Filling a Pipe - Rubbed Out and Then Rolled in the Palm of the Hand

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Magpiety

Part of the Furniture Now
Dec 7, 2019
537
1,774
Kansas City
I should give this a shot. I've always done the codger scoop for every cut smaller than a broken flake, but my smokes have been fairly inconsistent for years. It's just started to bug me recently. I've tried the pinch and stuff, but it burned a little hot for me.
 
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dunnyboy

Lifer
Jul 6, 2018
2,574
32,073
New York
I've smoked a pipe for 50 years and never heard of this method. I've only tried it once but, so far, I like it. I never had the patience for the three pinch method, etc. but this technique is dead simple, fast and reproducible. I will still stuff and fold some flakes on occasion, but I'm going to continue trying out this technique to see if it has legs. Thanks for posting the video. The source is unassailably an expert.
 

Misanthrope

Can't Leave
Apr 26, 2020
367
1,128
Texas
That’s how I do ribbon cuts and long shags. Works great!

For shorter cuts, I de-clump a wad of PA or CH by rubbing out a couple pinches’ worth so it’s nice and loose, then gravity fill the bowl with a light sprinkling until it’s just overflowing. I gently tap the bowl on my hand to settle the contents, and then repeat until it doesn’t settle below the rim anymore. At that point, I’ll very lightly tamp it to just below the rim of the bowl. It sounds more complicated than it actually is to do it, but this method lends the same consistency to shorter cuts that swirl packing does for ribbons and long shags.

I picked up that trick here from ChasingEmbers and I find it works much better and more consistently than the three-pinch or Frank methods for the tobaccos I like.
 

Misanthrope

Can't Leave
Apr 26, 2020
367
1,128
Texas
I know, how is he supposed to light anything with that tiny wimpy flame? Pathetic. Set that phaser to kill, and light it up.

Oh boy, do I have a selection of premium pipe lighters that are right up your alley!

Premium Large Flame Pipe Lighters

It requires just a little finesse to use, and there’s a bit of an aftertaste to get used to, but those are just minor nitpicks that are easy to live with when even the soggiest, moistest aromatics and Englishes will, by God, light on the first try.
 

hauntedmyst

Lifer
Feb 1, 2010
4,011
20,779
Chicago
I rub it out, then run it through the coffee grinder. Then I lay it out on a cutting board and hit it with meat tenderising hammer and roll it with a dough roller and finally it all goes into a pestle and mortar. Seems like a lot of trouble but I can get about half a pound in a bowl. The pipe clogs up a lot but I can smoke for about a week without refilling.
 

Misanthrope

Can't Leave
Apr 26, 2020
367
1,128
Texas
Let's have it BROBS. Tell us how to replicate what you do.

Oh, it’s easy. Once you’re ready to take a photo, quickly dab a bit of Wite-Out on the top of the tobacco in the bowl, taking care not to get any on the rim. Take your photo, then dump it out.

Or, really, just pack dry and loose. That’s what I do, and the top third/half is usually a pretty nice flaky white/light grey ash, and below that level depends on how dry my tobacco is and whether or not I’ve successfully restrained my tendency to slobber into my stem like a Saint Bernard.
 
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