When Did You Start Smoking A Pipe?

[lochinvar]

I started smoking cigars at 15 and rounded up a pipe soon thereafter. I didn't go fulltime piper until I was about 18-19, at which time I was smoking 3-4 sticks a day. Its been a fun 20 years.

 

[txbeerboy]

My interest sparked a long time ago smelling my uncles pipe, but I actually started smoking a pipe ten days after I quit dipping Copenhagen snuff. I dipped snuff sense I was a small kid and the craving for Copenhagen was to hard to whip with out some kind of tobacco. I picked up the pipe.

 

[thesmokingtexan]

Started when I was 16 but vac then I didn't put tobacco in it.

 

[smoelf]

In my case a question like this deserves two answers.
The first: About a year ago, when I started trying out pipe smoking. I have always love the smell of pipe smoke and tobacco, and I knew that if I we ever going to smoke something, it would be pipe. So after being exposed to pipe smoking in several instances I bought a starter kit from danishpipeshop.com, expecting a lot. I was, however, dissapointed. At first I had a hard time getting an ember going and getting any smoke. And furthermore I couldn't taste anything at all, so it was a bit of a let down. I smoked it about once a week for a couple of months before letting it go. This summer, however, I was inspired to give it another chance.
I bought another pouch of Sweet Dublin, and tried smoking more regularly to actually learn to pack and light ít properly. It payed off. Last week was the first I actually felt the sweetness og pipe smoking, and I am ready to buy a sample pack and expand my palette
Which leads me to the second answer, which is when pipe smoking became a regular hobby. This is a story I have yet to tell, as I'm not sure if I'm there yet. I'm still figuring out if the enjoyment I get from it is worth the risks and investment. Only time will tell

 

[smeigs]

About 2 1/2 years ago. I have always been attracted to the finer things in life.... the things that were part of founding our nation and the things my grandparents used to do. I have always been in to tobacco so I figured I would give the pipe a shot.. I am still going strong and love every second of it.

 

[roryrumfelt]

Basicaly my dad smoked when i was a child, he inhaled so my mother eventualy got him to quit but~

when I was 16 I found one of my dads old pipes in the trash, cracked- enamored I went to the store bought some captain black cherry~ Basicaly ever sense that night when I smoked my first bowl I was hooked.

 

[johnnie]

First abortive attempt at around 24 years old (almost 20 years ago now) with my dad's old Grabow Duke and Borkum Riff. His pipe smoking was a very brief phase around the time he gave up cigarettes. That pipe had sat around in a drawer for years when I picked it up. I put it back down for all the reasons newbie pipe smokers quit, tongue bite, sour pipe, gurgle, etc.
Fast-forward to 2012 and I became interested again with a rustic basket billiard and a tin of Dunhill Standard Mixture Mellow. After a few bowls, I snapped the tenon knocking the pipe on the rim of the wastebasket and tossed it, but kept the tin.
This spring, I picked up another basket pipe and have sampled nearly a dozen blends. I've got a handful of pipes in daily rotation now, cobs and briars. So far, I favor American burley-based aromatics as well as a couple Virginias and an English or two. I smoke a couple bowls a day. I have more Canadians than any other shape and generally prefer straight pipes.
Thanks to the virtual mentoring of this web forum, I've learned a lot quickly and enjoy every bowl. Having a blast!

 

[woopigsooie]

I started this spring at 30 years old. I did already use smokeless tobacco, I was in the store one day getting snuff and saw the cobs on the wall that decided to give them a try (that cob didn't last long and did not have a comfortable life). I have tried cigars in the past and even went as far as to make a humidor, however, pipe tobacco is a lot more economical...

 

[bphilli75]

Great reading the replies so far. Another interesting thing that has popped up a few times is how folks tried a pipe, abandoned it a while then returned to it. I have done the same a couple of times, especially when the weather gets either too hot or cold or life just gets too busy. It's nice that moderate, non-inhaling pipe smoking for me doesn't have the addiction factor. I can set it aside for a while comfortably and come back to when I want to, not when I "need" to.
Good stuff. I hope this thread keeps going.

 

[brdavidson]

I believe it was December 2012. I had a gift certificate from Christmas for the local B&M and my humidor was full. Both Grandfathers smoked a pipe so I decided to give it a whirl. Bought a Brigham 2dot bent billiard and I was off to the races. Over 40 pipes later and I'm still going strong!

 

[plateauguy]

Technically, when I was 18 (1969), but the love of pipe tobacco was instilled in me at age 4. I'd sit on my grandfather's lap and it was my job to open the new tin of George Washington tobacco.
Back in 1954, tins were opened with a "key" and it took me a while, but when the lid was off, my reward was the first sniff of the new tobacco. It was true love.

 

[nepenthe1]

I started in 1955 as a way to pass the time aboard ship in the NAVY. Many, many boring months and years were made much more tolerable when I had my pipe to keep me company.That was 59 years ago, and I'm still puffing away every day!!!

 

[judcole]

I started when I was a freshman in college, because pipe smoking was associated with being a "college man" in my mind. That was in 1968, for those of you keeping score at home.

 

[minfarshaw]

I started a week ago. It's a nice start and end of the day ritual. I find it is helping me relax.

I got the idea from my neighbor. He was smoking a pipe and it smelled really good so I asked if I could try it. It went well with beer so I got myself a briar. Enjoying it so far.

 

[pipesmoker66]

May 24th, 2014. Strangely enough, my son picked up the hobby as a Freshman in college and when he brought it home I was pretty intrigued. My Grandfather smoked a pipe and it really took me back. Anyway, when I toyed with the idea of getting in to the hobby myself and my wife didn't oppose the idea I got in. my son bought me a nice starter Leonessa from a pipe store in Akron and I have been loving it ever since. My humble collection is up to 3 now and these blogs are helping me improve at the hobby every day.

 

[jimmyh]

I was 24 the first time i tried it. Bought a tin of Davidoff blue and a Bizon pipe and it didnt last longer than the tin. December last year i found my old pipe and decided to try it out again (29 now), bought a pouch of Borkum Riff Whiskey, liked it and last years new years resolution was to be a pipesmoker and been puffing ever since

 

[clarkj734]

I started smoking a pipe in late 2001 / early 2002. I was 20 years old at the time and a Sophmore in college. Prior to that I was a cigarette smoker and smoked the ocassional cigar as well. Also, if I'm being honest, I smoked a lot of pot in high school. When I went to college I wanted to clean up and quit the pot - I was drawn at the time to ritualistic aspect of pipe smoking, which was a good replacement / substitute for the weed smoking.

 

[wyfbane]

I started in Afghanistan, 2006. It helped keep me calm and *some* of the bugs away. I became PAD/TAD in the fall of 2012.
=D

 

[brudnic1]

When I was 16, more than a half century ago.

 

[larrylegend]

I started smoking a pipe nearly two years ago. Several guys I deer hunt with smoke pipes and cigars. I smoked a fair amount of cigars but never found the varying degrees of flavor that pipes offer and cigars always left my clothes and breath smelling bad. One guy who lives by our hunting camp could no longer smoke due to copd and gifted our camp with about 20 pipes, a stand and humidor.
I knew nothing of pipes at the time other than Peterson was a decent brand. I grabbed the pipe that I liked the best, which happened to be a brebbia. I bought some tobacco on my way home from deer camp and have been smoking ever since. I now have a few more pipes that are mostly cobs and have expanded my tobacco tastes from Peterson tobaccos to all kinds now.
This forum was a great help in getting me started in understanding how to properly pack and smoke a pipe, as well as, exploring new tobaccos.