No Break-In Pipes

[mso489]

It seems as if many pipes I buy or am given as gifts do not really require break-in. They have highly satisfactory or excellent smoking characteristics from the first bowl. I don't want to sound uncritical, as if I am pleased by almost anything. Some pipes do have a stretch when they are developing a smooth and flavorful performance. But many just get up and go. This isn't always price specific, or brand specific. Some pipes are just born great. Others grow into it. And others never will.

 

[jensen]

Yes mso, so it is.

 

[cosmicfolklore]

Truth! Every single pipe I own gave me fantastic performance from the very first bowl. The thought, "maybe this pipe will smoke better after (??) more smokes," has never crossed my mind. The grass is always greenest under my feet.

 

[weezell]

Meers and MM Cobs have never failed me...

 

[mawnansmiff]

The ones to watch out for are those with strange looking bowl coatings. Some are quite benign, others not so, tasting very 'chemically'.
I always test a new pipe out with FVF as I'm pretty familiar with how it should taste.
Regards,
Jay.

 

[mso489]

Just received two gift pipes from two different people, and they illustrate this point. One is a 2016 "Zebra" Hunting Pipe from Eric Nording with a Dublin bowl carved with zebra stripes, and the second is an Austrian hand made Kimberling bent Rhodesian with an extra large bowl. Both these are trouble free starters, no off tastes or off smoking characteristics. Old friends from the gate. Again, it's surprising how many pipes don't have to be broken in, after all the energy we expend on figuring out how to do that.

 

[PaulTheScandinavian]

Very true Mso489

 

[mikeklumpp]

I don't know about breaking a pipe in - I can say every pipe I smoked was what it was from the beginning - there are some that cured and sweetened over time

 

[cortezattic]

Most of my modest collection of pipes, 30 or so, smoked well from the start, but did seem to improve with use. I have had a couple of pipes (L'Anatra comes to mind) that had a green, woody taste that persisted rather stubbornly. The pipe below, now a fine smoker, took over 100 bowls to "come into season", as it were.

 

[mso489]

I have a Peterson rusticated author that took a long time to reach prime. It was never a bad smoke, just a little vacant on flavor from time to time, until it was about two years old. It has a good wide chamber, fairly deep, and does a good job on English/Am-English/Balkan blends especially.

 

[mikethompson]

Only pipes I've had new are a Missouri meer when I was 19 and don't know anything about anything, and my Straumbach meershaum. The Straumbach was great right away.
I just got into estates but haven't smoked them yet.
I don't know if I could commit to 100 smokes in a pipe until it's decent

 

[bluegrasspipe]

I agree MSO/Cortez, all of the petersons that I have bought new are good smokers from the gate. And the last new Savinelli I bought smoked really good from the beginning as well.

Most recently I bought an Ardor which is an awesome pipe, but it really made me realize how nice it is to not have to wait so long for a good break in.

 

[jpmcwjr]

Some pipes are "good" after a couple of smokes, and some take longer.
And, 100 - who said that?? Never mind, I see it now; seems to be one specific pipe. That's an outlier, but not that unique.
Most of my Petes have taken 30-40 bowls before "in".

 

[cortezattic]

Yeah, that L'Anatra billiard was a stubborn one ...and I was anal-retentive enough to keep track of how many times I was smoking it! :lol:
The not-so-pleasant green taste was what inspired me to keep track of it, just to see if, and how long, it would take to come around. BTW, the interior of the bowl was plain, clean wood -- no stain, no coating.

 

[bluegrasspipe]

Cortez, that sounds just like the Ardor I have been working on. I am glad to see that there is a light at the end of the tunnel.. :lol:

 

[mikethompson]

There's another thread somewhere with an old Grabow ad where they claim they are all 'broken in' before they are sold

 

[cortezattic]

@bluegrasspipe, if you're struggling with the bent apple with a blue stem that you bought a short time ago, I can tell you that I have the exact same pipe with a cream colored stem. Mine smoked great right out of the box, so I guess you can never tell what's going to happen. Just hang in there, I'm sure it will come around in time.