From: ???????????????????????? Subject: Advice on first-time pipe buy > From: ??????????????? (Tim Szeliga) > Subject: First Time > > Steve - > Around Father's Day I had a mental image of > myself sitting in the glider on the front > porch, tamping my pipe, fiddling with the > stem and otherwise accheiving oral, > manual, mental and lungal gratification, > all at once. Did you happen to notice a blue Chevy van about this time ? That's our "Recruitmobile," and it drives all over the country projecting those feelings with a patented new thought-control device. I'm curious to see if the invisibility screen is functioning. 8-) > I would like advice before I waslk into > the tabaconist's. What is a good starter pipe? > What is a good blend? What sort of price range > should I pay, both for pipe and tobacco? Well, there are different schools of pipe smoking. The Highbrow School will first inform you (politely, but pointedly) that the correct spelling is "tobacconist's." They will then, in their own scholarly way, proceed to teach you about cognac, single-malt scotch, the steeplechase, and yachting, until they eventually get around to suggesting a $75 briar and a proper English tobacco blend. The Lowbrow School will send you to the drug store for a Doctor Grabow and a pouch of Cap'n Black. Myself, I'd suggest you buy whatever pipe strikes your fancy. You'll probably want something in around the $30 price range, but that's adjustable to your budget; you can get pipes with small cosmetic blemishes for even less, and they're often excellent smokers. I'd opine that a simple shape would be a good starter; perhaps a straight-shanked, rounded-bowl (the classic "dad" pipe, ala' the Appleton's or J.R. "Bob" Dodds.) But if a deep curve really fires your spirit, then go for it! A few simple things to look for: - Wall thickness. You want a uniform thickness, and the thicker the better. If it's too thin, the smoke will be hot; local thin places (for instance, on a square-carved bowl) will become "hot spots," bad for the pipe and often uncomfortable. If the wall thickness tapers down toward the top, that's OK. Also check the bottom; stick a finger all the way in the bowl, and gage the thickness with your thumb under the bowl. You may not be able to judge this well from day one, but you'll pick it up with practice; look at some of the more expensive pipes for a "standard." - Hole drill. Make sure the shank hole has been drilled properly. If it meets the bowl more than about a 16th of an inch above the bottom, it will be difficult to smoke the pipe all the way down; and therefore, hard to build up the important heel cake. - Stem fit. Make sure the stem isn't too tight to remove, or so loose that it slips out easily. - Blemishes. I advise you don't worry about them. Their effect on taste is minor, if any, and your "walking-around" pipe is going to take some abuse, anyway. Someday you may want a beautiful "dress" pipe for those formal occasions (the rare ones that still allow smoking). - Grain. Another one not to worry about. I've heard people argue "straight grain conducts heat better", while others say, "curly grain means dense wood and a cooler smoke." My favorite pipes have either style, so I'm a skeptic on the importance of grain. I can vouch that you can get a great smoke with either sort. - Stem material. I'm a chewer; rubber stems last me about 3 days of smoking before they're ruined, so the harder Lucite stems are a must. Lucito is also more expensive, and can be hard to find on inexpensive pipes. You might use this as a tie-breaker. - Buy a corncob. By all means, spend the money on a briar; but toss in an extra three bucks for a Missouri Meerschaum corncob pipe. Sure, you'll look like a hick, but it might just smoke better than your briar. It'll also give you something to smoke on off days (you should let a briar rest for a day after a day's smoking). Cobs also make great outdoors pipes... "Dang, my pipe fell out of my mouth and under the lawn mower! Honey, throw me another corncob and a match, will you ?" Tobacco. Get one ounce of whatever 3-5 tobaccos smell good to you. They won't taste like they smell, but there's a correlation. English blends, for example, have an aroma that makes me think of hand-carved hardwood and fine leather; sure enough, they taste like sawdust and burnt horse. 8-) Seriously, though... get an ounce of whatever looks interesting. Then smoke the whole ounce (or as much of it as you can stand) before switching to another blend. The cake in a pipe takes on the flavor of the tobacco, and it takes at least half an ounce to get the cake settled in so you get the true flavor. There's another advantage to having a corncob for your second pipe - you can be trying a different blend in each pipe. Also, be sure and ask your wife how she likes each blend; she can enjoy your pipe almost as much as you do if you account for this, and I've been surprised at how two blends with similar tastes can have markedly different smells. Also be aware that what you smell when you smoke is very different than how others smell it. For proof, after smoking for a while, leave the room (and the pipe) and get some fresh air. Come back a few minutes later and take a whiff. Finally, don't be afraid to tell the tobacconist you're new. He can provide lots of other tips on loading, tamping, lighting, etc. And enjoy! - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - Bill Thacker AT&T Network Systems - Columbus ?????????????????? [ Now, Bill, you know better! The Recruitmobile is a white Ford Econoline, and always features the name of a prominent local plumber. After all, we're all in the pipe business :-) And, as long as we're talking about covert activities, the following words are brought to you by M-x spook: CIA terrorist bullion KGB counterinsurgency Keyhole encrypted Dunhill ODA. ;-) -S. ] ~\U ~\U ~\U ~\U ~\U ~\U ~\U ~\U ~\U ~\U ~\U ~\U ~\U ~\U ~\U ~\U ~\U ~\U ~\U
