Help with Keeping Fillmore Lit

[hairvise]

Hi all,

I've been trying to stick more or less to one tobacco (in this case, GLP Fillmore) to really learn how to smoke a VaPer. I've tried it it several pipes, and while I'm improving my ability to taste it, the number of relights makes me think that I could improve my packing. I've tried rubbing it out completely and using the 3 step method, and just grabbing a pinch and packing it like a regular flake (sort of fold and stuff).

I made sure that the moisture level was right and that the draw was open before lighting. One challenge is that I'm smoking outside and at times, the wind does come up a bit.

I just smoked OGS for the first time--using the stuff and fold method--and I had a great smoke. So, I'm curious how people deal with a broken flake.

 

[Chasing Embers]

I fully rub them out, let them dry out to the point of bone dry, and gravity fill with little to no pressure.

 

[hairvise]

I fully rub them out, let them dry out to the point of bone dry, and gravity fill with little to no pressure.

Great! I'll try that. Wasn't sure whether to dry before or after rubbing out the broken flake. Thanks for the advice! Somewhere on his site, Pease himself I think talks about losing flavor if you let them dry out too much, so I was a bit hesitant.

 

[Chasing Embers]

Great! I'll try that. Wasn't sure whether to dry before or after rubbing out the broken flake. Thanks for the advice! Somewhere on his site, Pease himself I think talks about losing flavor if you let them dry out too much, so I was a bit hesitant.

Think of it like a drink with ice in it. Before the ice melts and dilutes the drink, more flavor. As the ice melts adding more water to the drink, less flavor.

 

[bluegrassbrian]

Great! I'll try that. Wasn't sure whether to dry before or after rubbing out the broken flake. Thanks for the advice! Somewhere on his site, Pease himself I think talks about losing flavor if you let them dry out too much, so I was a bit hesitant.

That’s his opinion.

 

[bullet08]

Trick is having wide open air flow. If you have that, there would be less relight. Keep the bottom of the chamber very loosely packed. Dry tobacco helps.

 

[jpmcwjr]

Moisture content- as in this case drying enough after rubbing out- trumps any packing method ever invented.

 

[hairvise]

Thanks, all, for your opinions on this. COVID has certainly given me plenty of time to work on my pipe smoking technique! I'll dry it out further, keep the packing light at the bottom, and see what happens!

 

[hairvise]

So, I rubbed out the broken flakes, lightly packed the tobacco, and had a much better smoke! The flavor wasn't as pronounced, but this could be due to using a different pipe. I also avoided coating my tongue with burnt tobacco caused my too many careless attempts at relighting.

I did have quote a bit of moisture at the bottom. I often use the breath technique, blowing smoke back through the pipe. I wonder if this might be adding moisture back into the tobacco.

Thanks so much for all of your advice!

 

[jpmcwjr]

Please try drying it a bit more. Ponding in the heel is not a fine result.

 

[hairvise]

Thanks for the feedback. I'll dry it some more, but I wonder if I'm too wet of a smoker right now. Maybe blowing back through the stem so frequently isn't the best idea!

 

[gervais]

It's common to have a little moisture in the bottom after a smoke, don't fret it too much. Just wipe out bowl with a paper towel and run a pipe cleaner ; let it dry out

 

[hairvise]

It's common to have a little moisture in the bottom after a smoke, don't fret it too much. Just wipe out bowl with a paper towel and run a pipe cleaner ; let it dry out

Thanks for the words of wisdom! I don't think that the moisture that I'm leaving in the bowl is too bad, and the good news is that my enjoyment and ability to taste has dramatically increased. I had started a year ago or so with English blends so "taste" wasn't too difficult. I really am enjoying the challenge of teasing out flavors from Vapers!

I've got a couple of tins of Escudo (and other stuff) on the way--looking forward to that, since folks seem to say that Escudo is the perfect representative or baseline of a Vaper.

 

[Richmond B. Funkenhouser]

The title of this one sounds like the title of a b flick comedy.

If you cant keep any blend lit the answer is either dryer tobacco, or lighter packing.

 

[Chasing Embers]

I often use the breath technique, blowing smoke back through the pipe. I wonder if this might be adding moisture back into the tobacco.

If you're blowing back through it with every puff like muttonchop, probably so. When moisture, packing, and cadence are in harmony, residual moisture will be burned away by the heat of the ember.

 

[hairvise]

When moisture, packing, and cadence are in harmony, residual moisture will be burned away by the heat of the ember.

This is a great quote--I think I should print it out and keep it above my stash of tobacco, thank you!

I dried out Fillmore for about two hours or more today and it was a great experiment. Smoking it now and it's burning very easy, but the taste is harsh with little subtleness. It's helpful to know where one has gone too far with the drying.

So, for you advanced smokers out there--when you realize that the tobacco that you are smoking is too dry, do you use any methods to add moisture mid smoke, like blowing back through the pipe?

Smoking the same blend at different levels of moisture really gives me a newfound appreciation for those who write quality reviews of tobacco. There's so much room for user error in getting the most out of a tobacco! And that to me is part of the learning process, which I'm really enjoying. Add in the use of different pipes and the age of the tobacco, and I can see that reviewing really is an art!