Why does there seem to be so much conflicting pipe smoking advice?

[jdlander]

I'm trying to learn! But damn.

"Dry the tobacco till it's crispy"
vs.
"Don't dry it too much, or it burns too hot and loses all flavor."

"Pack it super light. Use gravity fill and never press the tobacco down inside the pipe. There should be no resistance on your draw."
vs.
"Use three pinches. Lightly packed. Medium packed. Then heavy packed. You know it's right when it's like sucking liquid through a straw."

"Start with a light English Blend"
vs.
"Start with an aromatic or Codger."

"Smoke until there's only fine, white ash in the bowl."
vs.
"Dump the last third of the bowl as dottle."

Etc. Etc. Etc.

The ONLY consistent advice seems to be "Smoke slow. Sip the tobacco." Of course, no matter how slow I go, I still get tongue bite... When I go slower, I have to relight with every single "sip."

Aaagh! I want to be good at this!

 

[Chasing Embers]

Because there's no one way to do it. You'll settle into your own way as many of us did prior to the internet. The less you think about it the easier it becomes.

 

[hoosierpipeguy]

Much of pipe smoking is subjective. Tobaccos vary significantly as do the pipes in size, shape and bowl geometry. I don't think there are many who actually recommend dumping the last 1/3 of the bowl. They may recommend it because their own smoking preferences won't allow them the ability to smoke the final 1/3. I also think you'd find the majority of experienced smokers do not pack their pipes super light. In fact, through their experience with touch and feel, I'd wager many if not most tend more towards tight.

I bet there's more correlation than you think if you were to poll the folks that's been smoking more than 10 years and smoke 2 or more bowls per day.

 

[proteus]

TIMTOWTDI pronounced TIM-TOW-DEE

Means there's more than one way to do it.

Or smoke it as the case may be.

There is also no wrong way to eat a Reese's but that's another story.

This isn't math. More than one answer is the correct answer. Do what works for you. Try what others do and see if that works for you. It's up to you to decide .

 

[troutface]

"Dry the tobacco till it's crispy"
vs.
"Don't dry it too much, or it burns too hot and loses all flavor."

That depends on the blend. You'll learn the right moisture for each blend.

"Pack it super light. Use gravity fill and never press the tobacco down inside the pipe. There should be no resistance on your draw."
vs.
"Use three pinches. Lightly packed. Medium packed. Then heavy packed. You know it's right when it's like sucking liquid through a straw."

Not super light or super heavy. Also somewhat blend dependent.

"Start with a light English Blend"
vs.
"Start with an aromatic or Codger

I don't care for codger blends, but they do burn easily.

"Smoke until there's only fine, white ash in the bowl."
vs.
"Dump the last third of the bowl as dottle."

Again, blend dependent. Some will smoke dry to the bottom. Others will give you a wet heel.

So there you go, the world according to me. It's going to take time to learn all this. All the advice is no substitute for experience. Sit back, relax and enjoy the learning. A little bourbon doesn't hurt the learning either.

 

[brian64]

The ONLY consistent advice seems to be "Smoke slow. Sip the tobacco." Of course, no matter how slow I go, I still get tongue bite... When I go slower, I have to relight with every single "sip."

I struggled with tongue bite early on. For me it was being caused by having to puff too hard to keep it lit...and/or by too many relights. Both of these problems were solved by drying the tobacco thoroughly.

Most of the time I don't really draw on the pipe hardly at all, other than when lighting up or tamping. I mostly just breathe through my nose and it creates enough of a draw...but this only works with dry tobacco.

 

[briarblues]

First rule of pipe smoking ... there are no hard and fast rules. Try various methods and find what works for you. Any advice is simply what works for the person offering the advice. Some works, some does not. Just enjoy the ride, until you find what techniques work, for you.

 

[sablebrush52]

There's absolutely no one way to do it. There are also no shortcuts to finding what works for you. What I suggest people do is experiment. When I try a new blend, that's what I do. I experiment with prepping, packing, moisture content and cadence. I'm looking to get the most flavor from a blend, so I experiment with what gets me there.
For me, that translates to finding a balance that allows me to smoke very slowly, just keeping the glowing cherry barely lit while the tobacco around it simmers and releases its flavors, Someone else may find their preference differently. That's part of the fun, and part of the hell of it.
After decades of smoking a pipe it just comes naturally to me. I know the "feel" of the pack, the speed of the cadence, etc, etc. I know which pipe "likes" which blend. I don't have to think about it, I just do it.
Be patient and try out different things and eventually you will find a combination that works for you in general. When you encounter a blend that doesn't seem to respond favorably, experiment.

 

[warren]

Different smokers have different objectives. I keep smoking as simple as possible. I'm satisfying my "oral fixation" and my requirement for nicotine.

 

[DesertDan]

" The first most important thing is 'don't stop', the second most important thing is 'keep going'." - Frank Zappa.

Stick with it, you will find the methods that work best for you.
The size and shape of the chamber will make a difference in the way a pipe packs and smokes.
Different cuts of tobacco will pack, draw and burn differently.
It may be helpful to select a combination of pipe and tobacco that you really enjoy and stay with it for a while.
This will enable you to learn to deal with technical issues such as a packing methods, correcting bad pack/draw, uneven burn, backwash, etc.
Pretty soon you will have much more consistent smokes.
Then try different types of cuts of tobacco in the same pipe and notice the differences in how the pipe loads and smokes with them. Adjust accordingly.

It's a journey, enjoy it!
Cheers!

 

[jdlander]

Thanks for the help everyone. Yes, I am slowly finding my own way.

About the "drinking through a straw" analogy... I hear it a lot, and so I literally just got out a straw and drank water through it and then packed a pipe until I had a similar draw resistance.

I have never pressed tobacco down so hard into the pipe!!! It was packed TIGHT.

But it was a nice long smoke! Lasted an hour with only a few relights.

I still feel that most people who use straw-drinking analogy truly know how much resistance that actually is...

 

[jdlander]

It may be helpful to select a combination of pipe and tobacco that you really enjoy and stay with it for a while.
This will enable you to learn to deal with technical issues such as a packing methods, correcting bad pack/draw, uneven burn, backwash, etc.

Good suggestion. I keep hopping around from blend to blend, and this is probably keeping me from learning the basics.

 

[VDL_Piper]

Like everything in this world now its all overthought and over analysed. Rather than go and sit in a shed for 5 years and learn how to smoke a pipe and suffer all the ups and downs, work through a myriad of tobaccos and keep notes, experiment, experiment, experiment, most people today want the easy gratification and pipe smoking looks easy but that ease is hard won!!!

 

[kcghost]

That's the problem. There's no one way to do it.

 

[Sigmund]

Because there are two people in the room

 

[OzPiper]

Like many things there are so many variables that there is NO right way or WRONG way

Very much like how do you cook an egg ?

 

[Richmond B. Funkenhouser]

Basically, it's all very simple..

1. Dry your tobacco
2. Wash your pipes with water
3. Smoke slowly

 

[Douglas]

I know filters are anathema to a lot of folks but I have found balsa filters help and in my experience don’t impact the tobacco. They do affect the draw but not significantly in my experience.

 

[Hutch Piper]

I know filters are anathema to a lot of folks but I have found balsa filters help and in my experience don’t impact the tobacco. They do affect the draw but not significantly in my experience.

That is my experience as well. I don’t need to use a filter for all blends. But filter do help me enjoy blends I wouldn’t be able to enjoy (mostly Virginias).

 

[Uguccione]

After decades of smoking a pipe it just comes naturally to me.

This is a fundamental concept: experience. In the end you learn things by doing them, little by little everything comes naturally without you even realizing it. Suddenly you realize that the pipe no longer goes out, that the tobacco is packaged in the right way and you don't even remember having done it, etc... etc...

When I abandoned disposable multi-blade razors and switched to double edge, no one taught me how to do it, the first few times it took me a quarter of an hour to shave, terrified of bleeding to death. Now, a few years later, I don't even notice it anymore, in a few minutes I find myself perfectly shaved and without cuts (oh God... every now and then... sometimes... a little cut...).

Experience makes you learn things automatically, you no longer have to think about what you are doing. At least this is my... experience.