Windy Day - Bad Smoke

[warren]

Lotta fair weather smokers here. Some of us are more dedicated to the nicotine than others. And, when you live where the wind is usually moving at some speed or another some of you just couldn't smoke except indoors. I live outdoors for all intents and purposes and need to smoke.

 

[Old School 3319]

I just stay in the house

 

[ofafeather]

It can be windy/breezy where I live for days on end so I had to adapt. The first thing that changes for me is the tobacco I choose. Usually flake or plug. Ribbon cut would have to be packed a bit tighter than usual. It should also be something stronger in flavor and strength because the wind really seems to do a number on how much of that comes through a smoke.

As someone else mentioned, larger bowl with thick walls but leave a good bit of room at the top. Starting the bowl indoors or out of the wind is great. Once the bowl is going well I use a wind cap. I hadn’t tried it in years but this year went back to using it and find it very helpful.

 

[ArtAraya]

Wind cap helps if it’s a bit windy, but not if it’s a gale. Garage or shed helps more. If I want to smoke on a walk when it’s windy I’ll find a trail in a valley with lots of trees to block the wind, rather than a windswept lake trail.

Thanks for the ideas. I'll need to try a wind cap.

 

[ArtAraya]

Cap the chamber with your fingers.

I'll need to work on this technique. I tried cupping my hands around the bowl to create a wind barrier and that helped a little but not totally. I think by that point the damage had been done already.

 

[ArtAraya]

This is what I do. The wind almost always blows in the desert so I use my fingers for a wind screen. I usually light indoors then head outside.

I had to light up in our bedroom and then run outside to the porch to smoke. Shhh - don't tell the wife! ;-)

 

[ArtAraya]

I don't need to smoke so badly that I attempt smoking in a breeze. It's not enjoyable or relaxing, and flavors are all wrong.

I think this is my takeaway also. Wait it out until the conditions are right for it to be an enjoyable smoke.

 

[--dante--]

I just use a wind cap. On road trips in an open air Jeep, I'd load up at a rest stop, light up, and put the cap on. The windy conditions of highway speed with a wind cap are just right for a slower burning tobacco like a flake or rope. It's the only time I don't have to relight them . I _do_ keep my palm over the top of the cap for those little one minute breaks while smoking it.

 

[spike]

Look up undertheweatherpods.com. Buy one and turn the back to the wind. You‘re sheltered on three side.

 

[Country Bladesmith]

I just stay in the house

If only...

 

[Chasing Embers]

I just stay in the house

That's mostly me, or my desk at work.

 

[bullet08]

I hear you. My wife doesn't care for any smoke. So, I'm on my wooden throne on front porch everyday, rain, shine, snow, hurricane.. Trick is to shield the chamber when you light the tobacco. You'll have to face the wind, hold the top of the stummel with pinky and the palm, flick the Bic. Once lit, use index and middle fingers to sort of make a some over the opening. Leave some open gap for smoke to escape. Works pretty good.

 

[ophiuchus]

God created fingers on our hands for this specific reason. If you don't believe in God, it was the pinochle of our evolutionary achievement. So, use your fingers.

Well, if you want to make a game of it ...

 

[The Clay King]

When I went to see the Sealed Knot at Bolsover Castle I spent ages trying to light my clay pipe on one of the windiest days last year!
Cavaliers don't like the wind because it blows their hats off and they can't light their pipes!

 

[Country Bladesmith]

When I went to see the Sealed Knot at Bolsover Castle I spent ages trying to light my clay pipe on one of the windiest days last year!
Cavaliers don't like the wind because it blows their hats off and they can't light their pipes!

I bet once you got it lit, you finished it up in record time with that wind helping to keep it stoked! ?

 

[The Clay King]

I bet once you got it lit, you finished it up in record time with that wind helping to keep it stoked! ?

Which would impress a Cavalier or Redcoat most - smoking a clay pipe the fastest or keeping it burning the longest?
I was smoking Gawith Hoggarth Cherry Vanilla in a 17th Century English Civil War era pipe with a small bowl, due to the price of tobacco at that time.

 

[Country Bladesmith]

Which would impress a Cavalier or Redcoat most - smoking a clay pipe the fastest or keeping it burning the longest?

We don’t get too many redcoats in Louisiana (that whole fiasco with Andrew Jackson and whatnot) and I did see some fellers in frilly clothes in the French Quarters once or twice, but cavaliers they were not! I guess I’ll have to make a trip across the pond to find the answer to that question! So was this a re-enactment of the siege or more like a history festival?

 

[The Clay King]

We don’t get too many redcoats in Louisiana (that whole fiasco with Andrew Jackson and whatnot) and I did see some fellers in frilly clothes in the French Quarters once or twice, but cavaliers they were not! I guess I’ll have to make a trip across the pond to find the answer to that question! So was this a re-enactment of the siege or more like a history festival?

Re-enactment of the Siege of Bolsover. I fitted right in with my Cavalier hat and 17th century clay (since sold)!

 

[The Clay King]

I bet once you got it lit, you finished it up in record time with that wind helping to keep it stoked! ?

It was worth it!

 

[ArtAraya]

OK, I've got a follow up to my initial post.

Tried to smoke again today in the breeze... It wasn't a strong wind like the other day - but it was a strong breeze - strong enough to make lighting difficult. I live near the ocean so waiting for a non-breezy day is not an option. I'm going to have to learn how to handle it. I had better success today.

I cupped the entire bowl in my hand and placed two fingers over the bowl to block the wind. That helped. (I've got a wind cap coming.) I also paid close attention to the heat of the pipe in my hand and the smoke in my mouth. I had to adjust my cadence and puff size/strength. It wasn't a perfect bowl but it was definitely passable. I guess it mostly comes down to regulating the heat the pipe gets. Probably pipe 101 level stuff which I never learned before. Guess that's why my smokes in the past were too hot, bitter, and wet (gurgly)? I thought the issue was with my pipe, not my technique. I even sold a beautiful Peterson pipe many years ago because it smoked hotter than my Savinelli. I probably could have kept it and just learned to adjust my technique. Oh well, live and learn. I imagine my journey with this is similar to most pipe smokers. What did you all do before the Internet?