Fine White Ash - Really?

[techie]

I'm only into my fourth week smoking a pipe, and I've read quite a lot about this "fine white ash" that apparently results after a good smoke. In my experience thus far, the only fine ash I've gotten sits at the top of my burnt heap, not so much white but an ashen gray with some white ash mixed in. And this is maybe about the top eighth inch or so. The rest is blackened bits of tobacco, almost as though they were charred, having never reaching an "ash" stage. When I dump it all out, I can take these bits and crumble them easily between my fingers, but even then they don't break down into a fine ashy powder.
Is it just me, or is this "fine white ash" an exaggeration? Some folks make it sound like they end up with this fine powdery residue.

 

[arvetus]

they have magic tobacco from the same place that jack got his magic beans for the beanstalk.

 

[Chasing Embers]

This was HH Burley Flake.

 

[jaytex1969]

And if you are gettin' it on while smoking it, you will both orgasm simultaneously.
You will also get a bank error in your favor and collect $200 when passing "Go".

 

[bassbug]

It's actually more of a grey ash, but yes, it can be done.

 

[workman]

It is not necessary to smoke down to a "fine, white ash" to have a nice smoke. Doesn't hurt, though. It happens, and the better you get at it, the more often it will, if that's what you want.

 

[warren]

techie: If that's your goal, go for it. It does happen though, more often than one would think, usually by a slow, careful and knowledgeable smoker.

 

[techie]

If that's your goal, go for it.

It isn't my goal at all. I was just curious if there is something missing in my technique, or if it's hyperbole. It hasn't been my experience so I wanted to know from the experienced smokers.

 

[sablebrush52]

The only blend that I can recall smoking down to a fine, actually white, ash was the old Balkan Sobranie. Everything else smokes down to a gray or mottled ash, sometimes fine and sometimes coarse.

 

[anthonyrosenthal74]

It happens from time to time. But all the variables need to come together to make it happen. A great smoking pipe, the right blend, the moisture level of that blend, your cadence, whether or not your a wet smoker, whether or not Venus is in retrograde, and whether or not the moon is full. Those last two variables are very important.
But it's like bassbug said. It's more of light grey than white.

 

[prairiedruid]

It happens to me on occasion, usually when I'm not paying attention. Happened yesterday with some aged Haddo's Delight.

 

[sparroa]

This is not really a requirement. Some pipes and some tobaccos facilitate more efficient combustion but incredible smokes can still lead to coarse and dark dottle. There isn't really anything wrong with that...
Lacking a fine white ash is not something to be concerned about since it is more of an exaggeration than anything with some pipe/tobacco combos.

 

[jaytex1969]

In 14 months, averaging 3 bowls a day, (1260+/-) it's happened twice to me. Both times hardly paying attention to the pipe.
It will most likely be something you notice after the fact and then can't for the life of you figure out what actually caused it.
Then you can log in here and tell us how you gots mad skills, yo.... 8)

 

[techie]

Then you can log in here and tell us how you gots mad skills

Finally, something in my life to aspire to!

 

[haparnold]

Oddly enough, this happened to me today for the first time I can ever recall. I was smoking some C&D Yorktown in a MM cob, not really paying much attention to it (walking my dogs), and when the pipe was done I knocked it out into my palm and thought "Huh, I guess that's what they mean by fine white ash."

 

[mikethompson]

It is akin to smoking a bowl without relights, not really a requirement for a good piping session but a feather you can stick in your cap.

 

[craiginthecorn]

A friend and I have been doing some research and have smoked the same tobacco in three different sized pipes at various hydration levels. Both of us are using multiple pipes of similar size and grade. There are some definite trends emerging. It's been a great learning experience for me and it's an exercise I'll repeat with other types of tobacco.
My friend regularly (always?) smokes his pipes down to fine ash. I rarely do so. Undoubtedly, it is due not to the tobacco, but to differences in our smoking technique and his stubborn and (at least in my mind) irrational dedication to burning every last fragment of tobacco. As for the color, he has noticed that with this particular tobacco, he is left with dark ash in his small pipes and white ash in his large pipes. My theory is that when the tobacco gets either too hot, or perhaps too wet, or a combination, it carbonizes, like charcoal. My cadence is much higher than my friend's, who will frequently allow his pipe to go out. He can nurse 2g of tobacco for hours.

 

[jpmcwjr]

If you haven't achieved the fabled fine white ash after a year on the forum, you'll need to interview with Kevin to see if he'll grant you another year.

 

[timt]

It's one of the things that keeps me up at night.

 

[dino]

Quite frankly, I've always had a fine white ash.

However, the residue in my pipes is usually grayish-white, as I smoke mostly English blends.