Packing Method Poll

[Shemp Jizzle]

You forgot "just put some tobacco in there, tamp it down and light it." When I started piping I did the three step method and worried about such, but now that I know my pipes and the blends that I use, I usually just toss it in and light it up.

Not going to lie but yea i do this as well a lot of the times

[Cool Breeze]

I voted for the James Fox Swirl Method because that's what helped me get started and I've probably used it more than any other on your list.

These days though I just stuff some baccy in and light er up. I wouldn't have been able to do that when I first started though. Now I just know how a bowl likes to be packed.

[BryGuySC]

Looks like if "The Old Codger Stuff" has been in the list, it would have won by a long shot!

[c.ortiz108]

My method is closer to the three step but really just a codger stuff, Having picked up what kind of draw to feel for has helped me improve
my enjoyment and learning what the tamper was for.

I'd go along with this. Stuffing and testing the draw. I started out doing the 3-step and trying the swirl, and didn't see much difference. For me, the more important thing to learn in keeping a bowl lit was to occasionally restrict the flow of air when drawing, with a match book cover or small card. It works wonders. Having said that, I'm curious about the air pocket method....

[T.E.Fox]

Grab 'n stuff for me. It feels like it has no finesse about, which it doesn't, but by heck it seems to work.

[NeverBend]

I'm with those that go with more of a codger stuff approach. It does not fail me and I consistently enjoy my smokes.

Although I wonder if the codger stuff is a manifestation of what they call "unconscious aptitude" where there's all kinds of subtle stuff that goes on which defy anything like a method that can be modeled and taught to newbies. I think the 3-step is the closest to codger stuffing, and probably evolves into it as one gets more adept.

In Zen and the Art of Archery there's some description about learning precise methods and techniques, and only after that, letting them all go to attain mastery. In this analogy, you are one with the pipe, the tobacco and the flame, and it's all done without calculation or worry. It simply happens. You are the bow, the arrow and the target, and when you let go of "self" -- bullseye!

Well said Chris.

Since I worked in a tobacco store I needed to master filling a pipe long ago and I had to be aware of my technique. I taught either the three-step or pinch n' pack that's exactly the same as the Frank method but older than his grandfather. Frank made a series of long instructive and (to me) hilarious videos to make the method eponymous. I think that they run (combined) ~26 minutes, should have been 2. The method that I taught depended on what they were smoking, three-step for flakes (and rubbed) and pinch n' pack for ribbons. I loosely follow this for my own smoking and for most bowls I couldn't tell you any specific way that I filled the pipe.

I've been with most of my pipes for 30+ years so I know their draw, what they smoke well and how to fill them but I adjust according to moisture (I suspect that I like my tobacco more moist than most) and a bit for ambient conditions and I err on the side of loose but I'm rarely conscious of what I'm doing, I just feel the tobacco. Perhaps once a year I have to empty the bowl and start again when I screw up.

With ribbons I do lift my tongue and draw hard to clear the airway before completing the fill. Hate the little missiles but it prevents gurgling. Other than this everything is just muscle memory.

[Shemp Jizzle]

Can't believe Fudge wasn't an option on this poll!

Sorry bro, next one i promise.

and for the last week i have tried the swirl method on shag, rubbed out rope, crude cut (tambo) and rubbed out flake and all were fantastic performing smokes. What i think the swirl has taught me was that you dont have to over-stuff your bowl. ( a habit i had an issue with when i was doing the 3 step and just stuff method)

just enjoy the bowl.

Remember you can always have another.

[Lostmason]

Sorry bro, next one i promise.

and for the last week i have tried the swirl method on shag, rubbed out rope, crude cut (tambo) and rubbed out flake and all were fantastic performing smokes. What i think the swirl has taught me was that you dont have to over-stuff your bowl. ( a habit i had an issue with when i was doing the 3 step and just stuff method)

just enjoy the bowl.

Remember you can always have another.

Can we get an Amen !
I usually end up with around a half to 3/4 bowl due to the way I pack but that just means my stash lasts longer.I had a pouch of Capt Black last almost a month.But I enjoyed every last draw.They tell me I can just put the pipe down and come back to it,but it doesn't taste the same after a cpl minutes cold.Not bad just different.

[Haebar]

I started out with the Three Step Method that I read about some 45 years ago, but just go by instinct now by pinching and packing.

[Bruck]

I picked the last choice bcs... no good reason!

I don't really think about packing, so I'm not sure if I have a method or not. It's like having a method for tying shoelaces or climbing stairs