Spoiled for choice...

[obc83]

I'm not sure if it's just the last remnants of youthful FOMO(fear of missing out) rehydrating, but holy hell is there a lot to learn. I developed the pipe smoking habit at 39, and at 40 I have yet to scratch the surface. Wet weather here today, so while surfing the web, I stumbled across the YT channel “Order of the Pipe” and the Dr. Plumb line of Peacemaker pipes. I had seen a few variations on the Falcon theme, but was more or less totally uninterested. It was a "maybe someday" thing. Until this morning. Now I'm interested. The bent and more so, the half bent Peacemakers really caught my eye. So I'm definitely going down that rabbit trail soon. Especially since it seems like a relatively cheap way to get into a meerschaum bowl...maybe. I still have yet to find one. So, good enough, I'll go after that. But of course that led me, via google, to find out about the Dr. Plumb lined briars and I really liked the looks of a couple of them. I’ve always had a hankering for a meer lined and looking at a couple UK sites, it seems like they are still in production? Fully expecting, and honestly, hoping to find out they all suck and don’t bother, I hit the search bar here and found a few older threads on the topic. But no, in general and even though they're all very likely pressed meer, there's enough positive experiences, even just here, to warrant a deep dive. It may not be just a gimmick after all. Dammit. Starting to feel a little overwhelmed. Obviously, I'm intelligent enough to put down the internet, and remind myself that I have a whole half a life, at least, to keep on discovering. Unfortunately, in the early stages of a new hobby I'm like a pit bull straining at the leash. What if I am missing out on my favorite pipe, only to finally discover it the day before I die and I spend my last hours with tongue bite, breaking in a new briar?? As, usual, I am attempting a bit of humor at my own expense here, but really, besides the actual mountain of affordable and interesting pipes, there’s a world’s worth of history to learn around tobacco and pipes in general. It’s likely as interwoven and historically impactful as other necessary non-necessities like alcohol and high quality hammers. It could easily knock a couple other hobbies/vocations down a few pegs. Does it ever get easier?!

 

[ashdigger]

The short answer is “no”

The long answer is “maybe”

The over pretentious answer is “kinda sorta”

Thus endeth the sermon

 

[Peter Turbo]

I’m three years in, still buying new blends to try and I already have oh so many.

Does it get easier? Depends on the individual, someone else with the amount of blends that I’ve tried may have settled on some already. Doesn’t help with all the new blends that come out plus the limiteds on top of that.

Best advice is to get some samples from forum members instead of buying a tin of this or that like me, thats when you end up with bins full of stuff and a hole in your wallet you dont need.

 

[Scottmi]

oh yeah it gets easier. btw, my falcon meer bowl does nothing for me... no advantage. not lighter than the briar bowl, no taste difference to me, capacity same, coloring is ??, cleaning the falcon is more of a pain. I rarely choose it. better to save that money for a proper full meer pipe. imho, of course. --that said, i'm going to get my falcon meer out and have it with my morning coffee right now.

 

[PaulRVA]

oh yeah it gets easier. btw, my falcon meer bowl does nothing for me... no advantage. not lighter than the briar bowl, no taste difference to me, capacity same, coloring is ??, cleaning the falcon is more of a pain. I rarely choose it. better to save that money for a proper full meer pipe. imho, of course. View attachment 246091

Ive considered getting the same setup as above but you just made my decision not too a lot easier.

 

[TakeThisCobAndStuffIt]

I had the exact same issue with Tobaccos! I have about 50 different blends that I purchased as I was trying to figure out "my taste". I have it now and I am satisfied with my selections and rotations. All is right in the universe until I read a review of Bengal Slices...wait a minute maybe that shit is better than the 3 pounds of such and such that I love so much. Should I buy just a tin to see? What if it sucks...then I threw away $15 that I could have spent on tobacco I know I like. What if it crushes my cellar? The journey is certainly part of the fun, but I reached a point where I was almost compulsively searching for that possibly tiny bit better for me blend. In the end I walked away and just buy a couple of tins a year as treats. Some are good and some are not. None have dethroned my original rotation.

 

[cosmicfolklore]

I had the exact same issue with Tobaccos! I have about 50 different blends that I purchased as I was trying to figure out "my taste". I have it now and I am satisfied with my selections and rotations. All is right in the universe until I read a review of Bengal Slices...wait a minute maybe that shit is better than the 3 pounds of such and such that I love so much. Should I buy just a tin to see? What if it sucks...then I threw away $15 that I could have spent on tobacco I know I like. What if it crushes my cellar? The journey is certainly part of the fun, but I reached a point where I was almost compulsively searching for that possibly tiny bit better for me blend. In the end I walked away and just buy a couple of tins a year as treats. Some are good and some are not. None have dethroned my original rotation.

It is all in how you look at it. If you are looking for better, then you will always be chasing your tail. But, if you are looking for different tastes to explore, then you'll never waste a dime on tobacco.

 

[simong]

Ive considered getting the same setup as above but you just made my decision not too a lot easier.

Not wanting to interfere but I find meer bowls on falcons far superior to briar. Your decision at the end of the day.

 

[PaulRVA]

oh yeah it gets easier. btw, my falcon meer bowl does nothing for me... no advantage. not lighter than the briar bowl, no taste difference to me, capacity same, coloring is ??, cleaning the falcon is more of a pain. I rarely choose it. better to save that money for a proper full meer pipe. imho, of course. View attachment 246091

Ive considered getting the same setup as above but you just made my decision not too a lot easier.

Not wanting to interfere but I find meer bowls on falcons far superior to briar. Your decision at the end of the day.
View attachment 246097

Dang it! Now contemplating again.

 

[David D. Davidson]

TAD and PAD are a disease, and modern medicine has yet to find the cure.

But it’s a heck of a fun disease to have! I feel incredibly grateful to live in a time of plenty, where I can order everything off a restaurants menu, try an exotic fruit, buy different shampoo, etc. Genuinely, we have access to a glut of options in all things that would put a king to shame at any point in the entire history of man. It’s incredible. This is just what I’ve nabbed over the last year - imagining the infrastructure, manpower, and resources required just to make this possible makes my head spin. And it’s just the tip of the iceberg! Applying that same train of thought to the countless other things we consume or experience and it really gets my noggin joggin. What a ride.

 

[simong]

Ive considered getting the same setup as above but you just madw my decision not too a lot easier.

Dang it! Now contemplating again.

Good lad!
Just make sure you get one with a nylon thread. If you’re a fan of Jack Hargreaves, they’ve brought out a memorial falcon in his honour. Just a standard Dublin bowl with bronzed stem but thought I’d mention it, in case you want something in briar. But like I said, I shouldn’t interfere.

 

[obc83]

It is all in how you look at it. If you are looking for better, then you will always be chasing your tail. But, if you are looking for different tastes to explore, then you'll never waste a dime on tobacco.

Thanks for all the good responses guys. I think I have a far worse case of PAD than TAD. I have a feeling that my palate will remain as stolid and ho-hum as it is today. I am however holding out hope that a few years away from cigs will open up my taste buds a bit.

 

[jpmcwjr]

Way easier after a few years. Also helps to have no desire for limited batches, rare birds, and with PAD in abeyance.

 

[Scottmi]

oh yeah it gets easier. btw, my falcon meer bowl does nothing for me... no advantage. not lighter than the briar bowl, no taste difference to me, capacity same, coloring is ??, cleaning the falcon is more of a pain. I rarely choose it. better to save that money for a proper full meer pipe. imho, of course. --that said, i'm going to get my falcon meer out and have it with my morning coffee right now.

to be fair to the Falcon, and using a dry ring, it was a nice, dry, cool smoke this morning!

 

[ashdigger]

Also, if you’re going to have Falcons, you have to mod them.

These are both chopped.

 

[Scottmi]

Also, if you’re going to have Falcons, you have to mod them.

These are both chopped.

"Life's to short to stay stock"

 

[anotherbob]

sure the pipe makes a difference but the smoker makes a bigger difference. you'll get more out of practice and technique
i can putit this way i have read more posts about i tried a new pack worked on my cadence and wow it opened up this smoking thing then posts about i got this pipe and it really opened up ... so maybe don't worry about all the things you could buy

 

[obc83]

Also, if you’re going to have Falcons, you have to mod them.

These are both chopped.

View attachment 246114

dammit...now I like falcons. I tend to readjust nearly everything I touch to some degree or another. From hand tools to chairs. I've often thought that the level to which I need to do this is indicative of some deep psychological imbalance. A need to control my surroundings and reshape them in my image. Or, I'm just funny shaped. A few years ago on Bushcraftusa dot com a guy had a screenname that I firmly intend on stealing one day: MadModifier

 

[woodsroad]

I had the exact same issue with Tobaccos! I have about 50 different blends that I purchased as I was trying to figure out "my taste". I have it now and I am satisfied with my selections and rotations. All is right in the universe until I read a review of Bengal Slices...wait a minute maybe that shit is better than the 3 pounds of such and such that I love so much. Should I buy just a tin to see? What if it sucks...then I threw away $15 that I could have spent on tobacco I know I like. What if it crushes my cellar? The journey is certainly part of the fun, but I reached a point where I was almost compulsively searching for that possibly tiny bit better for me blend. In the end I walked away and just buy a couple of tins a year as treats. Some are good and some are not. None have dethroned my original rotation.

Buy a sample of bulk Fusilier’s Ration. Same thing, much cheaper.

 

[TakeThisCobAndStuffIt]

You are not helping Woodsroad!