Good And Bad Smokers

[drastic_quench]

Jesse, I will respectfully disagree that it is 25% equipment and 75% technique. I have owned my share of artisan and factory pipes and since my technique has been pretty solid for a long time, there have been many a pipe that didn't make the cut. I am not talking about 100.00 Savinelli's, but 500.00 Winslows, 1000.00 Formers, 500.00 plus Castello's, brand new 600.00 Dunhills, I could go on for a while but you get my idea. Some guys just know how to make a great pipe almost every time and that makes the quality of the smoke I get superior to just plain good pipes. Yes I can make a shitty pipe smoke as well as it can, but it is still sorely lacking and not an enjoyable smoking experience.

I began collecting American artisan pipes after I got my first Rad Davis in 2012. Shortly after I sold my last Former as it did not smoke as good as the few American artisan pipes I had picked up. I began moving out all my factory pipes like Castello, Viprati, older Caminetto's, Upshalls,Ferndowns,Don Carlos and many others. My collection(38 artisan pipes) now is small in comparison to the 90 I had before the major culling and everyone is a fantastic smoker that are superior to all the pipes I moved out.

This last culling had pipes from fairly good names I moved out Aldens, a Bruce Weaver, 8 Ruthenbergs, a Scott Thile(I still have one of Scott's as it was superior to my other one) and I even moved out a few Rad Davis pipes that were not as good as the ones I kept. I moved out 2 Trever Talbert pipes. There were more but that is enough.
I replenished only 13 pipes and they were all commissions from Jack Howell . The smoking properties come first and looks come second. I would still be buying Jack's pipes if he were still carving.

I am still in the market for quality pipes and when I find them I will add them to my collection, but if I never find one I am very happy with what I have.

Is that a big recommendation for Howell then? His rustication looks great.

 

[TheIronMonkey]

Why dont you leave the trolling out of the forum that is uncalled for, just because someone likes something different than you you berate them. Go somewhere else if you cant be civil to others and get some help.

What you perceived as trolling (most likely because you're new here) is playful teasing (with hints of biting truth), but, all in good fun, between longtime members @cigrmaster and @sablebrush52 .

 

[telescopes]

What you perceived as trolling (most likely because you're new here) is playful teasing (with hints of biting truth), but, all in good fun, between longtime members @cigrmaster and @sablebrush52 .

It's funny. I got called out for "trolling" our good friend Briar Lee the other day. I agree that sometimes a newbie or someone who hasn't followed conversations for months will be unaware of any good natured chiding or joking around.

And sometimes - we aren't really joking, LOL.

Kidding, I'm kidding,...

 

[bullet08]

Shit. I just read the OP. It's talking about pipes, not people. OK. There are good and bad pipes. But you'll have to smoke them to find out which are good and which are bad. Even then, there are some tricks, or skills, to by pass the problems. Most pipes aren't bad, some are, mostly it's operator problem. So it goes back to just inexperienced or mentally challenged.

 

[Searock Fan]

Oh yeah, there's good and bad and some in the middle. For example I have a BC that has a restricted draw and it gurgles -- all the time. I could put beach sand in it and it would gurgle. I never use it, probably should sell it but I'd hate to pass that on to someone else.

In years past I tried several BC pipes. Not one ever smoked worth a damn. Without exception they all tasted simply bad. I wonder how many newbie pipe smokers gave up because of those lousy pipes.

 

[sablebrush52]

Why dont you leave the trolling out of the forum that is uncalled for, just because someone likes something different than you you berate them. Go somewhere else if you cant be civil to others and get some help.

I stick a John Belushi clip in at the beginning and you can't figure out that this is humorous? Harris and I have been busting each others nads for years.

 

[cigrmaster]

Wow, someone actually thought Jesse and I were flaming each other. Jesse and I have been busting balls for almost a full decade. When I think about how much more he knows about pipes and tobacco than I do, I feel like a newbie.

 

[edger]

A good smoker always chooses a Falcon, a bad smoker denigrates them!
Nyuck, nyuck........

 

[Winnipeger]

I was hoping @georged would chime in here. (Maybe @sablebrush52, @cigrmaster, and @georged could have a round robin pissing match!) His response on another thread inspired the OP. I think he was trying to smack down my theory that stingers would tend to make shitty smokers. I assume he put me on ignore. Quote:

I've known pipes with .110" diameter airways that smoked no differently than ones with .177" airways. That's 2.57 times the volume of air moving from the chamber to the button with each puff.

I've also known pipes with massively off-line drilling that smoked really well, and perfectly aligned ones that wouldn't stay lit if you squirted gasoline on the tobacco.

And so on.

The longer/more you smoke a pipe, the more you realize that craftsmanship is only a general indicator of smoking quality AT BEST. Good craftsmanship and/or internal alignment(s) probably improves a pipe's CHANCES of it being a good smoker, but it guarantees nothing.

Why? Because there are too many variables in play with every smoke: Ambient air temperature, ambient humidity, tobacco brand, tobacco label, tobacco lot number, tobacco moisture level, and so forth all combinatorially churned with pipe dimensions, angles, hole sizes, and etc. which is then churned AGAIN by the smoker himself. Puff rate, puff strength, the angle the pipe is held/clenched, how cool is it allowed to get between re-lights, and so on.

Oh yeah... there's also the Placebo Effect. Expectation modifying experience. It's very real. Not imaginary. And there are a thousand reasons someone could have different expectations about a given pipe.

Still more: the smoker's mood overall, what he last ate or drank, and how long ago he consumed it.

Anyway, you get the idea.

 

[ashdigger]

When I first picked up the pipe I was a bad smoker.

I’m currently a better smoker.

Eventually my technique will advance to me being a good smoker.

99.99% of technique is the smoker.

00.01% is my fantasy of being @cosmicfolklore

 

[anotherbob]

I think most tools well most simple tools work on the principle of some are better then others and some work better for some users but user skill is more important. A hammer or screwdriver might be better then another one but the end product will depend much more on how skilled the craftsman is.

 

[warren]

A claw hammer is not simply a claw hammer. It must fit one's hand well, heft should fit the job and, be correctly balanced to perform well in the hands of a craftsman. This is why there are screwdrivers, chisels and such for woodworking, electricians, roofers and such. A tool can either add or detract. Skilled workers know this. DIY homeowneers? Probably never give the tool a thought. One hammer will do it all. A screwdriver is just a screwdriver. Simply not true.

 

[georged]

I was hoping @georged would chime in here. (Maybe @sablebrush52, @cigrmaster, and @georged could have a round robin pissing match!) His response on another thread inspired the OP. I think he was trying to smack down my theory that stingers would tend to make shitty smokers. I assume he put me on ignore. Quote:

I'm not ignoring anyone, the quote you referred to is all I have to say about the "this pipe is better than that one" debate.

It's the PipeWorld version of, "Which is prettier? Blondes, brunettes, or redheads?" Completely subjective, and there's too many peripheral variables in play for there to BE an answer.

 

[Winnipeger]

I'm not ignoring anyone, the quote you referred to is all I have to say about the "this pipe is better than that one" debate.

It's the PipeWorld version of, "Which is prettier? Blondes, brunettes, or redheads?" Completely subjective, and there's too many peripheral variables in play for there to BE an answer.

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I'll need a few more images to make a proper judgement on that. Keep them coming.

 

[georged]

I'll need a few more images to make a proper judgement on that. Keep them coming.

Got it. More blondes, brunettes, and redheads.

Allrighty, then...

 

[bullet08]

Got it. More blondes, brunettes, and redheads.

Allrighty, then...

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Luckily for those gals, there are guys who look just like them who will love and ditch them in short order.

 

[Chaukisch]

Allrighty, then...

 

[Ryan]

I first bought pipes (and pipe tobacco) around the year 2001. I bought two BC, two Petersons, and one Dr. Grabow. I really liked the look, feel, and weight of the little Pete. It always seemed to smoke very wet though. I only tried the pipes for a couple of months and gave up.

Fast forward to about a year ago and I resumed smoking a pipe. This time I actually kind of learned how to do it. I’m a much better smoker than I was 21 years ago when I first tried. I kept trying that little Pete, and it kept on giving wet smokes. No matter how slow I smoked or how much I dried the tobacco, it was the same very time. I would end up with wet tobacco in the bottom.

The other problem was that you couldn’t even get a pipe cleaner through the stem. Yes, even when detached from the stummel it would take 5 minutes to finally get a pipe cleaner through that stem.

In the end, the final straw was when I polished the pipe and saw that it had three fills (these couldn’t be seen before polishing) with one right on the rim.

I sold the pipe. I would like one in that same shape again at some point, but I’m glad that one is gone. I actually got almost exactly what I paid for it. I still have the other four pipes and they all smoke just fine.

I’m not nearly as experienced as most people on this site, but I do feel comfortable saying that was a bad pipe. Looked nice when it was new though!

 

[Winnipeger]

I

Got it. More blondes, brunettes, and redheads.

Allrighty, then...

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I see the light! All good smokers, regardless of looks. Got it.

 

[Searock Fan]

I first bought pipes (and pipe tobacco) around the year 2001. I bought two BC, two Petersons, and one Dr. Grabow. I really liked the look, feel, and weight of the little Pete. It always seemed to smoke very wet though. I only tried the pipes for a couple of months and gave up.

Fast forward to about a year ago and I resumed smoking a pipe. This time I actually kind of learned how to do it. I’m a much better smoker than I was 21 years ago when I first tried. I kept trying that little Pete, and it kept on giving wet smokes. No matter how slow I smoked or how much I dried the tobacco, it was the same very time. I would end up with wet tobacco in the bottom.

The other problem was that you couldn’t even get a pipe cleaner through the stem. Yes, even when detached from the stummel it would take 5 minutes to finally get a pipe cleaner through that stem.

In the end, the final straw was when I polished the pipe and saw that it had three fills (these couldn’t be seen before polishing) with one right on the rim.

I sold the pipe. I would like one in that same shape again at some point, but I’m glad that one is gone. I actually got almost exactly what I paid for it. I still have the other four pipes and they all smoke just fine.

I’m not nearly as experienced as most people on this site, but I do feel comfortable saying that was a bad pipe. Looked nice when it was new though!

"I kept trying that little Pete, and it kept on giving wet smokes. No matter how slow I smoked or how much I dried the tobacco"

How can that be? Doesn't the "well" in a Peterson prevent wetness? Or could it be like I've always thought, that the well is just a selling gimmick and nothing more?