned with Earth, then hook it up to platinum coated cables so as to be able to get the true audiophile experience from your Kylie Minogue LP.

Smoking a pipe isn't all that complicated - stuff it and smoke it.

I’m getting that sense too. Glad to be here to leverage real life experience.

 

[AlanH]

I see no issue going back and forth between Virginia and Burly in the same pipe. One day when you have 47 pipes maybe. Now I do have pipes set aside for aromatics and if I smoked English I would too.

 

[MacMarty89]

It's like knitting patterns of garden slugs. Just do it, but do so slowly. Don't smoke VaPers, don't smoke that in virgin pipes. People like to overthink shit. It's not at all necessary. It's briar wood. It's meant to be smoked. I break-in my pipes to build a bit of cake. First a few bowls of whatever tobacco I fancy 1/3, then 2/3 and finally load it completely. Sometimes I forgo it all together though.

Whatever tickle's your pickle.

 

[bullet08]

So many of the same topic, I'm running out of not so witty one liners.

 

[jpmcwjr]

various, not vigorous.

You have a whole ten minutes to edit a post after you hit "post". (!)

 

[FurCoat]

You have a whole ten minutes to edit a post after you hit "post". (!)

I did not know that

 

[JSPiper71]

You have a whole ten minutes to edit a post after you hit "post". (!)

Good to know. Thanks.

haha. He’s right.

 

[jpmcwjr]

I did not know that

Now you know! That's good.

Most folks don't use it as they proof read their draft 3-4 times before posting....

 

[weezell]

Smoking a pipe isn't all that complicated - stuff it and smoke it.

Nuff said...

 

[seanv]

Now you know! That's good.

Most folks don't use it as they proof read their draft 3-4 times before posting....

I use it constantly. My autocorrect is brutal and my thumbs are fat