Pipe Shape Preferences Over Time

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InWithBothFeet

Starting to Get Obsessed
Mar 23, 2024
251
545
Richmond, KY
Please read Rule 9 for title formation. Capitals!

Has your pipe shape or style preference changed over time? Did the first pipe you buy end up being the last pipe you get out? The first pipe I bought in March was a big LOTR churchwarden. After smoking pipes I can clench (not nose warmers, but normal sized bent or half-bent billiard and bulldog pipes), the churchwarden seemed awkwardly clumsy yesterday. I'm actually considering looking for a nose warmer now for lighter easier clenching.
 
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warren

Lifer
Sep 13, 2013
12,352
18,544
Foothills of the Chugach Range, AK
Nope, after my first pipe, a straight Apple, I always went with what attracted my eye, something bent to some degree or another. Bowl shape really wasn't a consideration, had to please my eye, a proper proportion. The pipe simply had to attract my eye hanging on the wall or in a display. If a pipe caught my eye, I fondled it, tested how it fit my fist, then I inspected the fit and finish. Always in that order, no deviation. A pipe has to fit my eye, my fist, and, when I get home, smoke well.
 

Servant King

Lifer
Nov 27, 2020
4,817
28,057
39
Frazier Park, CA
www.thechembow.com
Funny, I was just thinking about this recently. My tastes have not only undergone a complete change from where they were when I started (five years and change ago), but I have also gone through several phases within this long-term change, much in the same way that I did with tobacco blends. It's funny how that happens, and with such drastic differences at that.

I used to only like smooth bent billiards--I literally hated anything else. Any other shapes, any other finishes...no good! And I used to positively loathe bead lines for some reason. Now I love just about everything, although I still prefer bent stems, and I'm not terribly fond of the Dublin shape, which is entirely centered around my difficulty keeping the pipe cool at the end (very little wood down there at the conical "tip") rather than any visual aversion.

Right now, my most used pipes (not counting cobs or the two pipes I'm currently trying to sell) are a bent bulldog for straight VAs, a bent pot for VaBurs, a bent author for Englishes, a bent billiard for aromatics, a bent egg for latakia aromatics, and a bent rhodesian for VaPers and anything else. As with tobacco blends, looks like I'm all over the map.

My overall favorite look is probably the egg, with the author being a close second. This could change at any time, however! :ROFLMAO:
 

olkofri

Lifer
Sep 9, 2017
8,175
15,013
The Arm of Orion
Has your pipe shape or style preference changed over time? Did the first pipe you buy end up being the last pipe you get out? The first pipe I bought in March was a big LOTR churchwarden. After smoking pipes I can clench (not nose warmers, but normal sized bent or half-bent billiard and bulldog pipes), the churchwarden seemed awkwardly clumsy yesterday. I'm actually considering looking for a nose warmer now for lighter easier clenching.
'Twas the opposite for me: my first pipe was a churchwarden, then I started acquiring other classical shapes. I leant towards the bents but soon discovered that it's difficult for me to light them since I can't look at the rim that easily; nosewarmers were worse in this regard. Worst of the worst were bent nosewarmers like the Al Pascia Curvy.

Since I never learned to clench, my preference is now long-stemmed pipes –churchwardens, demi-wardens, and Canadians, with the first named being my most preferred shape. Churchwardens are also easiest to smoke when driving.
 
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Auxsender

Lifer
Jul 17, 2022
1,134
5,840
Nashville
My first was a Butz-Choquin bent Billiard. Now I prefer smallish, straight bulldogs, billiards and dublins. I do not like the aesthetic of a bent pipe as it feels too dandy and ornate to me.
My biggest pipe crush at the moment is the Dunhill 5117.
Honorable mentions to the Prince, author and Apple.
 

elvishrunes

Can't Leave
Jun 19, 2017
387
751
I have a special shape bent Apple which caught my eye 10 years ago and is still the favourite, but my tastes have expanded into everything. Straight billiard, churchwarden, ect Like with tobacco, I like regular variety.
 

K.E. Powell

Part of the Furniture Now
Aug 20, 2022
608
2,254
37
West Virginia
In terms of shape? No. I'm still quite partial to the shapes in the classic billiard family, especially brandy and apple shapes. But I've pipes of all shapes minus the more avant-garde freehand Danish styles.

Likewise, I'm still partial to a fairly generous bent in the stem. I've straight and near-straight pipes, but I typically prefer a nice bend; I find them easier to clench and more aesthetically pleasing.

Now, I will say, my tastes in finish has changed. When I first started, smooth finishes caught my eye. Now, I much prefer rustication or sandblasts. I still like smooth finishes, but the texture of a non-smooth pipe can be both pleasing to eye and hand alike. That they tend to run cheaper than smooth pipes is just a nice bonus.

Finally, I don't care if a stem is acrylic or vulcanite. I prefer the former, but not enough to really sway me one way or the other.
 
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Hillcrest

Lifer
Dec 3, 2021
3,797
19,288
Connecticut, USA
Not really, no change at all but size. My first real pipe was a Savinelli 2614KS Dry System which is still in regular rotation. All of my other pipes are variations of that first bent billiard shape which is why I stopped buying pipes unless I see a really unbeatable deal. And i do look often. Last purchase was Peterson Pub Pipe second which is in regular rotation. I've tried straight billiards and small bowls but they are not for me.
 
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