Cob Pipe Attributes

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Tommy Boy

Part of the Furniture Now
Mar 28, 2020
810
1,235
Michigan
You sort of hit on it with number 4, but you just can't beat that WIDE open draw. A great summary. I would also throw in that cobs provide smokers on a budget to be able to get a truly artisan piece at a low cost. There are numberous corn cob modifying artisans out there producing some truly fantastic work, at a cost that is less than most low end machine made briars. EMC Custom Cobs is one of my favorites. I just received a new poker from him last week:

View attachment 73241
That cob look great. Do you know how to contact him other than Facebook or Instagram? I don't have either.
 

F4RM3R

Part of the Furniture Now
Nov 28, 2019
567
2,512
38
Canada
Another thing for me is bowl size. I find the legend and pride(.75" x 1.25") to be perfect for me most of the time as I don't want a really long smoke. Not as optimal for complex kitchen sink ribbon cut blends, but I do have other pipes for those and I smoke mostly flakes, cakes and twist anyway.
 

Merton

Part of the Furniture Now
Jul 8, 2020
952
2,522
Boston, Massachusetts
I now own only four cobs and all have the better quality acrylic stem which makes them a real pipe in my view. Yes, they sell for a bit more (around $25) but the cost is still relatively minimal. I enjoy them especially in the summer for some reason and they tend to smoke Virginias and Red Virginias well. All pipesmokers should have some cobs in their collection. I love the reverse calabash ones and would absolutely buy one.
 
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mso489

Lifer
Feb 21, 2013
41,210
60,463
Merton, I definitely recommend the special edition pipes with acrylic stems. I chew up the regular soft plastic stems and have to replace them, so it is not expensive but time consuming, whereas an acrylic stem cob will last for many years. MM always seems to have a few of these on offer.
 

mso489

Lifer
Feb 21, 2013
41,210
60,463
Another (MM) corncob pipe attribute is that it is a fundamental piece of Americana, an idea picked up by an immigrant from The Netherlands and turned into an institution outside the Mississippi River port of St. Louis, in Washington, Missouri. It's a cultural touchstone.
 
C

carolinasmokes

Guest
Here are some of my corn cob pipe attributes that make smoking cobs enjoyable for me, a smaller bowl size like the Legend cob is perfect for that 20-30 minute smoke, I'd rather have shorter smokes more often than those hour+ long drawn out smokes. Another plus for me is the amber stem, it's comfortable and easy to clench, especially if you're a denture wearer and the light weight of the pipe is icing on the cake when it comes to clenching for long periods of time. I also like the fact that cobs are easy to clean and require very little maintenence after a smoke, And when minor problems arise like cracks in the bowl or a loose shank all it takes is a little Elmer's Glue and your up and running again, no sending it out for repair. I could good on and on but these are the biggies for me. One more thing, as already mentioned, cobs are one of the best values in pipe smoking and you get a lot of bang for the buck.
 

jeffritter955

Lurker
May 20, 2022
3
4
I love the look after I finish staining them to my satisfaction.
These are beautiful! I'm relatively new to pipe smoking and have been haunting these forums for a while now. Starting smoking pipes originally as a bit of a joke during the lockdowns in early '20. We used the time to work about 20 acres we own in the country near where we live. Since I'm not really a country boy (grew up here but service time made me a bit more worldly if you will than the average neighbor), the family got a kick out of seeing me in bibs, a straw hat and driving an old tractor. To continue the joke (and provide some levity in a crazy time) I picked up a MM Missouri Pride, fitting as I live north of KCMO, and some cheap bulk vanilla to surprise everyone. Found out I enjoyed it and got a Country Gentleman and some Boswell's aros next. I've gotten serious about it this year after being sporadic last year. I've picked up some estate briars, a Peterson System 313, and a few more cobs. MM is the bulk of my 14 pipes (counting a few mini's that I use rarely doing outside chores). As a new piper the cobs have been wonderful to me. The MM Legend is my best smoker, typically can smoke a whole bowl with 1 maybe 2 relights and very little dottle. I haven't got the technique down enough to pull that off with any of my few briars, and smoking primarily aros I'm sure plays into the relights as well. I'm finding that Boswell's Imperial English is tickling my fancy more and more out of a MM Ozark hardwood, a retrohale yesterday after mowing really opened the flavors for me. Your cobs look truly special and inspire me to try my hand at it. Am I correct in assuming you tape off the top of the bowl to get the full black rim? Any advice you'd be willing to share?
From this lurker to all the regulars, thanks for letting me haunt and learn.
 
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tklee

Lifer
Dec 31, 2021
1,137
1,814
Malaysia
I didn't like the look of corn cob pipes last time (now still don't really like ?). I tried out my first cob pipe out of curiosity because of reading all the posts and comments in this forum. It costs me only USD 10. And now I have 5 corn cob pipes! ???
 
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Swiss Army Knife

Can't Leave
Jul 12, 2021
406
1,206
North Carolina
I really want to like cobs. I've got a Washington, Diplomat and General. Forever stems from Vermont Freehand on all of them with gold bands to boot. I even grabbed my wood burner and burned little designs into the shanks.

Maybe I've got a cob allergy or something but I rarely have a good smoke with them. It's night and day with my briars, meers and clays. It also seems like they impart an intense corn flavor to just about everything I put in them. Still, there's something about cobs that makes me keep trying anyway!