Some models aren't all that cheap anymore. They approach basket pipe territory. I'd hesitate to mistreat a Wizard or other $35+ cob although I get your point for the original lines.
How long to clay and corn cobs last?
- Thread starter DeWitt1912
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Nothing lasts forever..... Buy a couple, smoke the heck out of them and pretty soon you'll be saying, "Man, these cob pipes have sure held up to a lot of smoking."
Your life will then be complete and you can move on to other staples in life, like peanut butter and jelly sandwiches....
Your life will then be complete and you can move on to other staples in life, like peanut butter and jelly sandwiches....
The cheaper original ones are moreso what I had in mind. I have a freehand and some C&D models that are still kicking around that I won't get rid of
I've lost count of how many clays I've broken
My New Year resolution is no broken clays this year!
My New Year resolution is no broken clays this year!
Some of those custom corncobs are quite well made and can probably last a long time with the right care.
EMC comes to mind immediately but I think there are a couple of other options too.
EMC comes to mind immediately but I think there are a couple of other options too.
53 years ago I burned out my first MM cob and none since. It was the only pipe I owned and I smoked it too fast.
A clay is like a meerschaum, and lasts until you drop and break it.
If you rotate a cob or a clay, and keep it clean, they’ll outlast you.
A clay is like a meerschaum, and lasts until you drop and break it.
If you rotate a cob or a clay, and keep it clean, they’ll outlast you.
My cob lasted about two years before a poked a hole in the bottom of it on accident. I'll be more careful with the next one - I'm shooting for 50+ years.
There are people who collect old clay pipes from the bed of the River Thames, and while some were broken, many are as usable today as centuries ago. They were cheaper than disposable lighters in their day, a half dozen a penny. Keeping them clean is the challenge.
As for cobs, they get dirty and grungy and you must take care not to let the bottom soak up tars and break up. Modern Missouri Meerschaum pipes with a dowel plug help the later. Any Missouri Meerschsum that’s polished and filled with plaster helps you keep them looking nice. But in their heyday they too, sold by the half dozen.
I’m trying to remember if I’ve ever actually depleted a disposable lighter.
The danger is loss, not use.
As for cobs, they get dirty and grungy and you must take care not to let the bottom soak up tars and break up. Modern Missouri Meerschaum pipes with a dowel plug help the later. Any Missouri Meerschsum that’s polished and filled with plaster helps you keep them looking nice. But in their heyday they too, sold by the half dozen.
I’m trying to remember if I’ve ever actually depleted a disposable lighter.
The danger is loss, not use.
I had heard of the old clays in the Thames and read a story recently that said one would be amazed how many pieces and pipes were tossed into the shallows from pubs and common houses back in the day. If not dropped or broken, they are nearly as indestructible as a brick.
Store it somewhere where you can't get to it anymore. Best way not to break them.
@Briar Lee I would love to find a clay during my river clean-up volunteering
I volunteer with the Don Catchment Rivers Trust:
Welcome to the home of Don Catchment Rivers Trust (DCRT)
Welcome to the home of Don Catchment Rivers Trust (DCRT). Our ambition is to reconnect people, communities and decision makers back to the River Don.
dcrt.org.uk
Do you think the Clay King would like to smoke a clay pipe he found during a river clean-up?
I'm very impressed that they've managed to stay in Sparta, N.C. after all these years. Good for their owners for not packing up and setting up shop in Italy.
I have a couple cobs that are pushing 10 yrs. They are my garage pipes, so get a bit of use and abuse. A little wood glue every now and then, and good to go. The one clay I have has lasted about 5 years. I don't smoke it a bunch, and so far has not tumbled to its demise.
Yeah MM has a lot of more upscale models now, which I think is a pretty smart move to attract customers who like the advantage of a cob but have hangups about looking like Frosty or Popeye
The only one I own and will likely outlast me.
Clay pipes: some folk are cursed and can manage to break a clay just by looking at it the wrong way: I'm one of those. as a historical re-enactor of many years, I've gone through a lot. The last one I bought (last summer) to use when personating a Victorian farm bailiff, I didn't get to smoke even once - it fell out of my waistcoat pocket when I was gardening. As a late Victorian I've switched to briars and Meerschaums. I find clays too expensive a habit. On the other hand, Mrs. Badger has one I bought her many years ago, but that's because she never smokes it.