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Brown Leaf Newbie Check-In & General Chat

Ah, how I long for the days where nearly every house had the smell of some kind of tobacco smoke - so cozy.
Everybody who sniffed my pipe smoke in my smoking days told me how great it smelled. And I liked the "room note" my pipes left at home. The only time I hated a smoke scent was when I tried one of those tiny skinny cigars that Tinder Box used to sell. I went out for the mail, came back in, and thought something had died in my absence.

I've been examining various sites, and that Lane 1Q looks like a great choice to try. And the estate pipes on Smokingpipes.com --! My wallet, hide it!
 

steveclarkus

Goose Poop Connoisseur
Everybody who sniffed my pipe smoke in my smoking days told me how great it smelled. And I liked the "room note" my pipes left at home. The only time I hated a smoke scent was when I tried one of those tiny skinny cigars that Tinder Box used to sell. I went out for the mail, came back in, and thought something had died in my absence.

I've been examining various sites, and that Lane 1Q looks like a great choice to try. And the estate pipes on Smokingpipes.com --! My wallet, hide it!
My dad smoked cigars. I prefers when he smoked a pipe. You should check out Pipe Club on eBay. James is a good
Restorer and always has a good selection much cheaper than PC. That is where I buy all my pipes now. Great guy to deal with and gives very good advice. Really knows pipes.
 
. . . My problem at the moment is lack of a venue. I live in a small-ish apartment with no balcony, porch, or backyard; I don't want to smoke around my cats; and outdoors here is a bad district in Hell for most of the year. . . .
For the moment I am stepping out onto the walkway outside my place that leads down to the sidewalk, and either standing and strolling around as I smoke, or sitting on the step with my back against the screen door. If I do that latter in daylight, I can read as well as listen to the radio. Winter is pretty much finished here (I'm not boasting, I'm complaining), and it's warm, but not hot yet.
 
I am very much a brown leaf newbie and a very infrequent 'puffer' given the wife's sensitivity to smoking. But, I thought I would share my very small collection, some accessories, and some photos of my father's pipe cleaning knife, which resurfaced while cleaning out my parent's house. Unfortunately, his pipes were nowhere to be found. :c17:

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pipe cleaner 3.jpg

pipe cleaner 2.jpg

pipe cleaner 1.jpg


Any comments on what I have been smoking and on the accessories used will be much appreciated. I am still in the shallow end of the learning curve.

Tim
 
Welcome to the Brown Leaf!
Nice pipe knife; Sheffield Stainless has a good reputation.
Sorry you couldn't find your Dad's pipes, that would have been a nice find.
Enjoy your time here!
 

Kilroy6644

Smoking a corn dog in aviators and a top hat
I think I'll declare today my 10 year pipe smoking anniversary. I don't actually know. I know it was 10 years ago, and I have a feeling it was February or March, but I really don't remember. But today's close enough, and since it's Cob Tuesday, and my first pipe was a cob, we'll say it's today.
 

Kilroy6644

Smoking a corn dog in aviators and a top hat
Can I just say that right at this moment, I'm not a fan of promo codes? I ordered a pipe last night, and today I went back to the site to look at something else, and saw that they were having a St. Patrick's Day sale. 10% off all Petersons (Great! I ordered a Peterson!) when you enter the promo code (😟). I didn't even wait for the page to fully load before I was looking for the pipe I wanted, so I never saw that there was a sale.
 
Hello All,

I am not exactly a brown leaf newbie as I have done some limited cigar smoking but I most certainly am a newbie when it comes to pipe smoking. In fact my very first pipe smoking experience just occurred earlier today when I packed some Captain Black original tobacco into a Filtermaster pipe.

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A quick question I have relates to the difficulty I experienced keepin the pipe lit. I followed some basic pointers gleaned from YouTube videos:

1. Packed the tobacco less so on the bottom than on the top
2. Lit the tobacco using long matches and a circular motion
3. Took some puffs then packed the tobacco down, and relit them.

Second time around my draws were producing more smoke but after a short time, just a few minutes, the tobacco went out again. Might this be an issue of not packing the tobacco in properly?

Tim
 
Hello All,
. . . In fact my very first pipe smoking experience just occurred earlier today when I packed some Captain Black original tobacco into a Filtermaster pipe.

View attachment 1238470View attachment 1238471

A quick question I have relates to the difficulty I experienced keepin the pipe lit. I followed some basic pointers gleaned from YouTube videos:

1. Packed the tobacco less so on the bottom than on the top
2. Lit the tobacco using long matches and a circular motion
3. Took some puffs then packed the tobacco down, and relit them.

Second time around my draws were producing more smoke but after a short time, just a few minutes, the tobacco went out again. Might this be an issue of not packing the tobacco in properly?

Tim
Welcome, Tim,

That pipe of yours, that bent apple shape, is apparently one of my favorites. I have 3 of 'em!

I'm only recently back to pipe smoking after a long layoff, so I'd guess others here would have better advice. But it's possible that the tobacco was not packed right, or that it was a little too moist out of the packet. For the former, you could take a pinch of the stuff you're about to smoke and sort of gently *twist* it into the bowl, then push it down, again very lightly, with a finger. Don't cram it in there. This was a trick taught to me by the proprietor of a long-time tobacco/pipe shop here. It, and he, are long gone, but his wisdom lives on.

For the second possibility, you could take some of the tobacco from the pouch and let it sit on a saucer for about 30 minutes to dry a bit before you load it into your pipe -- more or less time, depending on the humidity where you are.
 
Welcome, Tim,

That pipe of yours, that bent apple shape, is apparently one of my favorites. I have 3 of 'em!

I'm only recently back to pipe smoking after a long layoff, so I'd guess others here would have better advice. But it's possible that the tobacco was not packed right, or that it was a little too moist out of the packet. For the former, you could take a pinch of the stuff you're about to smoke and sort of gently *twist* it into the bowl, then push it down, again very lightly, with a finger. Don't cram it in there. This was a trick taught to me by the proprietor of a long-time tobacco/pipe shop here. It, and he, are long gone, but his wisdom lives on.

For the second possibility, you could take some of the tobacco from the pouch and let it sit on a saucer for about 30 minutes to dry a bit before you load it into your pipe -- more or less time, depending on the humidity where you are.

Benzadmiral,

Thanks for the suggestions. I will try the 30 minute dry first and pack the bowl as close to the way I did it the first time. This will potentially tell me whether the moisture in the tobacco was the primary or sole issue.

I will report back once I have had a chance to give this wisdom a try.

Tim
 

brandaves

With a great avatar comes great misidentification
Benzadmiral,

Thanks for the suggestions. I will try the 30 minute dry first and pack the bowl as close to the way I did it the first time. This will potentially tell me whether the moisture in the tobacco was the primary or sole issue.

I will report back once I have had a chance to give this wisdom a try.

Tim
Welcome!

Pipes have a learning curve and only give up their secrets with time. Keeping tobacco lit is often the first hurdles folks encounter.

1) You're smoking a higher moisture Cavendish blend which will benefit greatly from some drying time as was previously mentioned.

2) Packing is one of the most overlooked and absolutely critical steps in the process. I tried many methods prior to dialing it in myself. I recommend gravity filling (place a small amount of tobacco above/in the bowl) and lightly tapping the side of the pipe with my finger until it falls down a bit. I barely press tobacco down into the bowl. You really only want a pipe packed enough to carry an ember. That is, so that once lit it will continue to catch and light tobacco fibers as you smoke. Very much tighter then that and you'll run into problems. As a beginner with pipes it is better to pack lighter then you think.

3) The actual smoking of the pipe is what keeps it lit. Most newer pipe smokers do this by puffing away like a freight train...which generally works for a little while but generally results in a painful case of tongue bite. The best method I've found and the one I use with success is the breath method (many videos on YouTube). The best way I can explain it here is to keep the bit in your mouth while breathing normally. It seems as though you'd be inhaling the smoke, but you won't be if done correctly. As you breath you draw air through the pipe and gently push it back through. This action should be just enough to maintain your ember. There won't be much smoke, but you will see it come from the bowl as you exhale. When you want to retrohale and enjoy the flavor of your smoke simply take some the smoke into your mouth and breath it from your nose. This explanation doesn't translate well to text...which is why I'd recommend YouTube.

Hopefully these tips will help.

One other bit of advice, I'd recommend trying a codger blend more akin to Carter Hall, Sir Walter Raleigh or Price Albert if you can find them. They aren't as loaded with black Cavendish as the Captain Black blends and my be easier to learn with. There isn't anything wrong with Captain Black, they just tend toward tongue bite and are bit more difficult to learn.
 

Hirsute

Used to have fun with Commander Yellow Pantyhose
Hello All,

I am not exactly a brown leaf newbie as I have done some limited cigar smoking but I most certainly am a newbie when it comes to pipe smoking. In fact my very first pipe smoking experience just occurred earlier today when I packed some Captain Black original tobacco into a Filtermaster pipe.

View attachment 1238470View attachment 1238471

A quick question I have relates to the difficulty I experienced keepin the pipe lit. I followed some basic pointers gleaned from YouTube videos:

1. Packed the tobacco less so on the bottom than on the top
2. Lit the tobacco using long matches and a circular motion
3. Took some puffs then packed the tobacco down, and relit them.

Second time around my draws were producing more smoke but after a short time, just a few minutes, the tobacco went out again. Might this be an issue of not packing the tobacco in properly?

Tim

Hi Tim, welcome!

A few thoughts to add to what others have said:

1) take your time wit my your initial light. It’s kind of like lighting a cigar—you want to light the entire surface of the tobacco edge to edge and evenly. It make take several puffs and no ring the match around. Heck, it might take a few matches on your initial light to get it going well.

2) after your initial light, use a light touch to extinguish the ember before relighting. It’s not much of a packing down at that point. When you relight you should have a nice even edge to edge cherry.

3) packing lighter is better, because you can always make it tighter by tamping a little more firmly. With that said, it’s kind of like burning wood in a fireplace—you need about material close together to keep the heat up and everything burning, but too close and there’s not enough oxygen. Expect it to take a little while to dial it in and enjoy your smokes anyway. There’s absolutely nothing wrong with relighting a bunch of times.

4) some guys smoke the breath method, and if that works for you that great. I like a fuller mouth full of smoke, so I tend to puff puff puff and get it going well and savor that last puff, and then take a beat before I puff again. I’m not puffing away constantly, but it’s more like a cycle of getting it going good, letting it slow down, and then getting it going good again. If the pipe gets too hot to hold comfortably it’s too much and you need to slow down. But experiment with rhythm to find what works for you.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 

Columbo

Mr. Codgers Neighborhood
Hello All,

I am not exactly a brown leaf newbie as I have done some limited cigar smoking but I most certainly am a newbie when it comes to pipe smoking. In fact my very first pipe smoking experience just occurred earlier today when I packed some Captain Black original tobacco into a Filtermaster pipe.

View attachment 1238470View attachment 1238471

A quick question I have relates to the difficulty I experienced keepin the pipe lit. I followed some basic pointers gleaned from YouTube videos:

1. Packed the tobacco less so on the bottom than on the top
2. Lit the tobacco using long matches and a circular motion
3. Took some puffs then packed the tobacco down, and relit them.

Second time around my draws were producing more smoke but after a short time, just a few minutes, the tobacco went out again. Might this be an issue of not packing the tobacco in properly?

Tim
Hi Tim.

It sounds like you are doing just fine. I‘m not going to overwhelm you with suggestions, as you been given plenty already. Just a couple tips.

As others have hinted, throw the Captain overboard. Those wet OTC aromatics are very hard for even some experienced pipers to keep going. They will smell great to bystanders, but bring you little joy. And they will quickly overheat and make a soggy mess of your pipe.

Go find a pouch of one of the old OTC classics (Sir Walter, Prince Albert, Carter Hall, etc.). Open the pouch, and leave it sit out overnight opened. Let it get dry. In fact, I would just leave the first pouch open all the time until you smoke it up.

That’s a filter pipe. Running one with no filter or a dirty filter can create draw issues in some of them. You need no additional hurdles. For a newer smoker, if you haven’t already, I recommend you drop a fresh filter into it. And change it every other smoke for now. It probably takes a Medico or Grabow. A filter will also allow you to make more mistakes, which is helpful for aspiring pipers.

Don’t worry so much about the packing or lighting technique for now. It will turn this into too much of a chore, and suck the pleasure out of it. Just grab a couple pinches of tobacco from the pouch and gently drop them into the bowl. Just enough to get it anywhere past 1/2 full. Give it a light tap like you would a smart phone screen. Then just light it up. These OTC standards once they’ve dried a bit will give you every opportunity to smoke them. And they won’t bite you or soggy up your pipe so much.

It may go out right away. It may go out a dozen times. Don’t worry about it. Just tamp it down lightly and light it again each time it does. A one light bowl is primarily a myth. Even the old hands talk about ‘relights’. Besides, the lighter companies would go out of business if that happened.

Need a break? Just sit it down and come back later. There is no rule that you have to finish what you started. Not happy with how it’s going? Just dump the bowl and come back later when you want to try again. Shoot for ten minutes. But if not, enjoy however many minutes you get. The ten, twenty, and thirty minute smokes will eventually come.

Have a drink handy to clear your palette occasionally.

For now, just enjoy making a gentle draw, and letting the taste of whatever is burning wash across your tongue and mouth. Don’t worry about the taste for now. Most importantly, just relax.

There is no textbook way to pack, light or smoke a pipe. The only golden rule is that you enjoy yourself. I think you’re doing great. Happy puffs to you!
 
Success!!! Thanks to the collective and excellent advice from Benzadmiral, brandaves, Hirsute, and Columbo I had an excellent second experience pipe smoking.

Here is what I did:

1. I stuck with the Captain Black tobacco but spread it out on a sheet of copier paper to dry overnight. It definitely was 'crisper' to the touch after a night outside the pouch.

2. I also sprinkled the tobacco into the bowl of my pipe and lightly tapped the side to help the leaves settle into place. Other than that I did not pack it down at all.

3. I lit the tobacco with long Cohiba brand matches and after a few puffs I very gently tamped down the ash on top.

4. Then I tried using the breathe technique, which I researched on YouTube and that worked quite well for me.

I only had to relight once and managed to finish the whole bowl of tobacco (is it more properly called a plug of tobacco or is that just for chewing tobacco?) over a 15 to 20 minute period of time. Remember, my dad's old pipes had quite small bowls.

Once I make my way through the Captain Black, but likely before I finish it all off, I will give some of the other classics such as Sir Walter, Prince Albert, or Carter Hall tobacco a try.

Anyway, I think I am off to the races now.

Tim
 
Success!!! Thanks to the collective and excellent advice from Benzadmiral, brandaves, Hirsute, and Columbo I had an excellent second experience pipe smoking.

. . . I only had to relight once and managed to finish the whole bowl of tobacco (is it more properly called a plug of tobacco or is that just for chewing tobacco?) over a 15 to 20 minute period of time. Remember, my dad's old pipes had quite small bowls.

Once I make my way through the Captain Black, but likely before I finish it all off, I will give some of the other classics such as Sir Walter, Prince Albert, or Carter Hall tobacco a try.

Anyway, I think I am off to the races now.

Tim
At a good canter at that! I think you'll like Sir Walter and Carter Hall. I only recently tried them on my return to pipe smoking, and have found them to be solid reliable tobaccos with a quiet reward for the smoker. And they are inexpensive to boot!
 
At a good canter at that! I think you'll like Sir Walter and Carter Hall. I only recently tried them on my return to pipe smoking, and have found them to be solid reliable tobaccos with a quiet reward for the smoker. And they are inexpensive to boot!

Yeah, reading up on some of the OTC classic tobaccos and wanting to stick to aromatics for now I think my next purchase will be Sir Walter Raleigh Aromatic. I might also give Sutliff Vanilla Custard a try. I know this might be considered a sacrilegious choice by some purists :em2900:, but I am still early enough in the process that I cannot really appreciate the taste as much as the smell of genertated by pipe smoking. So, for me aroma is going to be a big thing for awhile.

Tim
 
Yeah, reading up on some of the OTC classic tobaccos and wanting to stick to aromatics for now I think my next purchase will be Sir Walter Raleigh Aromatic. I might also give Sutliff Vanilla Custard a try. I know this might be considered a sacrilegious choice by some purists :em2900:, but I am still early enough in the process that I cannot really appreciate the taste as much as the smell of genertated by pipe smoking. So, for me aroma is going to be a big thing for awhile.

Tim
I still prefer somewhat aromatic tobaccos. Back in the '80s and '90s, the English blends never appealed to me much. The Sutliff Match Field & Stream I purchased online on the recommendation of a member here has a nice "sweet" aroma without being too heavy.
 
I
Greetings. Anyone remember this? 3/28. New to me unsmoked via EBay 2014ish? Hope it wasn't lifted.

View attachment 1240709
I doubt it was stolen. Someone could have gotten off B&B and quit smoking and didn't think to post it here.

Could have been a member who is now deceased and put the previous owners processions up for auction or had an estate sale.

Enjoy it! It is back with another B&B BLer. It is home.
 
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