Pipe smokers >>> what's better than a cob?

Ron Sabbagh

LOVE YOUR COUNTRY
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Hello fellow pipe smokers!

Been smoking pipes on & off for years but still consider myself a novice.

So general question >>> why smoke a briar or any other pipe other than a cob?

From what I understand, the "ultimate bowl" should have fairly thick walls and a large surface area to dissipate heat. Should also be lightweight to avoid jaw fatigue. The cobs excel at this.

So what's better than a cob? Other than "eye appeal", why smoke anything else? Do you favor certain shapes for certain tobaccos (VA vs English; flakes?)

FYI I do enjoy my wood pipes. My favorite being Claudio Cavicchi pipes.

If anyone has some older 3 Nuns...let me know and I may have something very nice to trade.
 
I do miss having myself a pipe now and then. Would love to see some photos of nice pipes. I have two pipes but they are cheaper ones.
 
I enjoy my cobs (I have 3 Missouri Meerschaum's) but the mouth pieces are cheap and nasty, the glue holding the stem doesn't last all that long and has to be redone every now and again, they're cheaply made of cheap material and cheaply and badly finished. I also find that they smoke fast, hot and over sterile. In conclusion they're the bic lighter or the Budweiser of the pipe world. Work great but that's about it. For me there's far more pride of ownership in something like this.

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I bought my pipes at a cigar shop several years ago. They don't even have a name on them. But they smoke good and have good flavor. The round bottomed one only has, "Czech", stamped on it.

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I smoked a pipe for a few years about 40 years ago. Gave it up when I got married because my wife objected to it. She didn't like the smell of smoke in my beard.
I had four briar pipes made in Italy, which I purchased at the tobacconist where I got my tobacco. I had my own blend that they would make for me each time. (The taste was similar to Captain Black Blue, but had a touch of latakia to give more flavor.) The pipes were seconds and had cosmetic blemishes, which was why I could afford them. But they smoked well. I also had a cheapie Dr, Grabow pipe that I had purchased at the drug store when I first started out. Never tried a corncob pipe, though. The briar pipes gave a smoke that was less harsh. I smoked each pipe once per day and was religious in cleaning of them after each use. Smoking a pipe only once a day and letting it sit without the stem allows it to dry out. This greatly improves the flavor of the smoke.
 
View attachment 1531534 My Dad’s pipe and his Ruger Security Six.

The pipe must have been a big expense. I remember it caused a fight between him and my mother.

He had a couple of those wooden racks full of pipes. After he bought this one, he gave all the others to my uncle including the racks. He never bought another pipe.

The revolver I gave to him for being my best man at my wedding. It was by far his favorite gun. Neither one has made any smoke since he died.
 
A nicely broken in Meerschaum is a great thing. I've got several that are moderate price and carved from Turkey, and they smoke so smooth and cool. Worth the extra cost and trouble. Just don't drop them.

Other than that I swear by my old Irish Peterson 314's and similar size Petersons. A few Italian Caminetta's have been very good smokes. But I do love my Petersons.
 
I smoked a cob pipe years ago, but it's been so long I don't really recall much about it. I've flipped back and forth between cigars and pipes a few times. For the last five years or so it's been pipes. That said, I might smoke eight or ten times total in a whole year, so I'd consider myself a novice as well.

I have six pipes. 3 I bought new, 2 Petersons and a no name that looked good. The others I found at estate sales and cleaned up. My favorite by far is the one that I bought in Dublin, a Peterson System pipe. I have big hands and I like the feel of holding a large pipe I think it's called an apple bowl, but I might be remembering wrong. I got sandblasted, I like the look. It took me awhile to get into the flow of pipe smoking. Puffing enough to keep it lit, but slowly enough to keep a cool pleasant smoke. With the bowl cradled in your hand, it's easy to know when you are getting it too hot. The system pipe is easier to clean and resist getting too wet.

Jaw fatigue? Never had it, smoking a pipe is something I do when I am relaxing. Sitting on the porch and enjoying the evening. A glass of good bourbon and my wife of over thirty years beside me. Pipe cradled in one hand and a glass of bourbon on the rocks sitting on the table. Hopefully it's a still evening so I can blow rings.

Since mostly the pipes are sitting in the curio cabinet waiting to be used, I prefer purdy ones. The no-name pipe I bought new has the smoke hole in the briar off center from the hole in the stem making using a pipe cleaner while smoking next to impossible. I'll probably never use that one again...if it wasn't nice looking, I'd have gotten rid of it. One of my estate sale pipes is big with a larger than average inside bowl as well. It seems to take all night to finish that one, I'll probably smoke that one when my friend visits this weekend.

Grizz
 
I know it's conflicting thing to say but one of the reasons why I gave up pipe smoking was the pipe stench. No matter how well you clean your pipe they always stink! Pretty much the only way to store one is in barn or something with good "air conditioning".
 
I haven't smoked a pipe since 2013 but when I did smoke one I found that any pipe can be a good or a bad smoker. You just have to try them out until you find a good one. I smoked mostly English blends and my best smoker was the Savinelli Academia (second one from the right in the rack) with the Altinok Meerschaum coming in second and I never got a chance to break it in before I quit.

Considering that only one of my Briar pipes smokes better than my only Meerschaum pipe, I would recommend a good quality Meerschaum.

The Rock Cob on the right wasn't a bad smoker at all considering that the bowl is made of stone. That one surprised me.

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