Is My Pipe Burning Too Hot?

[cameron]

I am new to smoking pipes, and purchased my first pipe and tobacco not very long ago, about a month ago. I smoke it about once per day.
I own a gourd calabash which I never have any problems with an a simple briar pipe with about a four inch stem.
I purchased both as estate pipes, being used.
When I smoke my briar pipe, I puff quickly and I notice that the bowl gets too hot to comfortably hold after some time, but still I can enjoy the pipe for about 15 minutes before the tobacco is expired.
I smoke captain black dark tobacco from it if that matters.
Tonight I noticed that the black stem of my pipe had before soft! It wobbled as I was clearing the ash from my pipe with my czech tool and bent slightly. After about thirty seconds it returned to its very solid state.
I was unaware that it was acrylic and I was under the impression that my pipe stems were made of wood.
I can provide pictures of my briar pipe if needed (it's not very impressive) but mostly, does anyone have any tips for keeping them temperature down, and does anyone have any experience with a pipe being too hot and a stem becoming soft?
I am worried that I may be damaging my pipe, or causing harmful chemicals to be released into my smoke.
Any advice would be greatly appreciated for this novice smoker.

 

[jndyer]

If I understand your post correctly, you got your pipe so hot that you started to melt the bit. If that is the case you are smoking your pipe way to hot and way to fast. How do you not have burns in your mouth. Did you get some kind of asbestos insert to go over your tongue? (Of course I am kidding, but smoking a bowl of Captain Black in fifteen minutes surely must be some kind of insane record.)
My advice, slow down, slow down and I repeat slow down. You need to learn to sip your pipe, one small puff every ten to fifteen seconds or so. Typically a bowl of Captain Black will last me at least thirty minutes.
If you think pipe smoking is good the way you are going about it now, you are really going to enjoy it with a lot slower cadence. Good luck and happy puffing.

 

[captainsousie]

How to smoke:
Not like this
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lxPgdpIupz8
More like this
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cCs4yWXy7yc

 

[cortezattic]

If you started smoking with a gourd calabash, a very cool smoking and forgiving type of pipe, you may have developed

a smoking cadence entirely inappropriate for any other type of pipe. Interesting problem.
In any event, welcome to the forums. I'm sure many folks here will offer useful approaches to this problem.

 

[cameron]

I understand from reading a few posts I must be smoking very fast. The thing is I have been enjoying the heat of the smoke, and the strong flavor it imparts when smoked hot and puffed frequently. I think I need to change my attitude toward it when smoking with the briar pipe and slow it down. I imagine I'm missing some of the flavor considering the heat.
With my calabash, I take deep pulls and get a cold and dry smoke, and I can puff at a relatively stimulated pace without overheating the bowl or gourd (rarely, if ever, does the gourd feel warm to me, in fact, even puffing fast does it require a relight sometimes, but not in a way of malfunction).
I use my briar for times when my large gourd calabash is too... inconvenient & large. I think I need to slow my roll, and try a different approach to enjoying both of them.
After looking at some posts, there are a few tips I need to try, but I think smoking too fast (I eat fast, when I smoked cigarettes a long time ago I would suck a smoke down in a minute thirty or thereabouts). I think I need to learn to calm myself when enjoying the briar pipe. The calabash as I said has been very, very forgiving.
I read about grasping the pipe as you smoke to prevent overheating as a sort of integral monitor to keep yourself in check, I think I'll try that during my next smoking session.
I want to thank you guys for the expedient and erhm... gentle recommendations. I'm glad I'm not being stomped on for my ignorance.

 

[jndyer]

Hey we all start somewhere with this hobby. I figured that you smoked cigarettes by the way you were describing how hot you smoked and that the heat did not bother you. You will learn how to best enjoy this new form of tobacco consumption.
Hang in there and enjoy.

 

[brdavidson]

Trust me its definitely a learning experience, after 6 months, many posts, many stupid questions I still get stumped almost daily. But the fun is in the journey, slow down and enjoy!

 

[petes03]

Welcome! And the answer is yes. WAY too fast and WAY too hot! I haven't smoked captain black in years but as I recall it always lasted 25 to 40 min per bowl. I started out smoking the captain myself and being a cig smoker I puffed too fast and hot. It takes time and practice to find the right cadence. I still find myself doing it from time to time. Never melted a stem though, lol!

 

[petes03]

Oh! I forgot. Another thing that helps is to lightly tamp every 5 min or so. This is part of my standard procedure and I rarely if ever have to re-light.