What's a Pipe That "Smokes Good"?

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perryny

Lurker
Sep 21, 2019
8
8
I totally understand where your coming from. I've been smoking about 10 years and my pallette didn't really go anywhere for the first 5 years. Then, slowly I started tasting things that I used to think were regurgitated opinions of pretentious people. Being a natural material, briar has impurities that can be nuanced by an experienced pallette, and they can take a little time to work out of the briar, or a long time. For me the taste is acrid, similar to trying to smoke that last bit of dottle.

Well, this is actually what I'm shooting for in this hobby, so good to know it's achievable.

Too bad though that a developed palate can make a fine pipe taste shitty for months on end.
 
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jpmcwjr

Moderator
Staff member
May 12, 2015
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Carmel Valley, CA
While I can't claim a highly developed palate for smoke, the statement re: "....a developed palate can make a fine pipe taste shitty for months on end." is hyperbole in extremis. You may well be speaking t.i.c, but I can't be sure.
 

perryny

Lurker
Sep 21, 2019
8
8
Finding the answer to the OP's question would be like having the answer to the question "when are boobs considered "big"?

Not really. A better analogy would be someone saying, "I hope this basketball bounces good."

It'll bounce just fine. Unless of course it's poorly manufactured, defective in some way (including being improperly filled), or the player just doesn't know how to bounce a ball.
 
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Akousticplyr

Lifer
Oct 12, 2019
1,155
5,712
Florida Panhandle
Not really. A better analogy would be someone saying, "I hope this basketball bounces good."

It'll bounce just fine. Unless of course it's poorly manufactured, defective in some way (including being improperly filled), or the player just doesn't know how to bounce a ball.

I think you're also talking about fake boobs now....
 

TinCup

Can't Leave
Nov 14, 2019
341
969
Indian Ocean
This thread was one of the reasons I registered because I was intrigued by the topic and some of the replies

On one hand as described in the opening post any non-defective pipe should be capable of delivering a ‘good smoke’ so what’s the mystery (a ‘good smoke’ being the primary function of the overwhelming majority of pipes)

But still being a newbie with pipes I thought about it from the perspective of my other passion (golf) and by way of comparison; any non-defective club is capable of delivering a good strike… (a ‘good strike’ being the primary function of the overwhelming majority of clubs)… so why then am I not rocking up to Augusta next April ?

While build quality and materials will separate the wheat from the chaff, what is it that makes a pipe “smoke good”?
Well I understand the theory of whats required in order to hit a golf ball 250 yards the same way I understand the theory of how to smoke a pipe, it does not follow that I can do either to a ‘good’ standard however other (better) users can take that same item and achieve what I could not

So surely it is simply the user and their ability to extract a ‘good’ performance from the pipe/club?

Although (and perhaps most importantly) ‘good’ is variable, meaning the success/results of whether someone achieves a good smoke/good strike will be fundamentally linked to the skill level of the user and their own frame of reference as to what constitutes a good smoke in the first place

So for me i'll say that a "good smoke" is a better than average result of that person smoking that pipe on that day in that place, it is not a function or feature that can be built into pipe and it does not follow that each use will result in the same outcome
 
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TinCup

Can't Leave
Nov 14, 2019
341
969
Indian Ocean
90% technique, 10% equipment.

Yup, the real 'experts' like Tiger etc (no idea who the equivalent pipe smoker is) ? can eek out the tiny increments in the equipment capabilities between good and great but for Joe Public I'd say its actually the lack of negatives (tounge bite, gurgle, packed too tight, too wet/dry, continuous re-lights etc etc etc) that make it a 'good smoke'
 
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Chasing Embers

Captain of the Black Frigate
Nov 12, 2014
43,248
108,343
Mmm while it has merit as a concept I can't help wondering if you’re sending the new lad out to go fetch a ‘long stand’ or a replacement bubble for a spirit level ?
Nevermind, was just trying to help.
 

Frozenoak

Can't Leave
Oct 9, 2019
373
2,059
48
Lake Elsinore, CA
Perhaps, it's easier to describe what a bad smoke is. I have 2 pipes I don't use. One is a bend Dublin with plateau that is hard for me to smoke because the bowl is drilled at an angle that makes it hard to tamp, it seems muscle memory trumps fundamentals. The other is also a bend Dublin, I can't seem to keep this one lit. I've tried every kind of tobacco in it but nothing seems compatible. I think the bowl might be too large? I'm thinking about sending both into SmokingPipes' Estate Department.
 
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jpmcwjr

Moderator
Staff member
May 12, 2015
24,565
27,067
Carmel Valley, CA
• When boobs are larger than a volley ball, or any size with apparent silicone, then.

• Giving the jar or bag a slight shake will bring the larger bits to the top. Load a few pinches of that first, then the smaller bits.

• A good smoke is what you deem it to be.

• Drying tobacco first will go a long way to eliminating bite and tongue burn.

• Tamping hard? Remove from the clench and hold the pipe so that it's easy to tamp. Have you photos of the bolshy pipes?
 
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