New Pipe Smoker With A Question? Ask an Old Fart

[Commander Quan]

You can raise the heal by mudding the bottom of it. Do a search for "Mudding a Hackert". it is a good post by out own Mr. Moo out on the net, and should be reposted here, because it's helpful.

I've had good luck with the cigar ash/saliva combo, but have heard from others that honey tends to stay sticky for a long time.

Hey all,

My name is Damian and I'm new to both the forum and pipe smoking. My wife brought home a Radice Rind Pure No. R258 a month or so ago as a surprise gift and started me down the path of no return. Everything is going pretty well as I get better at filling my pipe and learning to smoke slowly. I also picked up a 2nd pipe (cause you have to have a few!) so that I could smoke more often and rest my pipes like you are supposed to. My questions may seem pretty basic but here goes:

1. Would you recommend (is it ok) to dump the ash from the pipe mid-smoke, say you smoke half a bowl and then put it down for an hour or so then come back dump and relight, or just leave it in and light?

2. How warm do you let your bowl get or not get before you put it down and let it cool before continuing to smoke?

3. I know it comes with time and I shouldn't worry about it but.... about how many bowls does it take to get up to the dime thickness cake (a watched pot never boils etc. etc.) because this is something of a pride issue with me

4. Finally, I have noticed some discoloration on the stem of my pipe where I estimate that the mortise and tenon have a little gap inside the stem and since this is a natural finish pipe its quite noticeable. I get some gurgling every now and then so my guess is that its from the moisture in the stem. Is this a problem or will it cause a problem in the future ie weaken the stem?

Thanks for all your help guys and I look forward to enjoying the CA community.

[Mister Moo]

Originally Posted by Bigd7400

Hey all,

My name is Damian and I'm new to both the forum and pipe smoking. My wife brought home a Radice Rind Pure No. R258 a month or so ago as a surprise gift and started me down the path of no return. Everything is going pretty well as I get better at filling my pipe and learning to smoke slowly. I also picked up a 2nd pipe (cause you have to have a few!) so that I could smoke more often and rest my pipes like you are supposed to. My questions may seem pretty basic but here goes:

1. Would you recommend (is it ok) to dump the ash from the pipe mid-smoke, say you smoke half a bowl and then put it down for an hour or so then come back dump and relight, or just leave it in and light?

2. How warm do you let your bowl get or not get before you put it down and let it cool before continuing to smoke?

3. I know it comes with time and I shouldn't worry about it but.... about how many bowls does it take to get up to the dime thickness cake (a watched pot never boils etc. etc.) because this is something of a pride issue with me

4. Finally, I have noticed some discoloration on the stem of my pipe where I estimate that the mortise and tenon have a little gap inside the stem and since this is a natural finish pipe its quite noticeable. I get some gurgling every now and then so my guess is that its from the moisture in the stem. Is this a problem or will it cause a problem in the future ie weaken the stem?

Thanks for all your help guys and I look forward to enjoying the CA community.

Some folks ash-dump mid-smoke, most not. No rule here.

There is a rule about heating up a pipe, however. If it's too hot to touch to your cheek, it's too hot. When a pipe overheats you risk damaging the pipe but, more likely, you ruin the taste of the tobacco. Work on your filling/tamping technique to keep producing nice clouds of smoke with short sips, say, 3-5 times minute, through a warm (but not red hot) pipe.

Regarding cake, it happens slowly - many scores of bowls before it's thick enough to scrape. The question about moisture in a new pipe may relate; more cake means drier smokes in my experience. Raw wood often smokes wet for a while. Smoke half bowls to prevent the heel of the pipe from getting soggy and don't be afraid to use a pipecleaner during a smoke if things get gurgly - or two or three pipecleaners if needed.

Thanks for the advice Moo! I am still trying to get my filling down and have tried just about every method. It seems I am getting better at it as I usually only have to relight about every 10-15 minutes or so. Are there any suggestions as to when to tamp (I seem to find myself tamping after its too late and the pipe goes out) and tamping technique. When I tamp I kind of go around the edge of the bowl on a circular route all the way around. Should I just tamp the center and not the edges? Thanks again for setting me on the path to pipe bliss.

[Mister Moo]

Originally Posted by Bigd7400

Thanks for the advice Moo! I am still trying to get my filling down and have tried just about every method. It seems I am getting better at it as I usually only have to relight about every 10-15 minutes or so. Are there any suggestions as to when to tamp (I seem to find myself tamping after its too late and the pipe goes out) and tamping technique. When I tamp I kind of go around the edge of the bowl on a circular route all the way around. Should I just tamp the center and not the edges? Thanks again for setting me on the path to pipe bliss.

Tamp as you wish but try not to scrape the sides of the chamber. Tamping was well described by EvanS not so much as a means of compressing tobacco but, rather, to collapse the ash column. Think of a perfect fill relating to a good, even burn; tamping has less to do with pipe smoking as your fill technique improves. You will see...

Thanks Moo! I really appreciate the insight and will adhere to the practice makes perfect credo. I am looking forward to improving on my form and sharing the experiences with all.