Starter kit / newbie help.

[chris93]

Greetings to everyone.
First of all, this is my first post here. This forum and all of its users are very helpful to me. Thanks to everyone in advance.
I've wanted to try pipe smoking almost 3 years now, but with no success. There are no pipe/tobacco shops in my country, nor I've seen any pipe smokers. So I decided I would order one from the internet, SmokingPipes.com (I've decided its the best online pipe shop), but I was on a limited budget. I made an order, but I still want your opinions.
My order was:

1 Collegiate Starter Kit 101: Introduction to Pipe Smoking containing:

3 One ounce tobacco samples

1 Czech pipe tool

1 Pack of pipe cleaners

1 Folding pipe stand

1 Pipe sock

1 Pipe case

1 Pipe sock

1 Pipe (I ordered bent, kinda like the looks more, and I read that its easier on the jaw and teeth)

1 Pipe Brush

1 Pipe cover

1 Rubber pipe bit pack

1 Tobacco freshener

1 Mini Corncob Black Stem Missouri Meerschaum (For taking on the go, a very small pipe, but its pocket friendly and good for trying new tobaccos.)

1oz Dunhill Early Morning Pipe

1oz McClelland #105 Chocolate Mint
I think I ordered everything I need to begin, I just hope that the pipe will be decent, of course it can't be perfect for that much money. I'm still waiting for the package to come.
I want your opinion on the tobaccos. I ordered aromatic because I have Clan Aromatic Cocoa flavor tobacco at home, which has very low ratings, but I just love the smell of it.
If I like pipe smoking very much, I will want to order some better pipe. Any suggestions for about 30-40$ for a new pipe? I was looking at Dr.Grabows for that price, I can't find anything else on SmokingPipes.com.
Anyone of you knows some online tobacco and pipe shop that offers free shipping to Europe?
Newbie questions:

a) Do I need to clean the pipe after every smoke, or I can clean it after dozens?

b) How do I create the bowl cake? By not cleaning the bowl?
Thank you all in advance for your replies, I appreciate the help.

 

[phil67]

HERE is a decent read that will address many of your questions.
By the way... welcome to the forum.

 

[cortezattic]

Welcome to the forums! :clap:
The kit has everything you need to get started -- except for matches.

I have issues with beginners choosing aromatic tobaccos as starters. They're a good way to scorch your tongue,

but I understand the appeal. So hey, go for it! It's not like my tongue is gonna pinch and sting and bite. :lol:

 

[pipebaum81]

chris93, I'm so excited for you. I was in your shoes up until a bit ago. I am no old hat by any means but still have a bit to share.
My biggest tip is patience. Patience with everything. Cigarette smoking is usually thrown into a busy day, done on the move, and then one hurries to the next task at hand almost lamenting the time the smoke took out of their busy schedule. Take your time and relax through the process. Pipe smoking for me is a time to do little but smoke and enjoy. I start to unwind when choosing my tobacco and packing my pipe. The process itself literally requires me to slow down and the benefits are real.
Cake comes with time. With a new briar it was suggested to me early on at the Tinder Box in Pensacola to smoke only to the near bottom of the bowl to help protect the briar before cake has been built up. Clean your bowl for ash and moisture. Leave the rest. Keep your draft whole clear. Run a pipe cleaner through at least your stem after smoking.
I believe the public views pipe smoking as a sophisticated elite group. Maybe in some ways they are right (after all we do sorta rock) BUT I have not run into elitism from within the community. Don't be afraid to ask the questions you have. That's the best advice anyone can give you.

 

[teufelhund]

Looks like you have everything you need, but you'll need more tobacco soon. Welcome to the forums!

 

[mephistopheles]

Welcome to the forum.
I wish I had stumbled upon a starter kit like that when I had started. It seems pretty complete. Cortez is right though, you need some fire! I would recommend that you get a lighter as well as matches. Matches are great for getting a pipe started, but it's hard to use a match for relights once you've burned your tobacco about half way down. Most people seem to recommend Zippo lighters with an insert, but I prefer either a Bic or Clipper lighter. That's my $.02

 

[judcole]

Welcome to the forum.

The kit looks like a good start. Personally,I am a match guy, and use the big wooden kitchen matches. I never have any trouble relighting.

SP is a good place, but try some of the others,too. I like Pipes&Cigars,and also have used Mars,Iwan Ries, & 4 Noggins, as well as SP. JR Cigaral so has some great prices on what they sell.

My standard advice to new folks is, "Buy the best pipes and tobacco you can afford." That being said, even if your budget doesn't allow for a big expenditure, there's lots of alternatives.

I, personally,would not recommend a new Dr Grabow to anyone. For about $50,you can get an Iwan Ries house brand pipe. I've got 3 of those,acquired over the years,and they are all good smokers. Look at some of the less expensive Stanwells at P&C, too,at about the same amount.

If you really can't swing $50, I'd get some Missouri Meerschaums before I'd buy a Grabow. ::

 

[saltedplug]

At the beginning, pipe smoking is challenging-packing, lighting, drawing; a million tobaccos, their classes; trying all of the tobaccos and developing preferences-finding your way through that thicket; and the matter of pipes is even more complicated-shapes, country of origin and that country/regions's style, deciding which of the many standards for good pipe construction that you will value. I have found that if I don't pay attention to packing, the smoke suffers. I have found that if I don't consciously remember to smoke slowly, my tongue/mouth get sore, which hobbles the smoke. Deciding how much money to spend on the habit and where you draw the line in buying more expensive tobacco and pipes; those pipes made by carvers said to be the best are usually very expensive, and there are many of them in the upper, not uppermost tier, that expensive.
If you can, try to have fun with all of this. If you smoke slowly you can smoke more often. It takes most guys, including this one, a few years to go from apprentice to journeyman. Relax, experiment, enjoy.

 

[wallace]

Be patient and persistent. Just because that last smoke didn't deliver doesn't mean the next one won't. Maybe you were in a rush and didn't realize it. Don't be too quick a judge on a blend, put it on the shelf and try it again in a few months. Tastes change. I don't know what I saw in some of my first blends, and I'm sure glad I didn't scrap others at my first impression. Two years in and I feel like I'm finally figuring it out. Good luck and enjoy!

 

[mso489]

chris93, welcome to Forums. It sounds like you will have everything you need and a few items you won't, but you're set.

Pipe socks are usually just for storing or traveling with pipes; I like them but don't need them much.
I will address just one of your questions. My specialty on Forums seems to be scouting out quality briar smoking pipes

at the low price level. I can't possibly list all of my suggestions, but here are two or three. tobaccopipes.com has

Chapuis-Comoy pipes for $35 to $50 in a number of shapes; they only have in stock those with the "Add to Cart"

icon, but they have a variety. These are well-engineered pipes from France and will smoke well above their price

level. Second, take a look at Cup O Joes, under Butz-Chocum, at the end of that page, several unstamped pipes made

by BC, for about $44. And finally, Iwan Ries has Ewa pipes, quite small but good little smokers and good for new

pipe smokers, at around $35. If you can go up to the $50-$60 range, look at the less expensive Savenelli and Stanwell

pipes at pipesandcigars.com and other sites. MM cobs and Old Dominion cobs can round out a rotation for many

months or years while you buy briar pipes from time to time.
Finally, I recommend matches for lighting pipes, for the softer flame and better control of the flame, and a more

traditional approach. Many love their lighters, and I appreciate them as nifty objects, but for lighting a pipe, I say,

go for matches.

 

[mso489]

Double post; sorry.

 

[joseywales]

Phil67, thanks for the link! Newbie here and there were a couple eye openers in that handbook. I guess I'll be enjoying my scotch AFTER my smoak.