Grain Orientation?

[theloniousmonkfish]

Ready for bed.....

... the debate over grain orientation and smoking characteristics.
"whether you think that famous names like Dunhill and Barling, etc., actually smoke better than lesser named

brands, because of more select briars they choose or because of superior craftsmanship"
Dunhill has used all manner of Briar over the years, it's the stem. Barling stems are really nice too in my experience.
"there's the notion that some smokers cherish, that the tobacco colors a briar from the inside out"
How do these things get started? I've cut up numerous heavily smoked pipes, Briar is a HARD wood, sliced off pieces and never seen any deep staining, all superficial.

 

[jerwynn]

Honestly, my grain has been disoriented for so long, I don't know which end is up. I DO know which end to put the tobacco in though... after much trial and error... heh heh...
jpm, any video of that scientific experiment?? Betchya it would be funnier than heck!!!

 

[beehive]

I think the only thing grain orientation has any effect on is how sturdy a pipe would be. I imagine a grain running along a shank would be less likely to break during a drop than grain that runs across the shank. Sort of like when splitting wood with an axe?

 

[sasquatch]

Even then, briar is so dense and so twisty that the times I've seen it break, it has not run with the grain the way other woods do. It's more like breaking a piece of stone off.

 

[toobfreak]

I thought I read somewhere by one of the 'pipe experts' in his book that he claimed that a vertical grain actually made for a drier, cooler smoke, but I see no evidence of that in my pipes as they have all kinds of grain, and no one here really seems to see it either, so I will just chalk it off as more bloviating by the author (probably Hacker).

 

[cosmicfolklore]

:::sigh::: ...define "better" and "lesser." I will spare the long-winded response that I have made in the past on this very subject, over and over... But, it is my belief that each pipe is it's own puzzle, no better, no worse, and it is the smoker's job to figure out how best to smoke the pipe. Failing that, the pipe becomes a lesser quality pipe to offset the blame from the smoker to the object, in rhetoric only. But, depending on what and how we smoke, is directly related to how easy it is for a smoker to adjust to a certain pipe.

So, IMO, quality is subjective, and the smoker has all of the responsibility in whether or not the pipe can be smoked to satisfaction.

This will explain why some find that bad smokers for one, are great smokers for others; and vica versa.
Are there a bad pipes? Yes, if the two holes don't meet up, making it impossible to smoke, and bad tasting briar. Other than that, the rest is subjective... and banter to make the issue objective is just mental masturbation.

 

[toobfreak]

it is my belief that each pipe is it's own puzzle, no better, no worse, and it is the smoker's job to figure out how best to smoke the pipe

Michael, I think you've hit it right on the head rather brilliantly! I believe that as well--- that each pipe is its own perfect solution to something, and the challenge now is for the smoker to find what smokes best in it and how. Thank you.

 

[sablebrush52]

So, after nearly nearly 45 years of pipe smoking I have concluded the following:
1. Grain is nice for esthetics, indicative of where in the burl the block comes from, and is otherwise pretty immaterial to how well the pipe smokes. The chamber/airway drilling and the bit/slot are more relevant.
2. Pipe smoking is roughly 75% technique and 25% equipment.
3. Pipe smokers love myth and folklore, and will stick to their illogical beliefs despite any and all evidence to the contrary. It's part of the fun. Were it different, places like fora wouldn't exist.

 

[blendtobac]

A similar disconnect exists about smooth vs. rustic vs. sandblast. Can grain orientation or exterior finish have an impact on the smoking characteristics? If it does, it most likely is so small as to be imperceptible. The quality and aging of the wood and the engineering will have a greater influence, but the packing method and smoking technique are far more influential on the experience, IMHO.
Russ

 

[jpmcwjr]

My lesser experience, but ever-so-inquiring mind, agrees totally with Jesse and Russ.
In addition, Mr. Toobfreak, you search hard enough and you'll find an "expert" opinion on any aspect of pipe smoking and maintainance, including the truly bizarre and unscientific.

 

[cosmicfolklore]

Ummm, wait jpmcwjr, was that a second-hand slap in the face? Ha ha, by putting down toobfreak for agreeing with me? If not, your post didn't make much sense to me.

 

[toobfreak]

Well, that said, if I read the grain thing where I think I saw it, it was in one of the most highly read and recommended pipe books of all time and he stated the grain issue as though it was a well-established "fact." ITMT, now I'm trying to come to grips with a recently bought cob--- first smokes with it seem to be embarrassing some of my longest treasured traditional pipes!

 

[cosmicfolklore]

Toob, while we all enjoy reading the pipe books, using them like gospel in debates is frowned upon. They are merely one guy's ramblings, which is entertaining, but that is pretty much all there is to them. They make great fodder for mental masturbation with friends, but there is no gospel or science to any of it.

But, I do enjoy reading them. Everyone likes to exercise their mental muscles occasionally. But, if you do it too often you'll go blind. ::

 

[jpmcwjr]

Ummm, wait jpmcwjr, was that a second-hand slap in the face? Ha ha, by putting down toobfreak for agreeing with me? If not, your post didn't make much sense to me.

Hell no! First, it wasn't a put down of Toobs, nor anything to do with whether you and he are in agreement or not. I hope that in the few occasions I've slapped someone it's been clear and direct!
Peace and light!
John

 

[toobfreak]

Toob, while we all enjoy reading the pipe books, using them like gospel in debates is frowned upon. They are merely one guy's ramblings,

Gottcha. I didn't mean to sound like I was taking the guy verbatim, but HE sure sounds like he takes himself seriously, like there was no question about it! Like you could maybe look it up in Wiki. Kind of the reason for asking here, because I disagreed with many things he said, and I figured you folks would know!

 

[sablebrush52]

Given the emphatic nature of the described writing I suspect I know who the author is. Books are great for information, provided one doesn't take anything in them as as TRUTH. They are, as Cosmic says, one person's opinion. In the pipe world, opinions abound. If I find a consensus from a number of sources I'm more likely to give it credence.
Of course, when I proclaim anything, it IS truth!! ::

 

[rx2man]

While I am sure what sablebrush says is true 75/25 I did read somewhere that as clickklick said the horizontal grain is the cooler pipe. I of course cannot find that information now......

 

[theloniousmonkfish]

Cross grain smokes cooler, straight grain smokes drier. It's always been that way...

 

[jpmcwjr]

Monk- is there not a smiley missing??

 

[disinformatique]

I agree with Sasquatch here, without a properly engineered stem a pipe is just paperweight.
Chris :puffpipe: