Questions You Thought Were Too Dumb to Ask (Pipes Edition)

[JustTroItIn]

How often should you tamp?
How much rest should a pipe get before re-use? (Does the same go for partial bowls?)

I usually tamp either when I know for a fact I have a healthy stacking of loose ash or I detect the amber is starting to go out a bit. If it's starting to go out I puff while gently tamping. This usually brings it back to life.

As for resting, I think we pipers can stress a bit too much about it. My pipes usually get at the very least a few days rest just because I have quite a few, but I have smoked the same pipe though several bowls over a few days and didn't really notice any ill effects. Pipers back in the day often had one pipe they would smoke the crap out of and then just replace. I have seen pictures of estate pipes you would be lucky to be able to fit a pencil in. Luckily none I have purchased have been quite that bad.

[Branzig]

How often should you tamp?
How much rest should a pipe get before re-use? (Does the same go for partial bowls?)

Tamp as often as you need to too keep the pipe lit. When the draw starts to become lose, it is time for a tamp. When the smoke production starts to get thin and you feel like the pipe is going to go out, time for a tamp.

The "how much rest does my pipe need" question is on par with the "what humidity should I keep my cigars at" ...ask 20 people and you may just get 20 different answers. I like to rest my briar pipes at least 24 hours regardless of how much I smoked out of it. Not so much because I am worried about ruining the pipe, but more so that I have had some bad expierences with smoking a pipe too soon while it was still a little wet. And smoking a wet pipe is gross. Plus I feel like if you smoke a pipe multiple times within a 24 hour period that you have to deep clean them more often.

It isn't odd for me to rest my briar pipes for 3 days in between smokes. None of this includes Cobs by the way. I abuse cobs.

Thanks to both of you! I'll try to get some rope in my next tobacco order. Sounds like something to experience at least once anyway.

I highly suggest you get some rope! It is indeed something that I believe every pipe smoker must experience in their life time. I like to use cigar cutters and chop them up into tasty medallions. SG Black XX Twist is one of my faves....as is their Brown No. 4 twist. mmmmmm

[Tgs679]

What is the general consensus on long term storage in the laminated foil bags such as Esoterica blends come in?

[Tobias Lutz]

What is the general consensus on long term storage in the laminated foil bags such as Esoterica blends come in?

jar it.

[Nachman]

What is the general consensus on long term storage in the laminated foil bags such as Esoterica blends come in?

I have a 250 gm laminated foil bag of Skiff mixture that is over ten years old. One of these days I will open it and jar it. When I do, I will report on the results.

[Cardinal]

I highly suggest you get some rope! It is indeed something that I believe every pipe smoker must experience in their life time. I like to use cigar cutters and chop them up into tasty medallions. SG Black XX Twist is one of my faves....as is their Brown No. 4 twist. mmmmmm

One more question, sorry if this seems too obvious..but I guess you cut off medallions then rub them out like flake? I haven't smoked much flake either, so I'm not very familiar with that part of it.

[OnePyroTec]

rubbing out rope medallions is one way of smoking them. You can cube cut them, or stack them, fold & stuff. Most the time when I smoke rope tobacco, I'll rub out a thin medallion, stuff/stack a few, and rub out a little more for the top. Once in a while, I'll just take a bite and chew it

[Branzig]

One more question, sorry if this seems too obvious..but I guess you cut off medallions then rub them out like flake? I haven't smoked much flake either, so I'm not very familiar with that part of it.

rubbing out rope medallions is one way of smoking them. You can cube cut them, or stack them, fold & stuff. Most the time when I smoke rope tobacco, I'll rub out a thin medallion, stuff/stack a few, and rub out a little more for the top. Once in a while, I'll just take a bite and chew it

Pretty much exactly what Wayne said here. Well everything except for the whole chewing on it part

With medallions, I like usually like to dry them out quite a bit, then fold and stuff them in a nice narrow bowled pipe. If they are a little more moist, I will just rub them out.

[OnePyroTec]

LMFAO I usually don't chew, but a couple of my ropes had smelled so damn good, I felt I owed it to them to take a sample. LMFAO

[Branzig]

LMFAO I usually don't chew, but a couple of my ropes had smelled so damn good, I felt I owed it to them to take a sample. LMFAO

Hahahah, well I have to ask the question now!

What'd it taste like?!