Problem with Smoking Virginia

[Mild-mannered Mike]

Welcome to the forum. I reworded the title, as "piping" isn't used here, and to help keep the focus on your question, not terminology! Also capitalized a key word.


Greeting, new piper here. I've been piping non-aromatic for 6 months now, pick up this hobby to lessen my cigarette smoke per day (I'm a heavy smoker). So far so good because I watched a lot of MuttnchopPiper's video for the basics, but I seems to have trouble with virginia tobacco in general. Problem including:

1/ The damn thing won't stay lit, especially when you get to 3/4 of the bowl then it stay lit for like 5 second and then die.
2/ Its produce next to zero smoke
3/ Sometimes it kind of "clog" the pipe, like when you get to half bowl then your draw become very heavy

I did some research and basically try to fix my problem in multiple way but it just didn't work, including

1/ Drying my virgnia tobacco (waiting from 30 min to 5 hours, even put in in microwave)
2/ Shredding and cutting my tobacco extremely fine
3/ Smoke slowly (definitely much slower compare to other blends)
4/ Pack lighter

I'm using pipes from Peterson, Savinelli and Chacom, results are the same. Tobacco I'm having trouble with is: Peterson Flake, Solani yellow cap 633.

Am I missing something? Very appreciate the help, gents.

 

[cosmicfolklore]

I could probably suggest doing more of what you already know to do, but I'm not going to waste your time. You smoke cigarettes which already has a ton of Virginias in it, and you are inhaling them, which is overloading your palate with that flavor that you are trying to get at.
Maybe move to English blends. I think that will please your palate better.

I could suggest packing looser, drying more, slowing down more, quitting cigarettes, etc etc, but honestly, that is just going to be jerking you around. Try something with latakia. That will be different enough from your cigarettes that you can still enjoy it between cancer sticks.

 

[glub]

If the lighting and draw problems worsen as you smoke, it may be due to too tight of a pack and overly aggressive tamping. Try to just rest the tamper on the tobacco's surface instead of exerting additional force when you tamp. Excess ash and a tight pack can both contribute to low smoke output - invert and lightly tap the side of your pipe to expel loose ash and go gently with the tamping.

 

[Aomalley27]

A lot of folks just starting out forget the all important TAMP. But there’s a trick to tamping; too much and you crush the ember you’ve created and extinguish the bowl, too light and you don’t provide a transition between your ember and the tobacco underneath for further ignition.

If you’ve a tamper on the heavier side (like a Sherlock) just let gravity do the job versus physically pushing down (* just place slightly below rim and let it drop onto the ash), if you’ve a lighter tamper like nail type, exert just enough force, like the resistance you’d feel pushing on cotton packing in an aspirin bottle.

I always suggest that beginners use the smoke to determine when to tamp, when you get to the translucent stage of smoke, tamp. Once you get to the thin wisp stage, it’ll probably go out and be too late to rescue it, though you can always try the thumb trick, cover rim with thumb on inhale, uncover on exhale. Overall, just tamp more frequently than you normally would to determine the problem.

 

[karam]

When I smoked cigarettes some months ago, after 5 years without I lost ALL taste of pipe tobacco, I even made a forum thread about it. Imo ditch the cigs, for many reasons!

Solani 663 is a fantastic Virginia/Perique blend, tons of flavour to be found in it, other than that all answers above are great suggestions.

In before people comment on "pipping" and "piper"

 

[glub]

+1 to loss of taste/smell with cigs. I didn't take up pipe smoking regularly until I stopped smoking cigarettes because of this.

 

[mso489]

Addressing only the clogging complaint, one simple remedy is to run a pipe cleaner through the airway before relighting, since it is probably clogged with a stray bit of tobacco. Packing a little lighter and tamping gently may also help. Good luck with quitting the cigarettes.

 

[Sweet Home Alabama]

My personal experience has been that a proper tamp accomplishes much.

 

[BarrelProof]

Addressing only the clogging complaint, one simple remedy is to run a pipe cleaner through the airway before relighting, since it is probably clogged with a stray bit of tobacco. Packing a little lighter and tamping gently may also help. Good luck with quitting the cigarettes.

Solid advice, here. I was amazed by how much the bowl changed the first time I did this.

 

[Chasing Embers]

MuttnchopPiper's

1/ The damn thing won't stay lit, especially when you get to 3/4 of the bowl then it stay lit for like 5 second and then die.
2/ Its produce next to zero smoke
3/ Sometimes it kind of "clog" the pipe, like when you get to half bowl then your draw become very heavy

You're packing too tight. Try gravity filling.

When I smoked cigarettes some months ago, after 5 years without I lost ALL taste of pipe tobacco

I still regularly smoke cigarettes and can still taste pipe tobacco.

 

[anotherbob]

probably packed too tightly. Too densely packed and it's hard to light and then it gets "cloged" because of moisture which is exasperated by too tight of a pack. Look up different packing techniques and see what gives you the best smoke. Also some tobaccos just produce more smoke or at least thicker smoke then others, not something to worry about.

 

[peteguy]

Dry longer - pack looser. This should be carved into every pipe stem.

 

[fireground_piper]

Gravity fill. Greatest thing I ever learned here.

Also maybe try a ribbon cut virginia instead of flakes to start out as they will naturally burn easier.

 

[bullet08]

You are a smoker, not a piper. Of course, if you do play a set of bagpipes, do correct me.

Don't just "dry" the tobacco. Check by grabbing a pinch between thumb and index finger. If it feels cool and/or wet, dry more. Va is very forgiving as far as how dry it should be. You can let it dry till it's little crisp around the edge. Don't dry till it crumbles to dust.

Most problem with not keeping lit so low in the chamber could be due to wet tobacco, but it could be that you are just a wet smoker. Run the pipe cleaner to the bottom of chamber through the mortise and swab out the moisture. See if that helps. If not, don't bother with little bit of tobacco left in the bowl. Keep trying to light that bit can possibly scorch the heel of the chamber.

If you are tamping, don't force it. Just gently push the ashes down so the ember will be in contact with tobacco. If you keep push on the tobacco, it will get compacted and your draw will be impacted. You can run pipe cleaner like before to open up some air pocket for easier draw.

 

[niblicck]

About 1/2 to 2/3 or so into a bowl that has flakes I'll run my pick or shovel the side of the bowl. If the tobacco is wet run a cleaner into the bowl often.

 

[Sweet Home Alabama]

I've done the cleaner in a few times for gurgling and was pleasantly surprised.

 

[JKoD]

I could probably suggest doing more of what you already know to do, but I'm not going to waste your time. You smoke cigarettes which already has a ton of Virginias in it, and you are inhaling them, which is overloading your palate with that flavor that you are trying to get at.
Maybe move to English blends. I think that will please your palate better.

I could suggest packing looser, drying more, slowing down more, quitting cigarettes, etc etc, but honestly, that is just going to be jerking you around. Try something with latakia. That will be different enough from your cigarettes that you can still enjoy it between cancer sticks.

Cigarettes have 50% or less of actual tobacco. Most is a recon or sheet tobacco reprocessed with chemicals. American Spirit is likely most tobacco - they even make a black version that has perique!

But, ditch the cigs is correct. They ruin taste and olfactory for everything. Even just simply smelling the great outdoors. I have smoked cigs... and they don’t play well with cigars either. Ditch them and them enjoy the premium tobacco you are paying for. Cigs are addictive chemical ridden excuses for truly enjoying tobacco. But, I still sneak one in now and again...usually around people who might be smoking for a social aspect. They actually taste like garbage.

 

[OneGoodBulldog]

Oh nice, I get to do the obligatory "send tobacco you don't want to me for disposal" reply on this one! Here goes...

If you really want, you can send me your tobacco and I'll dispose of it for you.

Hope I got it right. Anyway, I really like a good Virginia. I'm smoking some right now, Sutliff 707 I think. The big honkin' flakes. Very tasty, nothing like the Virginia flavor from a cigarette. You will be well rewarded for your patience and hopefully find that it's much more pleasurable to smoke a pipe than cigs. Or you could go with Cosmic's advice and try another blend entirely. Come back to the Virginia's later perhaps?

Either way, kick the cigarettes or drop it down to two or three a day. Not only will you feel way better, you'll have more money for the good tobacco.