Filter-no filter

[trouttimes]

You guys say there are no dumb questions so here goes. I want your opinion. I have some pipes that came with filters years ago when I bought them and I threw them away quickly. The filters, not the pipes. So...do I have to use filters in my Dr Garbows or can I smoke them without (I have been smoking them san filter but...)?? Should I get adapters or just continue without filter or adapter? Why would I use a filter? Pros and cons on filters and adapters, please give me your thoughts. In the more open draws, I just slow down but is this proper or not? After all, I want to be proper.

 

[Olkofri]

Oh man, a bit of a can of worms there.
Here's one take on the issue: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2e9FuBF4-G8
Personally, I don't like too open a draw. Thus, I use filters on my filtered pipes, with the Vauen being an exception—I use an adapter with it, because I found the Dr. Perl filters give off a rather strong plasticky taste once they become moist, and that taste overpowers the taste of the tobacco.
Filters are vilified by some on the assumption that they detract from the taste of the blend, but I haven't found that to be the case (aside from the Dr. Perl issue, of course).
OTOH, filters can help with moisture issues (I have NEVER had to run a pipe cleaner through the stem mid-smoke [and I couldn't anyways, what with the filter stuck in there and all]).

 

[aldecaker]

Here goes!
The paper Dr. Grabow/Medico filters are pieces of crap and should be removed from a new pipe and discarded immediately. The Savinelli 6mm balsa filters (or absorbers) are actually really, really good for when you want to use a filter. They fit 6mm Savs, Grabow filter pipes, and Missouri Meerschaum filter cobs.
I often use them in Grabows because I've had moisture leak from the stem/shank joint, but not always. The pipe smokes fine without them.
I never use them in cobs, because, being the ideal medium for a tobacco pipe, cobs never need them.
I use them in my two Savinellis as required, which is not often, but not exactly rare, either. 6mm Savs smoke better without the filter, generally speaking.
All of this is only in my opinion, of course. Use what you can and cheerfully discard the rest!
EDIT: Oh, and BTW, the adapters aren't even worth fiddling with.

 

[jpmcwjr]

As to draw, you can regulate it by tamping.
I have many dozen balsa filters, maybe I'll make a miniature Viking ship out of them.

 

[aldecaker]

I would hold onto them as trade goods for when the tobacco hard times hit.

 

[mikethompson]

After all, I want to be proper.

oh boy is this the wrong place for you!
The filter/non filter debate is as old as rocks. We will still be talking about this in 50 years if any of us are left. There are many pipes designed to run the usual 9mm filters and can be enjoyed just fine without them. There are pipes like Brigham and Savinelli that use a balsa or maple wood type filter. I like those very much, the 9mm not so much.
Like everything pipe related, do what works for you and your pipe.

 

[kimbiker]

Filters for me (9mm carbon or 6mm balsa), I do like the harshness they take away from some baccys too. Usually get the Adsorba or Peterson brands because they are the best value.
As you know they do seem to be more popular in Europe and most manufactures this side of the pond seem very pro filters.

 

[cortezattic]

Marketing pioneer Daniel Boone Savinelli with an early focus group.

 

[madox07]

Hmmm ... I am european, so most guys here won't agree with me, but I love 9mm ceramic filters. Dr Grabow for example, I threw the paper filter out myself ... I prefer a balsa. I can't stand stingers - very few systems work for me. At the end of the day, whatever works for you, pal.

 

[jpmcwjr]

Nice, Cortez! For me there's no debate. You either like and use inserts/filters or not. The pipes I have that are made for inserts smoke fine with no alteration. Just pack and tamp a bit harder. Just a bit.

 

[krizzose]

I hate to be wrong all the time, so sometimes I use them and sometimes I don’t. The world usually keeps spinning

 

[spartacus]

I have pipes that take filters and pipes that don't. The Savinelli's and Vauen that do, I use the filters. The pipes that don't, I don't use them. I don't notice much of a difference.

 

[shanez]

I can't tell a difference between filter and no filter.
That being said I like the idea of a filter removing the things that can cause nastiness from the smoke.
That being said I'm worried that the filter *could* remove something that makes the smoke more enjoyable.
Oh wait, since I can't tell the difference at all, I'm just a lazy bastard who doesn't want to deal with filters so I don't use them.
YMMV

 

[mso489]

You have to try the various filters, no filter, and adaptors, and decide. Most filter pipes will smoke fine without filters. You may want an adaptor with some or all pipes if you find the open draw too airy. It's all personal preference. I like pipes made without filters, or smoked without them with adaptors (usually). Filters are sometimes pleasant if you are smoking more and longer, like at a pipe show or pipe club. My only complaint about filters is that they are not well explained for beginners, so newbies don't know what their options are. Try the different ways and do what you like.

 

[bnichols23]

^^^^ +3 dozen on what Tom said there. For myself, I'm basically a non-filter guy. However that said, Savinelli filters stand head/shoulders above most others. If you want a filter for a particular pipe because you just feel it needs it, go with that. If you just don't care, go with none as I do.
Bill

 

[timt]

I'm a no filter kind of guy. One less thing to keep track of.

 

[mso489]

timt, I agree. I'm suspicious of any extra supplies needed for a pipe. I don't want moisture rings, keystones, maple rock inserts, etc. Some may be useful or preferable to some, but simplicity in pipe smoking means a lot. There are arguably health benefits to filters, but smoking with a filter may make you smoke more, and so end up at the same place.

 

[ernieq]

Can of worms! An an old time blender who has since passed, and was a bit of a mentor to me, told me "The most revered pipemakers in the world don't make filter pipes".

Myself? find the effect the draw and mute flavors.

 

[krizzose]

This topic is always fun. I’m 44 years old. My thirties were for me a time of discovering just how much I didn’t know shit about a whole bunch of shit. My forties, so far, in that vein have been about realizing not to be alarmed by that fact, as that seems to be the general human condition, for myself as much as all the people I observe doing stupid shit everyday. It’s OK that I’m among them.
Filters, for example. When I started taking smoking a pipe somewhat seriously I really was a filter advocate. Look at all that moisture they suck up! This is great, filters are great. Well, OK. As I got older, perhaps not wiser, but certainly a more proficient manipulator of tobacco moisture, packing and the like, I could generally get nice dry smokes from my unfiltered pipes as well. That’s been the norm for me for a while now, and I don’t really feel there’s a difference anymore. I’m quite willing now to call out the dumbass younger me and say that guy wasn’t very good at smoking a pipe, so those all those smokes the first few years were way wetter and swampier than they should have been because my technique was lacking. The filters were a very helpful crutch in that regard, and certainly got me better more enjoyable bowls early on. I enjoyed it more, more quickly than I would have with unfiltered pipes. Other newbs may find the same.
I have several Savinellis, and I generally use the Sav balsa filters (also in my cobs; they fit perfectly). I think I do so now because I prefer the draw they give than when I don’t use them AND I find the seperate removal and cleaning of the adapter to be annoying. I’m not an everyday smoker, so a $25 box of 300 inserts lasts me a very long time, well over a year. It’s just easier to use a fresh one for each smoke and then throw it away.

 

[techie]

Until I read this thread I'd forgotten about the filter pipes that I've been smoking with no filters. I've gotten used to the open draw and naturally control it through tamping. So for this absent-minded piper I prefer no filter because it's one less thing to think about when enjoying a smoke.
I did try the filters in the beginning but didn't notice a difference with or without except for the draw.