My experience with pipes is that if they're crap to begin with, they will always be crap.
I've never found any miracle cure other than the trash can.
I've never found any miracle cure other than the trash can.
Pipe Breaking-in
- Thread starter GawithPiper
- Start date
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We’ll just in case you don’t want to throw it in da ?…Grab a tin of Pegasus or Haunted Bookshop and started plowing throw that with that Peterson. That tart/tangy flavor with be flushed out in short order. ?
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It's not so many. It's a steady and vocal group.
Peterson has a new owner as of a few years ago, and are working to improve all aspects of the company. Some pipes in the "pipeline" predate the new management.
If you've had more than a couple of crap pipes, you've had very bad luck.
Any particular marque?
I choose the brand for the ancestorial connection and also reputation. It is my best pipe.
The culprits have been Ardor, Tommaso Spanu, Peterson, Invicta Briars, Comoys.
I've kept the Ardor because it was rather pricey, didn't realise at the time that the briar used is only aged for 3 years, that's a bit green for my liking, so I'll try it again a few years down the line.
I’ve got several Peterson’s they are all good pipes. No issues with coatings or staining — maybe I’ve been lucky too.
As a fairly new piper (2yrs) I always assumed most pipes tasted horrible when new, carbon coat or not. Now Im starting to wonder, some pipes I have still taste rough. Should they smoke good from new? Perhaps it is the quality and age of the briar.
Good pipes, bad pipes, do-da, do-da......
I've been smoking Castellos for over 50 years and have not had a bad one yet.
I've been smoking Castellos for over 50 years and have not had a bad one yet.
I have no data but from what I've seen a large number of Peterson smokers smoke them because they're Irish... and so is the pipe. I know one guy who only smokes Petersons. Of course he also has an IRA bumper sticker on his car. By that logic, instead of smoking Italian pipes I would be smoking English pipes.... god forbid!
I have no authority to opine with briar pipes. But it could be that the quality of the briar, the aging, the curing is decisive. I practically smoke on cobs, and I can say that the MM General, the Carolina Gent and the Charles Towne Cobbler, give me fresh and fantastic smokes, at the level of tasting the real touch of tobacco. But they are not perfect in the draw, or airflow ducts, because of their imperfections, etc, which I am relatively unconcerned about, because of their price. Something that for the moment I am still experiencing differently in the only briar pipe I have, a Peterson, which has only a few smokes, maybe 15 or 20 smokes. In any case, in the end it is, like everything else, try a variety of brands and discard what does not suit you, no matter how much you smoke it or how well you use it. I have found that I have to use different techniques with a briar pipe than with a corn pipe, perhaps because the material is different. Also with the briar pipe, I am giving some ash cake, to check if the following smokes will give me a better taste. With the corn pipes, they give me a rich smoke, once their walls are already well burned or cured with time. It is all so relative that it is difficult to give a conclusive verdict.
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Our of curiosity, what don't you like about the draw on your cobs? Price and consistent smoke aside, the draw is one of my favorite things about cobs.
I will say the Charles Towne Cobbler doesn't have as open of a draw as my other job (a 5th Avenue), but I really like the Cobbler nonetheless (and they appearance is sharpe too).
I feel ya on this. I reach for cob 9 out of 10 times. I really only smoke English blends in briars.
I’ve only ever purchased one Pete, which was back in 2020. It was an Aran rusticated shape 15, and it was one of the worst pipes I’ve ever smoked. It was such a dud that when I returned it expecting to just get store credit as an estate, the manager of the online retailer gave me a full refund even though it was already smoked. It was poorly drilled and I really didn’t enjoy the sticky bowl lining. Do I think that all Peterson pipes are poorly made? Absolutely not, in fact I have no doubts that the pipe I got was more of an anomaly than par for the course, or people wouldn’t continue to buy Petersons. However, you only get one chance at a first impression, and with so many other quality brands out there to choose from, I probably will never purchase another Peterson.
Dunhill and Northern Briars have attained a level of perfection that makes me almost feel sorry for the rest of the pipe making world.I have no data but from what I've seen a large number of Peterson smokers smoke them because they're Irish... and so is the pipe. I know one guy who only smokes Petersons. Of course he also has an IRA bumper sticker on his car. By that logic, instead of smoking Italian pipes I would be smoking English pipes.... god forbid!
The poor creatures don't stand a chance of coming even close.
I don't worry too much, but simply the spout overflows into the pan, plus the bottom is sometimes poorly finished, with reliefs. This makes the air flow a bit clumsy. But I repeat, these are imperfections that come in some pipes and not in others. Corn pipes give a very satisfying smoke. They are a great friend for the smoker. I imagine that there are briar pipes of x brands that must give fantastic smokes, but I don't have any experience with it. I've only tried Peterson, and I've only been trying it for a month. I still have a long way to go with briar pipes and their qualities.
or take some Coniston Plug Cut by G&H Co, Ennerdale might do as wellWe’ll just in case you don’t want to throw it in da ?…Grab a tin of Pegasus or Haunted Bookshop and started plowing throw that with that Peterson. That tart/tangy flavor with be flushed out in short order. ?