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good first pipe?

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SmokesAhoy

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I'm trolling the estate pipes on eBay looking for a good starter pipe. What should I look for? Avoid? The meerschaum lined ones are what I'm gravitating to, and trying to spend under 20 bucks. Or should I just get a cob?

Alternatively would you suggest just getting some oak or maple and just making one? It can't be that hard to make a serviceable pipe right?
 

Matty

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My opinion would be to find a used briar pipe if it will be your first. No break in period which I find tedious and unenjoyable. I had a meerschaum lined pipe in the past which I loved to smoke english style tobacco in but ruined it when I used it with an aromatic tobacco. Corncob's not one of my favorites but could be half decent, till it burns through.
 

jeapadrenaline

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For me, i purchased a half dozen cheap china made briar pips off of ebay. By cheap i mean under $10 each, thats including shipping. One thing i looked for, was to make sure they where wood, not some sort of plastic. Out of 6, 5 are usable, and 2 are excelent and have become favorites.
My dad smoked pipe since before i was a twinkle innhis eyes, and always bent stem pipes and briar type... that helped me in deciding, but he would never give me one of his, as they all cost $200 or more. And he dont share well.
 

SmokeStack

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I have 58 pipes in my collection ranging in price from $30.00 to $600.00. From my experience, the most important aspect to pipe smoking is the size of the bowl - I always go for the larger bowls - inside bowl (chamber) diameter about 7/8ths of an inch to 1 inch is perfect. I found that it is much easier to control the burning rate which is very important for pipe smoking. Smoking too hot can alter the taste of the tobacco in a bad way and bite your tongue. I hate to say it, but it will be difficult to find a decent pipe under $20. I guess I have been spoiled by smoking the best pipes. If you plan on smoking on a regular basis, you might think about spending a little more and get a decent briar pipe - something that you will use for the rest of your life. I have a few cheap pipes, but they are collecting dust. My favorite pipes are Savinelli - they are excellent, high quality pipes at a good price. They smoke better than my $600.00 Dunhill. New Savinellis start at about $50.00 but your average Savinelli is probably around $70 to $100. Of course you may find an estate pipe for less. I admit that is a lot of money for a pipe - but that's the best bang for your buck. But if you are just beginning pipe smoking and want something under $20.00, get a good corn cob - you can always get your Savinelli after you become addicted.;)

Check out these two sites, they have a lot of pipes in stock with pictures - just to give you an idea - I bought many pipes from them:

http://pipesandcigars.com

http://www.4noggins.com
 

Jitterbugdude

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I'd recommend doing what you are already doing.. looking on ebay. For a first pipe it really doesn't matter too much what you get. SmokeStack does make a good suggestion when he says to get a nice size bowl diameter. Me personally, I prefer Meerschaum and have packed up most of my briar's and put them in a box.

As for making a pipe, yes it is "fairly easy" to do. Deluxestogie posted on here ( I think) a pipe he carved from apple wood. You could also contact PIMO and order some basic pipe making supplies like drill bits, tenon cutters etc but that will really add up to the dollars spent.

There are tons of used briars on ebay everyday going for cheap. Buy a cheap 10-20 dollar one, play with it and then decide where you want to go from there.

We won't even talk about SmokeStack's apparent Pipe Acquisition Disorder (PAD) that he has...:D
 

deluxestogie

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My apple wood pipe, with photos, is on this thread: http://fairtradetobacco.com/showthread.php?432-Making-a-quality-tobacco-pipe.

PIMO does offer a small book (112 pages for $22) on pipe-making: http://www.pimopipecraft.com/book.html. It will show the basic concepts and appropriate drill bit measurements and angles, etc., though I have not purchased it.

About corn cob pipes
I have one corn cob pipe that I've smoked (mostly for straight burley) for about 40 years. The bottom (core of the cob) tends to burn out after a few years, but back in 1973 I reinforced it with a clear yellow epoxy on the bottom only. They taste awful for the first 3 or so bowls, while you are charring the interior. The only brand to even look at are the Missouri Meerschaum corn cobs. The plastic bit which comes with a corn cob will tend to bite through, after a few years--or sooner, but the company offers cheap replacements.

Since the stem is often made from a maple dowel, its bore (the smoke hole) tends to be larger than those in the sturdier briar pipes. This influences the smoking characteristics. Many come with a disposable paper stem insert filter, which is useful during the break-in period, but which I remove permanently after that time.

For reasons unknown to me, corn cobs smoke burley beautifully, but don't seem to have the right flow characteristics for English-style pipe tobaccos.

My most enjoyable pipes are briar. My Turkish meerschaum pipes are made with uncomfortable bits for clenching. I tend toward half-bent pipe shapes, since they tend to keep the condensation (which is quite bitter on the tongue) from coming up into the bit. But perfectly straight pipes (like a "Canadian") smoke well if held at a slant. I do like the Stanwell half-bent bulldog pipes, available in the $70 range. If you smoke a pipe regularly, you may find that having a number of pipes allows one to fully dry after smoking, while using the others. If you intend to smoke both English-style tobacco blends and aromatic blends, then you should use different pipes for the two groups. Each of these two tobacco styles will spoil the pipe for the other.

The trickiest thing about learning to smoke a pipe enjoyably is the right packing density for various tobaccos, since it is different for different cuts, different case, and different tobacco varieties. Most beginners "over-puff," and burn the tip of the tongue. "Sipping" just enough to keep the tobacco lit is a reasonable approach. The packing density will determine how much you have to puff to accomplish that.

All that being said, just about any pipe can be smoked with pleasure, once you become accustomed to how it smokes, and how to pack it.

Bob
 

Aaron

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The trickiest thing about learning to smoke a pipe enjoyably is the right packing density for various tobaccos, since it is different for different cuts, different case, and different tobacco varieties. Most beginners "over-puff," and burn the tip of the tongue. "Sipping" just enough to keep the tobacco lit is a reasonable approach. The packing density will determine how much you have to puff to accomplish that.

All that being said, just about any pipe can be smoked with pleasure, once you become accustomed to how it smokes, and how to pack it.

Bob

I would agree. It takes a bit of patience and practice to get a good smoke from a pipe, but I wouldn't smoke any other way. I love my pipes.

SmokesAhoy: If you are interested in getting a decent pipe I could probably be persuaded to make you one. I'm just an amateur pipemaker so it wouldn't be anything super special, but my pipes smoke great. If you have any interest let me know what shape type you would like and I'll see what I can come up with. Below are pictures of the last three pipes I've made.
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6807211926_a1363f5dd6_z.jpg

Aaron :)
 

deluxestogie

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Aaron,
Your pipes are lovely. The sandblast finish looks perfect. Can you set a ballpark price for making one?

Bob
 

Aaron

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Aaron,
Your pipes are lovely. The sandblast finish looks perfect. Can you set a ballpark price for making one?

Bob

Thank you Bob, I really appreciate that. Like I said I'm just an amateur so I'm not trying to market them yet. I usually just like to get the cost of materials back out of them so I can make more for more practice. The first and third pipes in the pictures are made of Madrone. The pipe in the second picture is made of Briar. Briar does cost more, but usually I can make a pipe for about 30 to 40 dollars, depending on the wood. The biggest thing for me is the time it takes me to make one is about 40-50 hours. I make about one a month now, but I'm getting faster. So If someone has the time to wait for me to make one, I'm happy to sell it for costs while I'm still learning.

Aaron :)
 

Jitterbugdude

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I agree with Bob, your pipes look great. I've made a few and though they smoke nice they look like a second grader made them. Then again, I have trouble drawing a stick figure.
Randy B
 

Chicken

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I'm trolling the estate pipes on eBay looking for a good starter pipe. What should I look for? Avoid? The meerschaum lined ones are what I'm gravitating to, and trying to spend under 20 bucks. Or should I just get a cob?Alternatively would you suggest just getting some oak or maple and just making one? It can't be that hard to make a serviceable pipe right?

thats whaT i'd do,

get a cob, and see how you like pipe smoking,
 

SmokesAhoy

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i ended up winning a medico seafoam, it's a briar pipe with meerschaum lining. everything is supposed to be in very good condition, won it for $9 yay
 

SmokesAhoy

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i found an old ad for the pipe, apparently when it was selling new it sold for about 5 bucks, back in 1965
 

Tom_in_TN

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I picked up a pipe for the first time in 30 years and it was like learning all over again.
I bought a Missouri Meerschaum corn cob because it was inexpensive. It's OK but nothing to crow about. I will probably buy at least couple more just for smoking my home grown leaf so it won't have the so-called 'ghosting' from smoking other tobacco.

This is a the site I bought from. Its run by a guy that has good customer service and a good sense of humor - based on his youtube vids.

http://aristocob.com/Default.aspx
 

SmokeStack

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Congratulations SmokesAhoy! The first pipe is the one that you will cherish the most. Just be careful of what types of tobacco you put in the pipe because you can easily contaminate the aromas. For example, let's say tonight you smoke an English mixture and tomorrow you plan on smoking an aromatic mixture. When you go to smoke the aromatic mixture tomorrow, you will taste the residue left over from smoking the English. And it will taste like crap. Pipes can hold the aromas of the tobaccos smoked in it for a while. That's the main reason I have so many pipes. I usually smoke only one type of tobacco per pipe - that way I don't get the "contaminated" aroma.

Soon you will get to explore the vast world of pipe tobaccos and it is a long and fascinating endless journey. There are many different types of pipe tobaccos and soon enough you will want to try each type. If you ever have questions on pipes or pipe tobaccos, feel free to send me a PM or post a thread. It is nice to have another pipe smoker on board as there aren't that many. I can send you some samples of some premium quality pipe tobaccos - just send me a PM with the type of tobacco that you would like to try. If you are uncertain, I can help you out.

What tobacco were you planning on using first?

Marco
 

SmokesAhoy

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I'm planning on using it in my homegrown from last year actually :) is this "ghosting " something that in a wine analogy would require a refined palette? Because I had wanted to use it to sample single tobacco as well as blends prior to rolling up a cigar. My palette is not refined and I didn't want to start a new collection hobby.
 

Aaron

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I'm planning on using it in my homegrown from last year actually :) is this "ghosting " something that in a wine analogy would require a refined palette?
I have a main pipe that I use for everything for daily smoking and others that I limit to different types for when I feel like sitting down to enjoy a good smoke. Strong fire-cured and heavy cased aromatics seem to linger for a while but others are less noticeable to me.

I didn't want to start a new collection hobby.


Too late! There's not much you can do about it now. It has already begun. :D All you can do now is kick back and enjoy.
 

SmokeStack

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Too late! There's not much you can do about it now. It has already begun. :D All you can do now is kick back and enjoy.

Aaron is right! It has already begun. Don't let that scare you - you have embarked on a new journey.

As far as ghosting, that's what I was referring to. It shouldn't be much of a problem with your homegrown, but English mixtures and aromatic blends are notorious for ghosting.

It's interesting that you mentioned smoking samples for cigars - I use this strategy for blending my own pipe mixtures, now I will use it for cigar making.
 
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