At one time that was mine as well. Just too small to hold now.
How Hard is it to Burnout a Pipe?
- Thread starter Piperjd
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I remember a thread on one of the forums years ago about a guy that set out on a mission to burn out a pipe to see how long it took. It was a cob, so nowhere near as tough as a briar. He smoked that pipe only for seriously like a year straight and couldn't burn it out. If I remember right he finally just gave up.
Minus an internal defect in the wood, I think you'd have to try real hard to burn out a briar. And even then you'd probably fail.
Minus an internal defect in the wood, I think you'd have to try real hard to burn out a briar. And even then you'd probably fail.
I think you've already proven that you're not going to burn out a pipe.
The inside of the bowl will get dark, of course, a hard carbon coating.
I'm one that doesn't build "cake", as I clean out the chamber after each bowl.
I know the guy you are talking about on the other forum. He decided to share the pipe with members, like a box pass. Everyone would use their own stem. But one member never returned the pipe.I remember a thread on one of the forums years ago about a guy that set out on a mission to burn out a pipe to see how long it took. It was a cob, so nowhere near as tough as a briar. He smoked that pipe only for seriously like a year straight and couldn't burn it out. If I remember right he finally just gave up.
Minus an internal defect in the wood, I think you'd have to try real hard to burn out a briar. And even then you'd probably fail.
I didnt have any luck burning that damn cob either hahahaha.
Wish I had saved the picture of someone on the forum who was smoking a corncob in the wind and burned his entire pipe up. Was an amazing picture.
But that corncob pipe burning up doesn’t reflect toward briar.
But that corncob pipe burning up doesn’t reflect toward briar.
Despite the fact that I smoke fast, I've only burned a couple of selfmade corn cob pipes (from normal eatable corn which is not suitable for the job) plus an original MM corncob pipe, none other and I own and use about 70 pieces made from various materials...
I’ve smoked for 15 years, up to 40 pipes, I puff hot and often used to use a torch (I aim properly) and have never burnt one out…. The best cake IMO is to clean the bowl after every smoke out two with paper towel, and you will build a thin strong one.
The only one I've had burn out was a small Peterson bent calabash that looks similar to the "Junior" line that's available now. I smoked it about a dozen times and it developed a big black spot on the heel. I took it back to the Tinder Box and it was replaced without question. That was around 1988. I'm still smoking that replacement. So I'm led to agree that if it happens it's likely a fault in the pipe, and would be evidenced pretty early on.
Over 50 years of pipe smoking and well over 100 pipes in those years, I’ve experienced one burnout: a Charatan I bought from Barry Levin 30 + years ago. I was watching tv, smoking that pipe, and the outside of the bowl started glowing and soon developed a hole and burned right through. Barry was a great guy and gave me a refund. R.I.P.
This. Many times my pipes will get too hot to comfortably hold... sometimes because of the pack, pipe, cadence, baccy, or combo of those. And most times I'll just grab the stem and keep going lol. And so far *knocks on wooden desk* I've been fine too.
I think as long as you're not puffing like a madman in a wind tunnel and the pipe doesn't already have a defect you're pretty much in the clear. Oh, and allowing a days rest between smokes per pipe I think is always good practice too.. and shouldn't be too hard if you have at least 2 or 3 pipes which OP obviously does.
I definitely do understand the concern of over babying though. These things are works of art. But you gotta remember what they were put here to accomplish as well. I used to save lots of my variously hoarded collectibles and implements to maintain their pristine condition... til I started clearing out houses for passed away relatives and see how much of that pristine priceless art ends up getting thrown straight in a dumpster because nobody will even pay .005 cents on the dollar for it at the estate sale...
Long lesson short... stuff the damn hunk of wooden root full of cured leaves, set it on fire, and enjoy what little brief fleeting pleasurable moments on this flying rock we have left.... lol
Good call. You’re right. I may as well enjoy them because no one else is going to except perhaps my future children. And by then? They’ll have digital pipes they can smoke anyway or something.
I have had two burn outs.
1, the wee little pipe had pits or inclusions in the chamber burnt on the first few smokes. Pipe was fine as the burned out spots were under 1mm deep.
2. The wee pipe went and died because a bunch of fools said I had to smoke all the water down to properly build xake. Ended up burning out the draft hole.
Every puff tucked ash and leaf in. I stopped smoking it when a medic paper filter started burning in it
1, the wee little pipe had pits or inclusions in the chamber burnt on the first few smokes. Pipe was fine as the burned out spots were under 1mm deep.
2. The wee pipe went and died because a bunch of fools said I had to smoke all the water down to properly build xake. Ended up burning out the draft hole.
Every puff tucked ash and leaf in. I stopped smoking it when a medic paper filter started burning in it
It's good that you want to approach this with a little caution, @JustinPiper. I would suggest buying a cheaper briar (or two) that you can practice on. Not cheap crap, but some less-fancy models, maybe some estates, that wouldn't hurt so much to lose if it happens. And read this! 
On Smoking Slowly and the Benefits... :: General Pipe Smoking Discussion
It has been 8 years since I have posted a thread about the benefits of slow smoking. I took a break to let other smokers step up and address this issue. But, I notice that a lot of new posts can easily be summed up with taking notice that smoking slow is the goal. So, here is goes... The...
pipesmagazine.com
I have never had a pipe burn thru the bowl in over 30 years. I think the most important thing is to buy good quality pipes with seasoned briar. I assume if you’re smoking a basket pipe hot for the first 3-4 smokes before a cake builds up it can happen. Some “rim burn” is often unavoidable if you smoke outdoors lighting the pipe in windy conditions, even with a soft flame. Don’t overload the bowl above the rim. Wipe the rim down with a soft cloth and something like beeswax at least weekly to avoid it looking bad.
With all that heavy puffing your tongue should be telling you something. I’m a “sipper” and I use matches mostly and the occasional Bic when I’m reading (matches need two hands). In 55 years I’ve never had a burnout. Besides, my tobacco yields better flavors and aromas when the ember is just this side of going out.
Not easy, but not hard. You suck that pipe while putting the fire to it like $20 whore, that will do the trick in a short order.
@JustinPiper - I live in one of the consistently strong windy areas in the world - my home fortunately is not in the wind zone so it is fairly still all year long. However, when I worked, I would smoke my pipes in the wind zone. I had three pipes start to burn out. One clearly had a defect in the bowl, but the other two absolutely were wind related. The burn outs occurred on the the side of the pipe exposed to the wind. Outside of those experiences, in over 40 years no other pipe ever burned out. I detest burn outs. My father lives on a large lake - over 700 miles of shoreline. He can get Gail force winds on his porch. Just those winds alone can overheat his pipe while he is smoking. Driving in a car with the window cracked can also heat up a pipe if you aren't careful.
