Chacom smoking hot

[kanada]

This is the only pipe I own that smokes hot no matter what. I understand most "smoking hot" issues come from puffing too fast or too hard. I've slowed down and tried different packing methods but it still seems to heat up rapidly. There's a few threads about cake formation and whether it's needed or not, but just as a note this is also the only pipe I own that just doesn't want to build any sort of cake. It also seems to always get hot in the front right of the bowl. Would a defect inside the bowl cause heat to focus at a certain spot? I really like the pipe but it really impedes the smoking if it may combust while I'm holding it...

 

[pipesmoker66]

I just got a Chacom Elite zulu that looks almost exactly like this and I can attest that mine burns pretty hot too. For one thing, it is a pretty small pipe with a thin wall stock on the bowl so that is why I attribute it to burning pretty hot. I find it helps me to work on slowing down my cadence, given that I tend to want to chug like a locomotive. Also, mine tends to get hottest right at the bottom front of the bowl, but that seems normal in my mind and I would not think there is any defect in yours. I tend to hold my pipe by the stem/shaft quite a bit in order to keep my hand off the hotter bowl. At any rate as long as the finish doesn't ruin, I just plan on smoking it with lots of patience; I love the look of mine and figure the hotter bowl is just part of the smaller, minimal design. I know I haven't really answered any of your questions but I wanted to chime in since my Chacom is almost identical.

 

[natibo]

I have a Butz that smokes hot all the time no matter what tobacco. It seems to be getting a little better over time. But I think some pipes just come that way. I don't think its the brand. I have a Chacom that smokes great.

 

[drwatson]

I bought my first Chacom couple months back, a bulldog...Smokes very cool. Now I had Dunhill and a Peterson that would smoke hot no matter what tobacco,packing,or smoking style I would use. Chalked it up to a mystery and sold them off.

 

[mso489]

kanada, that is a beautiful zulu shape pipe. I certainly wouldn't blame you for tolerating a little heat for such

a handsome briar. I bought a Chacom zulu recently, a really pretty blast with a contrasting band. It has a thin

bowl and smokes pretty hot, but it's a solid keeper, great size for Virginia/Perique and Virginia flake. When you

can, get a thicker bowl briar pipe, so you can have a cool smoker, or one of the larger cobs. Some pipes smoke

a little hot, but if you like the pipe, it shouldn't be a deal breaker. My other Chacom smokes nice and cool.

 

[daimyo]

My Chacom Zulu smokes hot to the touch as well. It sounds like the thin walled design just may not be the best thermally speaking but damn they look good. My solution has been to smoke Z folded flakes in it. Standard sized flakes like Dunhill Flake and Capstan Yellow fit perfectly when z folded and burn nice and slow if you sip accordingly. The bowl still gets a bit warm but stays much cooler than when I have smoked ribbon or shag out of it.

 

[blueeyedogre]

I have the same Zulu and they do run hotter.

 

[cosmicfolklore]

Hmmm, thin walls, thick walls, the tobacco is going to burn the same temperature, no matter what. The thicker walls just insulate better, and cake adds to this. The real trick is getting down to where you don't have to rely on the insulation to get a cooler smoke. I like pipes under .25" thick. No cake. This way I can always tell if I am keeping it cool. I also usually suggest new smokers try starting out with clay pipes. Thick walls are sort of like training wheels, allowing you to continue smoking using a bad technique (Maybe "bad" is too strong, "hot" technique, anyways).
And, as I have found, just when I think I am smoking slow enough, I can slow down more. Mostly I just let the pipe hang passively and the smoke drizzle on its own. But, I'm a clencher. If I find myself puffing smoke, I'm not taking in the flavor and nicotine, I'm just wasting it into the air. Smoke in the air is just wasted money, IMO.

 

[cosmicfolklore]

Ha, I guess that I could have better phrased all of that with, keep on, the pipe is beautiful enough to keep smoking ::

 

[daimyo]

Well I can't speak for anyone else here but I am a slooooow sipper and still find it running warm. It serves as a good reminder though, should you start to get on it. Of all my Chacoms, the Zulu is the only one that smokes warm. I have a Linge Bretagne with thinner walls that doesn't smoke hot in the least, so I agree it's not simply a matter of wall thickness but it would appear that this shape might be troublesome in some respect.

 

[kanada]

Thanks for the info guys, I may have to try some flakes in it and see how that works out.