Smoking Filter Pipes Without a Filter - why the adapters ?

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OldRocko

Starting to Get Obsessed
Nov 12, 2021
128
119
South Florida USA
I have a few Savinellis, a Stanwell and a Brigham, that are built to accept filters. Some include an adapter or reducer to use when not using a filter. Whats the purpose of these? Are they needed or recommended? Thanks for your comments !
 
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OzPiper

Lifer
Nov 30, 2020
6,864
37,061
72
Sydney, Australia
I have a few Savinellis, a Stanwell and a Brigham, that are built to accept filters. Some include an adapter or reducer to use when not using a filter. Whats the purpose of these? Are they needed or recommended? Thanks for your comments !
You can smoke without the filters but that will give you a very open draw. The adapters will give you a "tighter, more normal draw"

Experiment smoking with and without the adapters to see which you prefer.
Definitely no right or wrong.
 

mso489

Lifer
Feb 21, 2013
41,211
60,637
Most filter pipes smoke well without an adaptor, so the adaptor is just a way of tuning the draw to your satisfaction. Some filter pipes may have eddies of air around where the filter fits that might give the sense of too open a draw, or slight whistles, and an adaptor will even that out and restrict the draw slightly, but not too much. I use some adaptors, but I think most filter pipes smoke just fine without filter or adaptor. Try it both ways and go with what pleases you most. I've heard Brigham pipes smoke well without the rock maple inserts. I like fewer things to buy.
 

Chasing Embers

Captain of the Black Frigate
Nov 12, 2014
45,238
119,170
The wide open filter chamber allows for more of the tobaccanite compound found in the smoke to soak into the briar. Easily removed with a pipe cleaner when the adapter is in place or a filterless pipe but in an empty filter chamber, can build to hazardous levels after just one smoke. Being and unstable compound when dry, tobaccanite can explode when exposed to heat or an open flame effectively destroying the pipe and causing possible injury to the smoker and those around them.

bc3.jpg
 

HopHand

Starting to Get Obsessed
May 17, 2021
189
383
38
Montrose Colorado
I love filters but only for half a bowl then they get plugged and drive me nuts so I gave up on them.
Of my 14 Filtered pipes pipes 12 get smoked without an adaptor and 2 with. My Savinelli Marte 121KS and My Vauen Fuego both require the adaptor to be pleasant otherwise they both get HOT HOT HOT and The Sav will spit crud in my mouth within moments.
Of the 12 I smoke without 11 smoke equally well with or without so I just don't bother as it adds another part to clean or loose.
My Brebbia 602 Sun on the other hand is truly awful when smoked with an adaptor and turns into this gurgling spitting monster that refuses to stay burning.
Without that adaptor or with a filter it's one of my most simple and pleasant smokers in my collection.
I think one really needs to try each pipe each way and just see for themselves what that pipe likes when smoked by them?‍♂️
 

hawky454

Lifer
Feb 11, 2016
5,338
10,234
Austin, TX
I always remove filters or adapters and smoke my pipes wide open , they smoke like a charm
Me too! I bought a bunch of filtered pipes just because I like how open the draw is. Not worth messing around with filter and adapters, unless you like using either of those but you certainly don’t have to. Some people say filters help curb tongue bite/burn. I can’t stand anything that interferes with the draw though.
 

hawky454

Lifer
Feb 11, 2016
5,338
10,234
Austin, TX
The wide open filter chamber allows for more of the tobaccanite compound found in the smoke to soak into the briar. Easily removed with a pipe cleaner when the adapter is in place or a filterless pipe but in an empty filter chamber, can build to hazardous levels after just one smoke. Being and unstable compound when dry, tobaccanite can explode when exposed to heat or an open flame effectively destroying the pipe and causing possible injury to the smoker and those around them.

View attachment 113934
I’ve only had 3 or 4 pipes explode in my face, I lost a few teeth along the way but damn, it’s worth that open draw! Smoke filter pipes without an adapter/filter at your own risk.

Tobacconite >= Dynomite
 

Chasing Embers

Captain of the Black Frigate
Nov 12, 2014
45,238
119,170
I’ve only had 3 or 4 pipes explode in my face, I lost a few teeth along the way but damn, it’s worth that open draw! Smoke filter pipes without an adapter/filter at your own risk.
I've only lost one so far and luckily the pieces only hit my glass eye or there could've been some real damage. Sounded like an M-80 firecracker going off. Lesson learned!