Packing, lighting, and lighting, and lighting......

[Anthony_Joseph]

Doing much better today, lighter pack, more fire, still doing relights but not as much. It'll get better and I have more than enough baccy to practice with.

 

[Anthony_Joseph]

God my camera sucks.

 

[Agentskull]

Holy f.... Quite a collection you got going on there

 

[Anthony_Joseph]

Holy f.... Quite a collection you got going on there

Working on it

 

[thejavaman]

Drying pipe tobacco to a crisp (like overnight) solved 90% of my problems (many of the same ones you've said you have had). Sure it's tougher to pack & it burns faster when it's that dry, but I'll take that trade off for pretty much zero tongue bite & much better flavor, IMO. Use wooden matches to light your pipe if you aren't already too.

 

[Anthony_Joseph]

Drying pipe tobacco to a crisp (like overnight) solved 90% of my problems (many of the same ones you've said you have had). Sure it's tougher to pack & it burns faster when it's that dry, but I'll take that trade off for pretty much zero tongue bite & much better flavor, IMO. Use wooden matches to light your pipe if you aren't already too.

Okie dokie!

 

[Anthony_Joseph]

I have been having better success to say the least. Letting it sit out a bit to dry, packing much more lightly, different lighting techniques ect. One problem I'm encountering is being able to smoke to the bottom. Seems like I toss the last 1/4 because it just doesn't seem to wanna relight. Is this common?

 

[Anthony_Joseph]

I did get a cob today, and smoke 95% but the last 3rd required many more relights. Probably 5 total relights the whole bowl, 4 of them at the bottom.

 

[Grrrrr609]

Don't worry about it. Cobs smoke funny at the bottom of the bowl because of the way the hardwood stem enters the bowl. My cobs have burned out that little piece of wood and they smoke a little better.

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[Anthony_Joseph]

Actually the cob has smoked better than anything else. The others smoke like crap at the bottom

 

[Grrrrr609]

Cobs are the perfect way to learn on. They are very forgiving and pleasant smokers. It's why I encourage people to start on a cob. You learn your technique and what works for you.

Question. Do you tamp as u smoke? If not, tamping helps prevent relights. It pushed the embers down upon the unlit baccy. A good tamp is concaved. (Even tho the Czech tool is my fav tool right now and us pipers use alot of nail tamps, they aren't exactly the best tamps). Tamp around the edge of the bowl kinda doming the ash on top of the baccy. If u know what I mean. Don't tamp too hard as to extinguish the embers just to push them down. I tamp frequently, depending on my pack and the baccy even more times. A good tamp can help a loose pack too. Does this make any sense? I know what I'm trying to say but putting my thoughts into words isn't exactly what I'm good at.

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[rfraser]

Took the words out of my mouth Grrrr. Tamping while smoking is very helpful in keeping it lit

Also with some pipes that don't burn all the way to the bottom may be bad design. Check to see where the hole was drilled. It should come in at the very bottom of the bowl. If its higher, the baccy won't burn below that hole very well.

 

[abomb60]

Others here have given some excellent advice. Most of your relight issues are probably due to the tobacco being too moist or being packed too tightly. Dry them out more or simply be ready to relight more often. Maybe start off with something that is pretty dry right out of the tin ... i've found burley-heavy blends are good for this.

As far as packing goes I like to test the draw as I pack the bowl. I'll get it just about full and then do a draw test and tamp/add more tobacco if necessary. This solved a lot of my problems when I started with the briar. Also if you pack too tightly use something like the poker on a czech tool to loosen up the tobacco a bit and pack it back down until it's just right. Also remember the old pipe rule ... tamp lightly and often.

Best of luck!

 

[abomb60]

Took the words out of my mouth Grrrr. Tamping while smoking is very helpful in keeping it lit

Also with some pipes that don't burn all the way to the bottom may be bad design. Check to see where the hole was drilled. It should come in at the very bottom of the bowl. If its higher, the baccy won't burn below that hole very well.

I have one pipe with a higher draft hole. My solution is to tamp at an angle when I get near the bottom of the bowl. Helps a little bit but there is only so much you can do