Pipe Doesn't Break In

[anotherbob]

I had an Algerian briar that I really liked the shape and texture of, from a brand I liked but … it was absolutely flat in taste. Regardless of what tobacco blend or cut, packing method, etc. The pipe was just blah. Not bitter or foul just like smoking hot air. I built cake, reamed it out several times, tried to convince myself it would break in eventually. Nothing worked. It’s gone now and I only miss the visual aspect because it really was a neat looking pipe but life’s too short. Wish I’d sent that one packing years before I finally did. Lesson learned.

I just have to thank you for saying that. Some pipes do smoke flatter then others.

 

[Chasing Embers]

For some reason I have never had any problem with breaking in a pipe.

Same

 

[keith929]

I have a Dunhill HT that's been fighting me through 25 bowls and continues to burn hot no matter my smoking cadence,tobacco, or packing method. It's still a work in progress but I will tame the beast. I guess I've been lucky but in my 55 years of pipe smoking i have only owned about 5 pipes that just would never 'git right'.
I no longer have those pipes in my collection R.I.P.

 

[Chasing Embers]

I have a Dunhill HT that's been fighting me through 25 bowls and continues to burn hot no matter my smoking cadence,tobacco, or packing method. It's still a work in progress but I will tame the beast. I guess I've been lucky but in my 55 years of pipe smoking i have only owned about 5 pipes that just would never 'git right'.
I no longer have those pipes in my collection R.I.P.

Is it a 2002 HT/XL Collector?

 

[Butter Side Down]

I think your stubborn pipe needed more curing to completely remove the bitterness.

I think you're probably right about this. Like maybe the briar wasn't boiled long enough or not dried long enough.

I'm still plugging away with this one. It gets a little bit better every time. I've also figured out that the bitter background note is less noticable with some blends so that's helped a lot.

 

[warren]

Boy, somw of you guys are gluttens for punishment or really determined to spend the time and effort trying to turn a bad smoker into an acceptable. I don't know whether to admire you folks or, just shake my head wondering why. I give what I think as a reasonable number of bowls and, if the pipe doesn't deliver, out it goes. Still, I do somewhat admire your resistance to admitting defeat and simply binning a pipe.

 

[crashthegrey]

Briar is unique. I have had a few pipes over the years start flat and stubborn. From very expensive handmade pipes down to inexpensive briar. Always from a brand or maker from whom I never had another problem. It's just the wood sometimes. They all were great after a lot of patience.

 

[burleybreath]

Yes. My solution was to smoke it 100 times. It eventually came around and is now a sweet smoking pipe.

Worked for me recently. A Mastro Geppetto straight dublin. I'm not a newbie, but the pipe gurgled and tasted bad every time I lit the bastard. Bowl was coated, if I remember correctly. I almost threw it away. Then, one day, it gave me one of the best smokes of the year. With a load of Half and Half, no less. Smokes great, now that it has a "real" cake on its innards. I assume that's the reason for the change--maybe it's the moon phase or something.

 

[cersono]

A modern British made Hardcastle's bulldog happened to be my hardest to break in pipe. To break it in, it took maybe 5 times longer than any other of my pipes. I don't know why, probably the quality of wood had something to do with that. I loved the pipe though, so I persevered.
Now it's broken in perfectly and is one of the sweetest smoking pipes in my regular rotation.

 

[Searock Fan]

Try the honey treatment...

 

[frozenchurchwarden]

Anybody else ever had a pipe that was stubbornly resistant to break-in?

Anything you did that helped?

I've got one that's giving me fits. Everything has a slight bitter undertaste. I guess that's not unheard of for naked virgin briar, but it's going on a lot longer than it should. Also nothing I smoke in it has the range of flavor that I get in other pipes.

https://www.thermotreatedwood.com/_files/ugd/76a2e2_e8e2b21124f647dbb319e519dcee1f27.pdf

Wood at high temperature starts to off-gas as various chemical transformations take place.
If you want to expedite the process you could throw your pipe in the oven but that would probably ruin the shank.
Localized heat would imitate break in by smoking.
I have at one point used a heat gun with a cone to direct air into the bowl and dry out the heel, but be careful it's easy to overheat and ruin the outside finish.

 

[ssjones]

Breaking in a new pipe is a big reason why I prefer estate pipes.
I do prefer a new pipe to have a proper bowl coating (like Peterson's new process).

My worst, a new 2014 Rad Davis (made at the end of his career), that just never broke in or smoked well. After about 50 bowls, I gave up. Member Antbauers bought it and I believe was pleased, so maybe it was just me. Note the uncoated bowl.

 

[OverMountain]

Get a Grabow! You can treat them rough and they just don’t stop. Easy to break in and affordable.

 

[keith929]

Is it a 2002 HT/XL Collector?

Yes in fact it is.

 

[Chasing Embers]

Yes in fact it is.

This one?

 

[keith929]

This one?

View attachment 232566

No this one.

 

[Honkytonk Man]

This pair will break the bastard in!

 

[Lucashly]

How many bowls of tobacco does it typically take to break in a pipe if there is an average.

 

[frozenchurchwarden]

How many bowls of tobacco does it typically take to break in a pipe if there is an average.

Here's a nice graph from the PDF in my last post that should be relevant to the conversation:

 

[lifesizehobbit]

How many bowls of tobacco does it typically take to break in a pipe if there is an average.

The smart aleck in me wants to say, "Let's ask Mr. Owl..." But I don't have an actual answer.