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Ciggs to Pipe: A Primer by The People, For The People!

I thought I would kick off this thread about making the switch from Cigarettes to Pipe. What I will do is start off with my story, and if you are an ex-ciggy smoker with a pipe instead now, let's hear your story, opinions, tricks/tips, etc. It seems there are people out there that want to make the switch but there doesn't seem to be a ton of resources out there about it, so we'll make one here!

I have watched the price of my cigarettes go up regularly year after year and always told myself how this time I am going to quit, but I never do. With prices nearing $10 a pack, it's getting too expensive to be a pack-a-day man. When my older son got old enough to know what I was doing outside (smoking), I don't want him to grow up into a smoker. I've tried other things... gum, snus, etc to give up cigarettes but with limited success and each time falling right back to cigarettes. So with many reasons to quit ciggs and a renewed motivation, I took to the internet.

I found some articles about the health benefits of making the switch from cigarettes to pipe or cigars. Although you are still technically smoking tobacco, it appears that many of the health risks are cut in half by jumping from ciggs to pipe. Probably because of the chemicals and processed nature of cigarette tobacco vs pipe tobacco, and probably because you generally don't inhale pipe smoke into the lungs. With ciggs it's like a race to burn them down as fast and often to get the nic fix. Pipe tobacco also has less nicotine levels than cigarettes, for the most part. So the switch may help ease back the cravings over time, which would help to quit completely, eventually.

So that was enough to convince me it was worth giving it a shot, for the health reasons at the very least. It was midnight and of course I couldn't wait until the next morning. I wanted to try out the pipe as an alternative, but what I didn't know was I had smoked my last cigarette. I went to the local 24 hour CVS Pharmacy and bought a Missouri Meerschaum corn cob pipe for like $7 and a bag of Captain Black tobacco at $9.50 for the white 1.5oz pouch. I went home, packed a bowl, puffed away. It was good, but I knew I was a hack and I was doing something wrong. My tongue was getting steamed, the smoke was bitter, the corn cob bowl was very hot. It also didn't feel like my nic craving was completely satisfied.

I went back online and read about proper smoking techniques. I then found an article by a published author of a pipe magazine (They have pipe magazines??) who made the switch, and the one trick he advised, if you are to switch over completely, is to occasionally, in the beginning days, inhale the pipe smoke into the lungs, but not all the time. Like once or twice a bowl. Then cut it back until you don't do it at all. This is to help get you that nicotine rush you get with cigarettes to help make the transition.

So the next day (Saturday) I wanted to conduct an experiment... with a bag of pipe tobacco that cost the same as a pack of my smokes, could I smoke the whole amount in one day? So I smoked the hell out of that corn cob until I was so sick of smoking. It was nice out, and I was outside most of the day anyway, so I just went with it. I didn't come close to emptying the bag. So needless to say, once you get the pipe, the tobacco purchases are WAY more economical than a daily cigarette habit.

Also, I did inhale the pipe smoke and it crushed the nicotine cravings. It was usually when first lighting the bowl I took a drag from that first light, then puff normally for the rest of the smoking session. It was harder to get used to holding the pipe differently than a cigarette... if I had the pipe in my mouth I would instinctively go to grab it between my fingers like a cigarette, which lead to a couple of cob fumbles. Whoops!

The next day (Sunday) I went to a tobacconist shop seeking a 'starter' pipe and some good tobacco. He led me to the display of basket pipes and I picked out a nice one for $29. I got also got 2 pouches of bacci for $7 each. Also the pipe tool, pipe cleaners, etc. The purchase came to $49 which was still cheaper than a carton of ciggs that I would have bought that day by $10.

That gave me enough supplies for the first week and a half of pipe smoking. Since then I have picked up more tobacco at a Walgreens Pharmacy and at Hanford Supermarket (Who had Captain Black regular-white pouch for $6.99 and Carter Hall for $3.99 a pouch.)

Since starting on pipe I have not touched a cigarette. Oh, and I had been carrying a fresh pack with me for the first week in case I wanted to go back to ciggs, but I never did, and I let a buddy of mine smoke them, so now I don't have that safety blanket any more.

Also, very quickly I stopped having any phlegm to cough up in the mornings. My throat is not rough or raw, my voice not marred by smoking. But yeah, I don't miss getting up and coughing up junk in the mornings any more!

So I am definitely surprised I have stayed with the pipe faithfully this long. But what's more, I have been smoking FAR LESS! A pack of ciggs a day... that's a LOT of smoking sessions per day. 20 to be exact. When I started with the pipe, I made sure to go smoke whenever I would have had a cigarette. But the last week or so the cravings have been less... so I go out less. The last few days... I have only gone to smoke 4 times in total all day!! I didn't think I would ever get through the morning coffee at 5am or 6am, or the morning commute without smoking... but now my first bowl is my smoke break at work at around 10:15ish in the morning.

I think some of what's helped cut back the amount too is the lazy gene... it's easy to step out and puff away at a cigarette or half a cigarette or whatever, toss and be done. But to get the pipe, grab the tobacco, pack the pipe, light, re-pack, re-light and so on. You need to commit to it and put the effort in. And when you clean the pipe at the end of the night, you may have gone for one more smoke afterwards, but no, the pipe is already cleaned, just skip it and go to bed.

As I discussed the pipe discovery with friends, I was surprised that several people had a father or uncle that actually switched from cigarettes to pipe just to eventually quit altogether. This made me think back to an early memory of my dad smoking a pipe. I remember asking him why he was smoking a pipe, and he told me it was to remind him that it's bad for his health... which to a kid seemed to make sense. Then I remembered seeing pictures of my dad smoking cigarettes way back in the day, before I was born. He had switched to a pipe to quit smoking! So there it is, I am now apparently following a family tradition now.

Of course now I am getting better at smoking the pipe. I am enjoying the subtleties of the flavors, and have found it to be very relaxing and enjoyable. There's a part of me that doesn't want to quit completely... I think my goal now will be to save one relaxing bowl at night, once the kids are in bed, and that's it. I can't imagine getting to enjoy the pipe this much and not staying with it... although I know the health benefits of quitting altogether are the best reasons to give it up. But I do think the relaxation from pipe smoking probably helps the health in some way... at least the mental health. I suppose the argument for quitting altogether is probably a topic to be argued on a different forum though!

So if you have been thinking of making the switch, go for it! With so many reasons to do it, it's silly not to give it a try. I hope others who have made the switch will chime in with their personal experiences, tips, etc to help others take the plunge. I hope my story helps inspire others to try going the way of the pipe. I also hope that anyone with questions about switching over will also post... and remember, this is a post for the people. I am getting the ball rolling, and everyone is welcome to keep it going!


Here are some of the articles I found online. This is a good one from Pipepedia:
http://pipedia.org/index.php?title=Good-Bye_Cigarettes,_Hello_Pipe!
It's a reprint of an article by Steve Fallon published in The Pipe Collector, the North American Society of Pipe Collectors newsletter.

Here's one which is a prospective study on the health benefits of switching from cigarettes to pipe or cigars:
http://www.bmj.com/content/314/7098/1860.abstract

Another interesting article basically by a pipe smoker who researched what to consider for the risks of pipe smoking (although they are less than the risks of cigarettes):
http://graemets.tripod.com/Safer_Smoking.htm

An official looking study about tobacco smoke exposure of pipe/cigar vs cigarettes:
http://ajph.aphapublications.org/doi/pdf/10.2105/AJPH.77.11.1412

Good luck, and see you on the boards, fellow pipers. Cheers!
 
Brother this is an awesome post. I've thought about the money I'd save myself if I quit the cigs quiet a bit lately. Like I just bought a new falcon pipe for less than what two cartons of cigarettes would have cost me, and I smoke about a carton a week. $35 a week ends up being a little over $1800 a year. That's a lot of money to throw away every year.

I don't get real breaks at work, just take a quick smoke break when the phones aren't ringing and people aren't checking into the hotel. Jwhite's suggestion(different thread) about putting a cork in the pipe and relighting again later, is something I should be able to do.

This is a pretty inspirational post. Maybe more so because I remember your post when you first bought the pipe. I'm going to leave my cigs at home tomorrow and see if I can go with just the pipe and snus to get me through the work day. Snus has helped me cut back a lot but I still like going outside and smoking when it's slow.

Anyone else done this? How did you go about it?
 
Excellent article, just excellent. I'm hoping to quit cigarettes in the same vein and am off to a good start in this endeavor with considerable help from haiku above.
 
Good for you bro. That was a good read indeed. I have come to the conclusion that I will never quit the pipe, (major health issues not withstanding), as I truly believe the benefits of smoking a pipe in MODERATION far exceed the damage it is doing to my health. The one thing you touched on is that smoking a pipe requires one to SLOW DOWN. In our fast paced society people in general find less time for themselves to relax and just take it easy for an hour. The pipe forces me to do this, and that in itself is a health benefit.
 
Well work is close to over and I smoked two cigs today. Never inhaled but still lit up two. Forgot my pipe at home in my rush out the door. Maybe I'll be able to do it on my day off tomorrow.
 
It's ok, don't beat yourself up over it. Go home, pack a big pipe and have a long, relaxing smoke. Tomorrow on your day off just start off early with the pipe. Maybe pick one of your pipes you haven't smoked in a long time. I think in the beginning it's important not to struggle with the nicotine cravings... just try to beat them back with the pipe often.

You will probably smoke as frequently as if you were using cigarettes, which is fine... you don't want that feeling like you are making yourself deprived, because you'll end up breaking and going back to ciggs just to satisfy it. I went heavy with the pipe in the beginning but after a while you get used to the lower nicotine levels from pipe smoke, and you scale back the frequency as well.

I think the first few days are important in switching one for the other with a painless transition. Try different pipes and flavors of tobacco to keep it interesting. Don't be afraid to take a quick drag when you first fire it up, just to satisfy that cigarette burn/nicotine rush right up front... then sit back and puff away. When the first day of all pipe smoking ends you'll be surprised you didn't need to go spark up a cigg!
 
Thanks brother. I appreciate the help. The snus is helping me knock down the nicotine cravings a lot. I didn't need the nicotine from those two cigs, I just missed the smoke. Wouldn't have happened if I brought the pipe in probably.
 
Brother this is an awesome post. I've thought about the money I'd save myself if I quit the cigs quiet a bit lately. Like I just bought a new falcon pipe for less than what two cartons of cigarettes would have cost me, and I smoke about a carton a week. $35 a week ends up being a little over $1800 a year. That's a lot of money to throw away every year.

Yup.

I quit almost a year ago... the same way I have always quit for long-term... cold turkey.
If I don't buy them and don't accept one when offered, I can't smoke them. Simple as that.
I still want them, but they are not available.

After about 4 or 5 months, I picked up a pipe.
I now own 6 nice commercial pipes, I've built one, and somewhere buried in the garage are two pieces of junk that I bought to see if I liked smoking a pipe.

Okay, so the cost of the $70-$200 pipes and $200+ worth of lighters, Czech tools, pipe cleaners, and other accessories aside....

Yes... $5/day for Camels, vs $5 for a couple of weeks of pipe tobacco. I never have more than one bowl a day, normally on the drive home, rarely on the weekends at home.
 
I lack the willpower to quit cold turkey. I like the act of smoking too much to be able to do it I bet. For a while I knew that I wanted to stay on the pipe after dropping cigs but thought I would have to wait till all the nicotine cravings went away first. Between the snus and the pipe I might be able to stick with it.


Yup.

I quit almost a year ago... the same way I have always quit for long-term... cold turkey.
If I don't buy them and don't accept one when offered, I can't smoke them. Simple as that.
I still want them, but they are not available.

After about 4 or 5 months, I picked up a pipe.
I now own 6 nice commercial pipes, I've built one, and somewhere buried in the garage are two pieces of junk that I bought to see if I liked smoking a pipe.

Okay, so the cost of the $70-$200 pipes and $200+ worth of lighters, Czech tools, pipe cleaners, and other accessories aside....

Yes... $5/day for Camels, vs $5 for a couple of weeks of pipe tobacco. I never have more than one bowl a day, normally on the drive home, rarely on the weekends at home.
 
Last time I quit it was literally a matter of life or death.
My blood pressure was running 175/115, and my ankles were swelling badly nearly every night.

If I ever take up a type of smoking that involves inhaling or more than the minimal nicotine intake provided by pipe/cigar smoking, it WILL kill me.
 
Yikes, that's pretty horrible. I'm fortunate that I have no health issues that are forcing this decision.

Last time I quit it was literally a matter of life or death.
My blood pressure was running 175/115, and my ankles were swelling badly nearly every night.

If I ever take up a type of smoking that involves inhaling or more than the minimal nicotine intake provided by pipe/cigar smoking, it WILL kill me.
 
Yikes, that's pretty horrible. I'm fortunate that I have no health issues that are forcing this decision.
Yet :wink:

Nahh... it may never have a serious negative impact on you, so much of it is genetic.
My grandfather died of lung cancer at 63.
Grandma was also a chain smoker and died at 105.
She did not enjoy the last 15 years, having emphysema and having to carry around an O2 bottle, but she outlived the doctors' estimates by 10 years.

Mom and dad never smoked, dad is still around at 89, mom is '83.

But one thing is for sure, smoking is certainly not GOOD for you.
 
Yeah I don't want to drag one of those cans around. Friends dad was on O2 because of smoking before he passed, tough to see.

I have had the goal of quitting cigs before I turned 30 since I was 25. I'm 27 now and hoping I beat my goal by a couple years.
 
I enjoyed reading about your experience even though I have never smoked cigarettes. I do puff an occasional cigg socially if others are smoking & I don't have anything else to smoke, but I rarely inhale any. But lately I tend to make sure I have a pipe with me "just in case" when I go nearly anywhere.

I would also give a huge +1 to your comment on pipes being good for mental health. Stress is a killer. My day, grandpa, & many others can tell you what happens to your body when you don't take the time to chill out. So for me pipe smoking is probably 2 parts hobby, 1 part recreation, & 1 part catharsis that may one day prevent a heart attack/stroke or just plain losing my mind :letterk1:
 

oc_in_fw

Fridays are Fishtastic!
I also think that a pipe is good for mental health. Most of us here got into wet shaving as a way to have some relaxing time to ourselves every morning. Having that "turn off" time, especially in our hectic days, helps us IMO. A pipe will just add to that.
 
When I went to college I quit chewing tobacco and started smoking cigs. because no sorority girl wants to kiss a guy with a dip in his mouth. Most of them smoked so I took it up also. For a couple of years I smoked the nasty things untill one day sitting on my Grandpa's porch ( a pipe man since his Navy days in WWII) he looked at me and said this. "Son" he said, "Cigarettes are for women and boys." He then got up and went into the house and re-emerged with this;
$pipes 003.jpg
A pre-republic Peterson Killarny, Dublin shape.
He showed me how to load it with Cavendish tobacco using the childs pinky, the mothers pointer, and the fathers thumb. For the last 18 years I've smoked nothing but pipes.
 
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Ha. Great story. I've gone the whole day without cigs now. Haven't gone this long without one since the last time I was too sick to smoke. 5 or so years ago.
When I went to college I quit chewing tobacco and started smoking cigs. because no sorority girl wants to kiss a guy with a dip in his mouth. Most of them smoked so I took it up also. For a couple of years I smoked the nasty things untill one day sitting on my Grandpa's porch ( a pipe man since his Navy days in WWII) he looked at me and said this. "Son" he said, "Cigarettes are for women and boys." he the got up and went into the house and re-emerged with this;

A pre-republic Peterson Killarny, Dublin shape.
He showed me how to load it with Cavendish tobacco using the childs pinky, the mothers pointer, and the fathers thumb. For the last 18 years I'v smoked nothing but pipes.
 
... "Son" he said, "Cigarettes are for women and boys."...
Cool story & a nice, classic pipe. I really love that quote. I (& I assume many others) kinda long for the days when a man could just say what he thought without people waiting to call him on some sort of discrimination or offense. Granted I wasn't alive in those days & I'm sure there were many things that went on that those who want to be nostalgic try & forget. But either way, whether it's smoking a pipe in public or speaking your mind, there are far to many complainers nowadays.
 
I've been speaking my mind no matter who it offends the last couple years. You won't make many friends doing that, but the ones you do make will be the best friends you ever had.

Caution when speaking your mind to your boss though. I've proven to the boss many times that I'm valuable to keep around, so he has gotten used to the couple times a year that I yell at him for making ridiculous policies and whatnot. YMMV however.

Cool story & a nice, classic pipe. I really love that quote. I (& I assume many others) kinda long for the days when a man could just say what he thought without people waiting to call him on some sort of discrimination or offense. Granted I wasn't alive in those days & I'm sure there were many things that went on that those who want to be nostalgic try & forget. But either way, whether it's smoking a pipe in public or speaking your mind, there are far to many complainers nowadays.
 
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