Wide Chamber For Complex Blends, Or Not?

[mso489]

I have repeated from time to time the idea that wide chambers give better resonance to complex blends of four or more tobaccos. When I was repeating this on a recent thread, someone disagreed, just in passing, and said they didn't buy that. It's not religion to me, just something I probably read here and then thought I experienced comparing, in different pipes, English, Balkan, and other more complex blends. My explanation is that a wider bowl gets more of the constituent tobaccos burning at once, together, so gives a better resonance to the blend. It's subjective to some degree, but it seems distinctly noticeable to me. I'd be interested to read pro and con on this. I'd like to test my perceptions on this and hear what others think. What do you think?

 

[ashdigger]

I don't know about complex blends, but if you want FVF to sing and dance, then a pot shape is the ticket.

 

[Chasing Embers]

Never noticed a difference.

 

[jaytex1969]

Give us a dimensional starting point. What qualifies as wide?

 

[mso489]

If I have my pipe specs correct, I think a wide bowl is about .8 inches, and I'd count .78 or .79, around there. Most medium, Group 4 bowls, run about .7 to .77-ish, I think. Hope I have this right. When I see a .8 bowl in the specs, I assume this is a wide chamber. Some run a little above that, especially in XL pipes.

 

[Chasing Embers]

That explains it. All of my regularly smoked pipes are .84 and up.

 

[mso489]

chasing', yup, you're set for all tobaccos complex and otherwise, by my lights.

 

[fishnbanjo]

Yeah chasingmembers with that diameter you wouldn't, my pipes range fro 5/8"-1" so there's a lot of variation. I do find Pirate Kake and some other Cake and crumble tobaccos smoke exceptionally with the 5/8" Morta by Trever Talbert it was truly a revelation when I first tried them.

banjo

 

[Chasing Embers]

Some of my widest have conical bowls. I like them for folding and stuffing flakes.