When Does your New Pipe Begin to Sing?

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boston

Part of the Furniture Now
Jun 27, 2018
559
1,282
Boston
Very variable in my experience. I have Negoita and Heeschen and Ardor pipes that were marvelous from day one (or nearly so). And a very favorite Peterson (now) that took forever. Like over a year. I don't know why.
 

Briar Lee

Lifer
Sep 4, 2021
4,960
14,303
Humansville Missouri
The vast majority of my pipes are “estate pipes”, but occasionally I get either a new pipe or an unsmoked old one.

All unsmoked Lee, Pipe Maker, and Briarlee pipes are good from the first bowl, like a cob. I credit oil cured briar.

But they don’t really become the best they’ll get until maybe 15 to 30 bowls.

Other brands might be torture for 15-30 bowls, or they might be pleasant from the first bowl. It depends, who knows on what?

I do leave a carbon build up in my pipes, but not a thick cake.

I like to say I have just enough carbon in the bowl to say there is some, and no more.
 
Mar 1, 2014
3,657
4,953
"When Does Your New Pipe Begin To Sing"

After I've done many terrible things to it.
The next Pipe I smoke will have a freshly drilled 1/8" hole in the bottom of the chamber, I'm just choosing the victim now.
 

danish

Starting to Get Obsessed
Jun 12, 2017
247
498
Denmark
Like with brass musical instruments, the mouthpiece (stem) has to fit you. The first bite on the pipe stem, will usually tell me, if the pipe will sing for me. Then come the other abilities, such as drilling, initial influence on tobacco taste and ability of passing a pipe cleaner, while smoking. If everything is ok, then the pipe will probably keep singing until it gets sour and/or tossable.