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

[Branzig]

I have a question that seems very elementary.

When smoking a large bowled pipe, do you dump some of the ash when you get down into the bowl say, halfway or so?
I've noticed that if you're smoking a tobacco that is on the moist side and you have trouble with having to re-light too often, that getting rid of some of the ash tends to help. Am I committing some kind of pipe crime by doing this or is it common?

Thanks.

Not at all. If you need to take a dump, then you take a dump

If the tobacco is too wet I find this happens. Also if I was sloppy with my pipe packing I find that I sometimes have to dump the ash, stir the tobacco up a bit, and then relight it and start from there.