The Importance of Breaking in All the Way Down

[Briar Lee]

I sincerely believe every new pipe should be slowly and carefully smoked at least a dozen times all the way down to the air hole, to where it’s hot and the briar pops and crackles, and finally there’s nothing but ash left in the bowl.

While break in does put a protective carbon layer on the bowl I’m convinced it also heat cures the briar, and it’s that heat curing all the way down that will produce a cool, dry, sweet smoking pipe.

For reasons I don’t understand after a complete break in, the pipe thereafter is much cooler to hold. The curing process must alter the pores of the briar in some way.

Aside from my vast stash of oil cured Star Grade Lee pipes (and even a Lee benefits from careful and complete break in) every briar pipe I own is a better smoker after the unpleasant chore of smoking a dozen bowls all the way down to ashes.

Judging from the many dozens of smoked estate pipes I’ve bought with bare briar at the bottom of the bowl I suppose mine is the minority opinion.

But still yet, I break each one in all the way down.

 

[bassbug]

I'm a fan of smoking all the way down and leaving no dottle but I'm not so sure I ever want to hear the briar pop or crackle. Seems to me that's the sound of wood splitting and cracking.

 

[Morrison Jeremiah]

When I'm smoking a new pipe, I tend to stop when I get that acrid taste.
All the same, the bottom of the chamber does get coated with carbon.
Works for me.

 

[MacMarty89]

The so called ’pop and crackle sound’ you hear is the moisture of the tobacco dottle evaporating in the chamber. It has nothing to do with the briarwood itself. That has been dried and cured for years in storage before the briar is carved by the pipemaker.

I don’t believe that smoking the tobacco down to the bottom of the chamber is beneficial to the smoking property of a pipe. I think it’s an urban myth that has been constructed and fundamentally taken as the way to smoke a pipe. Of course one has to be gentle for the first few smokes.

Further reading here: Article - Smoking your pipe to the bottom of the bowl

 

[frozenchurchwarden]

I was about to go on a tirade and dismiss the idea of pipe break in entirely, but then I remembered reading about "Vulcanized Wood", which seems to be an outdated term now but is a well established industry: Thermally modified wood - Wikipedia - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thermally_modified_wood

Incidentally, all the the heat curing processes are usually around the same temperature as burning tobacco.

The main cited benefit is increased durability, but the Wiki doesn't include any detail about thermodynamic properties.

Whatever benefits there may be to breaking in a pipe, you should get the same condition out of the box with an Oil Cured pipe, one of the reasons I am fond of Ashton pipes still carrying on that legacy from the early Dunhill pipes.

 

[HawkeyeLinus]

You may very well be correct and I certainly wouldn't claim otherwise, not having the years of experience. I can't say that pipes "broken in" are any different for me, and maybe I just don't get the nuances and that's possible. But, I clean my bowls after every use, don't build up "cake" to any real extent, and I do notice the very bottom part of the bowl gets some "coating" just because there's only so much a damp paper towel will do. I'd hazard a guess that just the heat from use has some effect/benefit, but that's a wild ____ guess.

 

[hoosierpipeguy]

I think this is more old school myth than a real need. I think more harm may be done to the briar by relighting to often in an attempt to smoke all the way to the bottom of the bowl. Smoke slowly and be patient, over time the cake will build. Beware of too many relights near the bottom of the bowl.

 

[Grangerous]

The oils and moisture protect the bottom anyway. —It’s the least likely area to burn out, mainly because so few of us reach it. Has anyone burned their briar? I never have and I rinse mine — No cake or even significant carbon layer builds on my pipes.

 

[telescopes]

I am old school when it comes to breaking in pipes. I start with a small fill of tobacco and work my way to a full load over severe days. I don’t build up a lot of cake, but there does buildup an even carbon shield. My experiences show me that I then have a predictable smoker of a pipe thereafter. It doesn’t matter to me if others have had different routines for breaking a pipe in with similar results - for example, I am thinking of those whose motto is “I just smoke it”. My pipes today look as in as good as shape as the day I bought them. The only difference is that they are all reliable in terms of being good smokers that are enjoyable to use with any tobacco. Why mess with changing the break in routine.

 

[telescopes]

I should add that the three or four time I deviates from my break in routine- each of the pipes suffered developing a burn rut inside the chamber on the side of the pipe subject to the wind.

 

[Briar Lee]

I was about to go on a tirade and dismiss the idea of pipe break in entirely, but then I remembered reading about "Vulcanized Wood", which seems to be an outdated term now but is a well established industry: Thermally modified wood - Wikipedia - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thermally_modified_wood

Incidentally, all the the heat curing processes are usually around the same temperature as burning tobacco.

The main cited benefit is increased durability, but the Wiki doesn't include any detail about thermodynamic properties.

Whatever benefits there may be to breaking in a pipe, you should get the same condition out of the box with an Oil Cured pipe, one of the reasons I am fond of Ashton pipes still carrying on that legacy from the early Dunhill pipes.

So much about pipes is guess and by golly and conjecture it’s hard to trust yourself about matters like proper break in. Mileage varies between customers.

But I’m convinced smoking all the way down, not every time, but enough to thermally cure the bottom of the bowl is essential for a cool smoking, dry, sweet smoker.

While I own a delightful smoking pipe made of pear wood, it’s not a Mediterranean briar pipe. Back eighty years ago a then huge American briar pipe industry tried and failed to substitute mission briar (same species but grown in California). Briar must be from the Mediterranean, it must be dried out, and ideally it should be cured and aged before use in a pipe.

Although it’s small numbers, I’ve consistently found a brand new Danish freehand will be a hot, bitter, awful smoking pipe until a dozen or more bowls are smoked in it. The makers probably do not cure and age their large pieces of briar before carving. Also, even a heavily caked estate pipe with bare briar at the bottom I’ve found will have a distinct, bitter, hot taste at the bottom of the bowl until they are smoked all the way down about a dozen times.

I’m convinced heat cures the briar. It’s more than just a protective cake forming.

After that heat curing if smoked all the way down, the pipe might not deliver a sweet taste down at the bottom, but it’s no longer hot, bitter, and it doesn’t snap, crackle and pop.

I don’t leave much cake in the bowl, but I leave enough to say it’s caked just a little.

I’m also completely sold on Lee Star Grade oil cured pipes. Whatever oil process Lee used certainly made a cool, sweet smoking pipe.

I’m at the bottom of a bowl of Half and Half in a 7 pointed star Lee that has to be over seventy years old. It tastes exactly like Half and Half smells in the tin, it’s cool and sweet and I can hold the bottom of the pipe until the end.

I have other pipes that smoke that well besides Lees, but every Lee I own smokes about that well.

 

[HawkeyeLinus]

So much about pipes is guess and by golly and conjecture it’s hard to trust yourself about matters like proper break in. Mileage varies between customers.

But I’m convinced smoking all the way down, not every time, but enough to thermally cure the bottom of the bowl is essential for a cool smoking, dry, sweet smoker.

While I own a delightful smoking pipe made of pear wood, it’s not a Mediterranean briar pipe. Back eighty years ago a then huge American briar pipe industry tried and failed to substitute mission briar (same species but grown in California). Briar must be from the Mediterranean, it must be dried out, and ideally it should be cured and aged before use in a pipe.

Although it’s small numbers, I’ve consistently found a brand new Danish freehand will be a hot, bitter, awful smoking pipe until a dozen or more bowls are smoked in it. The makers probably do not cure and age their large pieces of briar before carving. Also, even a heavily caked estate pipe with bare briar at the bottom I’ve found will have a distinct, bitter, hot taste at the bottom of the bowl until they are smoked all the way down about a dozen times.

I’m convinced heat cures the briar. It’s more than just a protective cake forming.

After that heat curing if smoked all the way down, the pipe might not deliver a sweet taste down at the bottom, but it’s no longer hot, bitter, and it doesn’t snap, crackle and pop.

I don’t leave much cake in the bowl, but I leave enough to say it’s caked just a little.

I’m also completely sold on Lee Star Grade oil cured pipes. Whatever oil process Lee used certainly made a cool, sweet smoking pipe.

I’m at the bottom of a bowl of Half and Half in a 7 pointed star Lee that has to be over seventy years old. It tastes exactly like Half and Half smells in the tin, it’s cool and sweet and I can hold the bottom of the pipe until the end.

I have other pipes that smoke that well besides Lees, but every Lee I own smokes about that well.

No idea on most of that, but I respect the sheer tenacity!

 

[Donb1972]

So much about pipes is guess and by golly and conjecture it’s hard to trust yourself about matters like proper break in. Mileage varies between customers.

But I’m convinced smoking all the way down, not every time, but enough to thermally cure the bottom of the bowl is essential for a cool smoking, dry, sweet smoker.

While I own a delightful smoking pipe made of pear wood, it’s not a Mediterranean briar pipe. Back eighty years ago a then huge American briar pipe industry tried and failed to substitute mission briar (same species but grown in California). Briar must be from the Mediterranean, it must be dried out, and ideally it should be cured and aged before use in a pipe.

Although it’s small numbers, I’ve consistently found a brand new Danish freehand will be a hot, bitter, awful smoking pipe until a dozen or more bowls are smoked in it. The makers probably do not cure and age their large pieces of briar before carving. Also, even a heavily caked estate pipe with bare briar at the bottom I’ve found will have a distinct, bitter, hot taste at the bottom of the bowl until they are smoked all the way down about a dozen times.

I’m convinced heat cures the briar. It’s more than just a protective cake forming.

After that heat curing if smoked all the way down, the pipe might not deliver a sweet taste down at the bottom, but it’s no longer hot, bitter, and it doesn’t snap, crackle and pop.

I don’t leave much cake in the bowl, but I leave enough to say it’s caked just a little.

I’m also completely sold on Lee Star Grade oil cured pipes. Whatever oil process Lee used certainly made a cool, sweet smoking pipe.

I’m at the bottom of a bowl of Half and Half in a 7 pointed star Lee that has to be over seventy years old. It tastes exactly like Half and Half smells in the tin, it’s cool and sweet and I can hold the bottom of the pipe until the end.

I have other pipes that smoke that well besides Lees, but every Lee I own smokes about that well.

That's the beauty of pipes: we all have our own deeply held beliefs and, so far as I can tell, none of them are "wrong". I never smoke a briar down to the bottom, never break in a pipe with the little bit at a time approach, never build up cake, and rinse with water ~ and no ill effects. My Grandfather NEVER would have put water in his pipes, but he didn't rotate his and didn't build up cake. And I still have some of his that are in fantastic shape, and perfectly smokable.

I say: whatever "ritual" a person has for their pipe is the best way for them. And that's good enough for me

 

[sablebrush52]

I sincerely believe every new pipe should be slowly and carefully smoked at least a dozen times all the way down to the air hole, to where it’s hot and the briar pops and crackles, and finally there’s nothing but ash left in the bowl.

While break in does put a protective carbon layer on the bowl I’m convinced it also heat cures the briar, and it’s that heat curing all the way down that will produce a cool, dry, sweet smoking pipe.

For reasons I don’t understand after a complete break in, the pipe thereafter is much cooler to hold. The curing process must alter the pores of the briar in some way.

Aside from my vast stash of oil cured Star Grade Lee pipes (and even a Lee benefits from careful and complete break in) every briar pipe I own is a better smoker after the unpleasant chore of smoking a dozen bowls all the way down to ashes.

Judging from the many dozens of smoked estate pipes I’ve bought with bare briar at the bottom of the bowl I suppose mine is the minority opinion.

But still yet, I break each one in all the way down.

That's a lovely new myth to join the others of hundreds. If the pipe isn't a piece of crap to begin with, the briar has already been cured, either by boiling and then air seasoned for a couple of years or more, or by boiling and then baking in an oven using pressure and oil to further remove the sap content.

I define a pipe as broken in when I'm no longer tasting heated wood in the smoke, and a carbon insulator has been formed, not the soft shitty kind of cake that's formed by piling up ash and tobacco bits on the chamber walls, one that cracks and falls apart, but by tin layers of carbonized material that cling to the walls after one has wiped them following a smoke. A thin carbon insulator.

Slow and cool smoking a new pipe isn't a bad idea, and the 12 initial smokes is as good an number as any. Cool and slow smoking is better in any case.

Anyway, nice new myth to spread around.

 

[Beers 'N Briars]

I fully fall in the “just load it and smoke it” camp. Works well for me. But I do load to the top and smoke til it goes out towards the bottom. The moisture left mixes with the ash and dottle to leave a thin layer of carbon in the bottom. And I find they smoke pretty sweet after a half dozen bowls. But I also like to air out my tobacco a bit before I load it. Works for me. I’m glad others have found what works for them!

 

[canucklehead]

So much about pipes is guess and by golly and conjecture it’s hard to trust yourself about matters like proper break in. Mileage varies between customers.

But I’m convinced smoking all the way down, not every time, but enough to thermally cure the bottom of the bowl is essential for a cool smoking, dry, sweet smoker.

While I own a delightful smoking pipe made of pear wood, it’s not a Mediterranean briar pipe. Back eighty years ago a then huge American briar pipe industry tried and failed to substitute mission briar (same species but grown in California). Briar must be from the Mediterranean, it must be dried out, and ideally it should be cured and aged before use in a pipe.

"Mission briar" was not the same species at all, it is Manzanita, a species of Arctostaphylos.

Arbutus Unedo, aka Madrone, aka strawberry briar, which is a heath relative, is harvested in several places outside the Mediterranean and smokes just as well as briar.

 

[telescopes]

That's a lovely new myth to join the others of hundreds. If the pipe isn't a piece of crap to begin with, the briar has already been cured, either by boiling and then air seasoned for a couple of years or more, or by boiling and then baking in an oven using pressure and oil to further remove the sap content.

I define a pipe as broken in when I'm no longer tasting heated wood in the smoke, and a carbon insulator has been formed, not the soft shitty kind of cake that's formed by piling up ash and tobacco bits on the chamber walls, one that cracks and falls apart, but by tin layers of carbonized material that cling to the walls after one has wiped them following a smoke. A thin carbon insulator.

Slow and cool smoking a new pipe isn't a bad idea, and the 12 initial smokes is as good an number as any. Cool and slow smoking is better in any case.

Anyway, nice new myth to spread around.

I suppose on the surface, these are all myths, but underlying them all seems to be something you alluded to, which is a series of cool and slow set of smokes that allow the pipe to develop it thin carbon lining. Ultimately, how this happens doesn't so much depend on the rituals involved, but the slow and deliberate smokes used by the one engaging in ritual.

I do agree that the heat curing is a misdirection and a slight of hand. There is heat because there is fire in the bowl. Carbon coating of the bowl occurs because of the heat due to the fire. Heat does only one thing to wood when in abundance and that is to char it - something no one wants to happen to their pipe. The heat in the discussion above is not the primary method of curing the pipe - it is the "element" used to create a carbon shield around the outside of the bowl to prevent charring.

Would you agree?

 

[Briar Lee]

I’ve always wondered if the folks over around the Mediterranean use heath trees for corner posts the same way Ozark Americans are so fond of hedge (Osage Orange) corner posts.

Both the Heath tree and Osage Orange are extremely dense, hardy shrub type trees, from what I gather reading about them.

Hillbilly machinists use hedge to turn bearings for low heat applications. Osage Orange is as close to iron as any wood gets. Only when green can a steeple be driven in hedge. As it cures out it becomes rock hard.

Hedge can burn, but it’s difficult to light. After it gets lit hedge burns with blowtorch intensity. The first Ozark hillbillies followed the practice of their Indian father in laws and burned the prairie each year, and some of us still do. Hedge posts will blacken but not burn during the annual burnings. CCA and creosote posts are worthless, will quickly rot, and then catch fire when the pastures are burned. A hedge post will still be in service when the trumpets sound in the East. They are truly forever. I use hedge corner posts well over a century old, on the six miles of fences I keep up.

Hedge would likely make a good pipe, but it wouldn’t be as pretty as briar.

Something as dense as briar or hedge is difficult to cure.

I wonder how long Lee had to boil his briar in oil to cure it?

I suppose you could oil cure a hedge post the same way they try and heat treat oak posts with salt or creosote.

But it’s hardly worth the trouble.

Set a hedge corner post and your great grandchildren yet unborn will still use it.

 

[Streeper541]

Different strokes I suppose...

I break in my pipes by loading them and smoking them. Sometimes I'll do a half bowl on the first use, but generally I just go to town, stuff it & puff it.

In 20 years I've NEVER had an issue. YMMV.

 

[mikefu]