Mouth Still Irritated - Pipe Materials - Tabac - Aggressiveness?

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PipeIT

Lifer
Nov 14, 2020
4,376
26,150
Hawaii
Last month I smoked one evening, puffing away to aggressively on an English/Lat blend.

A few days later when I tried smoking again, I would get a slight tingly, metallic, charcoal like taste at the roof of my mouth, later the roof of my mouth would slightly throb and ache, skin sensitive, slightly raw feeling.

So I held off for a month to give my mouth a rest. A few days ago, after the rest, I smoked Eight State Burley in my Radice Rind, and my mouth was fine.

Then I tried Ennerdale in my MM Dagner last night, but I didn’t dry it. I just rubbed it out and put it straight into the pipe. Then I started to get a little of that metallic/charcoal taste again.

So I’m not sure if maybe something about Cobs has irritated people before.

Because today, I dried out some Solani Festival, real crispy, and put it in a MM Smooth Apple Diplomat, which has a long Forever Stem on it, and I started to get that slight taste/sensation again, afterwards, I started to sip very little and it seemed ok, sometimes bigger puffs would bring this on again slightly.

So I’m wondering if I simply have a slight condition now, no matter what pipes/tabac I smoke I’ll continue to experience this, but it was fine in my Briar Radice, the other day...

As I sit here typing, the roof of my mouth has a slight throb ache, but I was raised not to make a scene at every little scratch, and I certainly want to believe, that all I have done is really irritated my mouth, and that I just need to give it a rest, and when I do smoke, really dry the tabac crispy, smoke in a good Briar pipe, and sip really slow, rather than think I have the beginning stages of something worse.

And, of course believe, in time I’ll be fine...

Hmm

In the meantime, I’d love to hear if others have experienced similar incidents, or other mouth issues brought on, that just needed some time to heal.

Or they have found smoking from other types of pipes not made from Briar, such as Olive, Cobs, Meerschaum, etc., people can have reactions?

Of course I understand, tabac to moist, or smoked to fast, or supposedly Virginia or heavy Virgina, my understanding, especially Reds, given the PH of them, can bite and irritate. I guess Latakia smoked to aggressively can also irritate too.

Supposedly the PH of blends is suppose to be a factor of irritation, sensitivity. I’ve personally had Red Virginia’s really irritate my mouth in the same way I am experiencing now if I wasn’t careful with them.
 
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OzPiper

Lifer
Nov 30, 2020
5,756
30,560
71
Sydney, Australia
I have briar, morta, olive wood, meerschaum and porcelain pipes. I have not noticed that any one material causes more problems than the others. It is definitely not the pipe.

Now that I have learnt to smoke at a slower pace - smouldering rather than glowing ember - I've been free of tongue bite and leather mouth syndrome.

Except with aromatic blends ! But only for the 1st 10-20 seconds when I'm light up (more of a "prickle" than a "bite"). The temperature is much higher at lighting than later when the tobacco settles into a smoulder.
 

PipeIT

Lifer
Nov 14, 2020
4,376
26,150
Hawaii
Today I’m trying Solani 333 Festival in a MM Cob with a Forever Stem, which is long, hoping it helps with some cooling.


AA25C0BA-75DC-4437-93D9-451692C4CE69.jpeg


I dried this tabac crispy, and I’m thinking for now that I really need to dry out all my tabac crispy. I’ve always smoked it a bit on the moist side, and maybe that’s been the problem all along.

One thing I’m noticing is when I take my first few puffs, I’ll get this odd taste on the roof of my mouth, but if I continue to sip very slowly it goes away, and afterwards today, I lit the tabac, got that taste, but I kept slowly sipping and slowly blowing occasionally back into the stem to keep it going, then sipping, and I carried on like this for several minutes with no problems.

For whatever reason this irritation is, if I continue to sip, it goes away. I’m only finding I get this every time I start to puff for the first time, either lighting a new pipe, or when it goes out and I come back to the pipe, relight it later, I get the taste on that new relight.

I light with an IM Corona Old Boy and I use Newport Zero Butane.


This is suppose to be a very clean butane, so I have not considered if it could be the issue.

Hmm
 
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Bax Burley

Can't Leave
Jul 20, 2021
307
3,237
Pennsylvania
I only ever use matches, but I don't know if that makes much of a difference. How long have you been smoking a pipe? It really just goes away. I smoke at least 6 bowls a day. I just don't get any sort of noticeable bite that lasts any more than a few seconds. You eventually just roast your tongue and mouth so much that it doesn't happen, or at least that's how I always felt. You might just be extremely sensitive to it.

I've also never noticed a difference between Briar/Birchwood/Cob.
 
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PipeIT

Lifer
Nov 14, 2020
4,376
26,150
Hawaii
Well I’ve been on the sensitive side for just about anything, but last month I was puffing away aggressively, and this is when it happened. But I would of thought after a months rest it would be ok, I guess not.

I got back into pipe smoking last year, but the entire time, before that aggressive smoke day, I never had this issue.

I just went back and lit the pipe, this time blowing out quickly the smoke from that first relight, to avoid any butane irritation, if that could be an issue, so I’m not sure if it was simply coincidence, but there was none of this taste, and I sipped for a few minutes with no problem.

I’ll just keeping going real slow, really dry out tabac, and try to avoid blends that have bite, and hope that over time it settles and goes away.

I’m not sure this is classified as a bite, the roof feels slightly rough/raw, that will also slightly throb/ache sometimes, which I’ve never known of any of these things because of bite, that I also get odd metallic/charcoal like taste on the roof of my mouth.
 
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Grangerous

Lifer
Dec 8, 2020
3,251
13,104
East Coast USA
The roof of the mouth is sensitive to heat and is comprised of salivary glands. If you irritate one or more of those, they’ll appear as a red dot inside of a white circle. —That’s the irritated gland. If you stop smoking, the area may return to normal over time. Smokers Pallet.

The trauma occurs during lighting, especially if you’ve packed too tightly and draw too hard on the flame. You can easily scorch the roof of the mouth.
 
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SmokeClouds

Starting to Get Obsessed
Sep 7, 2019
164
382
New York
It might be related to your mouth pH and your daily diet. Also, smoking cadence.
I would smoke some straight virginia and some straight burley to see what creates discomfort, and adjust accordingly.
 
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PipeIT

Lifer
Nov 14, 2020
4,376
26,150
Hawaii
If you stop smoking, the area may return to normal over time. Smokers Pallet.

No red dots inside white circles, my mouth looks normal.

I stopped for one month, I thought that would be enough. I smoked after one month, two days ago one bowl, then yesterday, not even on my 7th-8th puff of Ennerdale in a MM Dagner my mouth started to feel a little sore and the odd taste returned.

Hmm
 

chopper

Lifer
Aug 24, 2019
1,480
3,317
First of all, I'd strongly advise against smoking while you have any irritated oral tissue or sore.
Tars will only aggravate the issue and in a worse case scenario, if unresolved, it can lead to oral cancers over time. [Small risk but not worth chancing]

The irritation is most likely due to a type of tobacco.
It could even be an ingredient in the topping.
Certain food or drink could be a contributing factor.
Narrow down which particular leaf is causing the irritation.

I've not had any issue with any particular type of pipe.
A P-lip stem directs smoke to the roof of your mouth. I've read how that has caused irritation there to some.
 

Ethan

Can't Leave
Feb 15, 2021
423
2,398
Massachusetts, USA
I don't know of anyone with problems related to the cob materials. That being said the more traditional cobs like the legend etc. I smoke without a filter so they have a very wide open draw. As a result I tend to pack a bit more firm on the tobacco than my briars.
 
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Mar 1, 2014
3,646
4,916
In the last year dealing with a gum infection I learned it helps to pack a pinch of salted baking soda in your cheek after brushing your teeth, keeping your mouth chemistry neutral overnight.

Just now I've also placed an order for a jug of Aloe Vera to use as mouthwash, mix it with Hydrogen Peroxide for extra antimicrobial effect.
 

PipeIT

Lifer
Nov 14, 2020
4,376
26,150
Hawaii
I smoke both filtered (9mm charcoal) and unfiltered pipes but I find the 9mm pipes irritate my mouth less. You do lose some flavour & strength though.

Ahh I was thinking bore hole size LOL...

Well I only have at present a Radice Rind, and I’m getting a Castello, so I don’t own pipes with filters, I guess I could whittle down like a balsa filter and stick it in the shank... hmm
Could it be how you hold the pipe? Most days when I clench, the stem is pointed right at the roof of my mouth, instead of the tongue. This is why I never ever get tongue bite, but roof rash instead.

Ahhh good point, I was thinking about that before, yes I certainly seem to puff, to where it goes towards the roof.

Ahhh sounds like the Angle of Dangle is off! LOL ?

I will certainly recalibrate the trajectory... :col:
 
Jan 28, 2018
12,952
134,576
66
Sarasota, FL
I seriously doubt it is the pipe, the lighter fluid or caused while lighting the pipe. You may be having s chemical reaction to certain blends. Try smoking several bowls of Eight State's and see what happens. If anything should nip you a bit it should be that blend with the Virginias and Orientals.

It doesn't take your mouth a month to heal unless you had a serious injury. Your ingesting heated smoke and moisture into your mouth, it makes sense this could cause some slight irritating to an inexperienced pallet. Smoke slow. Use a pipe cleaner a few times during each bowl to soak up any excess moisture. Dry your tobacco more than you think is necessary. Calm your paranoia too, I doubt a few bowls of tobacco are going to burn out your mouth.
 

PipeIT

Lifer
Nov 14, 2020
4,376
26,150
Hawaii
I seriously doubt it is the pipe, the lighter fluid or caused while lighting the pipe. You may be having s chemical reaction to certain blends. Try smoking several bowls of Eight State's and see what happens. If anything should nip you a bit it should be that blend with the Virginias and Orientals.

It doesn't take your mouth a month to heal unless you had a serious injury. Your ingesting heated smoke and moisture into your mouth, it makes sense this could cause some slight irritating to an inexperienced pallet. Smoke slow. Use a pipe cleaner a few times during each bowl to soak up any excess moisture. Dry your tobacco more than you think is necessary. Calm your paranoia too, I doubt a few bowls of tobacco are going to burn out your mouth.

Thinking what you’re saying too, and looking back, I definitely won’t be doing any more heavy puffing, and I’m going to dry my tabac a lot more too this time.

Thanks :)
Thanks everyone too!