Kilts & Pipe Smoking

[Muddy]

I/ve been offline for a really long time---borrowed my wife's work-laptop
and am delighted to run across this thread. I've enjoyed my pipe for a number of years as well as good cigars. I own probably a dozen or so pipes my favorites being my two Savinellis. I am an ardent fan of English or Balkan
style pipe tobaccos (Latakia man)! as well as a nice straight Virginia blend
on occasion. Probably the best Balkan blend I have EVER tasted is G.L. Pease's "Odyssey". It's simply outstanding. All of his blends are great. I enjoy some McClellands blends too......there are far too many to list so I'll move on to a few favorite cigars--------numero uno fav would be La Gloria Cubana Series R Maduros'. Wonderful cigars! I also like Avo's, Partagas Spanish Rosado, Arturo Fuente black box, some CAO's...etc. The pipe is always my fav though. Another outstanding pipe blend is Dunhill Early Morning Pipe...a really excellent mild English blend...mmm, mmm, so good.................
I even enjoy occasionally a pinch of Ozona Rasperry "Snuff" (the sniffing stuff NOT chew)............Cheers guys!
Muddy

[Avonlea22]

So, if one were to possibly try out pipe smoking, where would you suggest one get an inexpensive pipe, and what would be a good beginners tobacco.

I love the smell of pipes, but I'm not sure I want to actually smoke. Need to give it a try before I commit loads of money.

[Graham]

Brian, if I may be bold to offer my opinion... if you don't smoke, don't start.

I guess I have a bias, my wife and I have lost family members, many of them, through smoking related diseases. I also have one son who is addicted.
If you don't smoke, don't start.
If anyone says that any form of smoking is safe - they are sadly wrong.
From famous actors (Yul Brynner) to our late State Premier, many have recorded urgent pleas before they died. Yul Brynners' words were chilling, I remember them well, he said "...whatever you do, don't smoke". Hear them for yourself!

http://www.yulbrynnerfoundation.org/psa.htm

generally the last thing a man says before he dies is worth listening to.

I hope you don't mind me giving this advice.

[Nick]

Not at all, Graham. In fact, I will agree with you that smoking is not safe. I'm not going to say that there are no risks. But, I'm going to go out on a limb here and say that if you're going to try smoking, do it with a pipe, and do it responsibly. Don't smoke cigarettes. They're the cause of most of the trouble.

No chain smoking is the most important. Everything in moderation is a good standby. Just as to much alcohol will pickle your liver and do other nasty and interesting things to you, to much smoking will kill you. One or two bowls a day is what many reccommend, but I smoke far less than that. This also keeps you from getting addicted. I know I'm not. Another thing, keeping the smoke cool. The heat from the smoke is one of the triggers for cancer, and so since pipe smokers are at a greater risk for mouth cancer, keep it cool! Some styles of pipe aid this, but smoking a regualr pipe the right way will keep the smoke cool. Never smoke when there's an open wound in your mouth. And never inhale. You still absorb nicotene through your gums, but not anywhere near as much as your lungs would pick up.

Then there's the relaxing effect of the pipe. It's not a nervous habit like cigarettes, if you keep from getting hooked there's no cravings. Don't let the tobacco rule you. Relax, enjoy it, savor the ritual and the meditative act of filling, lighting, smoking.

If you'd like to give it a try you can get a corncob pipe for a song at any tobacconist or even many gas stations. Captain Black is also avaliable at many places, or other inexpensive drugstore brand tobacco. You can try pipe smoking for very cheaply, and if you find you like it, a good briar pipe can be had for around $20. Be courteous, many people enjoy the smell of pipe tobacco, but some don't.


Oddly enough, my grandpa smoked a pipe and two or three packs a day from the time he was 13 to his 60s, and quit cold turkey. But he still lived with a woman who smoked heavily for more than ten years after that. He died of lung cancer, but a type of lung cancer that can only be gotten from inhaling asbestos. I guess he was resistant to the carcinogens in tobacco.

[Nick]

I love the smell of pipes, but I'm not sure I want to actually smoke. Need to give it a try before I commit loads of money.

Something I've wanted to try is to crush up pipe tobacco in a mortar and pestle, put the powder in water, and put the mixture in a diffuser. I'm curious to see if that will release the aroma without actually burning the leaf.

[KiltedHuntsman]

I have a couple pipes that have juice problems, and I don't think there's anything more disgusting than getting that juice in your mouth. Yuck! Fortunately, it's only a couple and I can usually avoid it.

I've only had embers fly out of the bowl once that I'm aware of. It was on a very windy day, and I saw them leave the bowl. It was a first for me.

In "So You're Going to Wear the Kilt" the author states that besides the sgean dhu, you can put your pipe in your kilt hose. I wouldn't ever put my pipe in my sock, but has anyone else ever done this?

Cheap pipes don't breathe well, and thus allow moisture to build up in them. Also, smoking the pipe quickly won't allow the moisture to escape quickly enough, so you can get a moisture build up.

And, inexperienced pipe smokers will salivate excessively, since their mouth isn't used to a pipe.

So, smoke gently, use a nice pipe that breathes well, (I'm a Peterson Pipe man myself), and when you're used to it, your mouth won't water so much.

I've also kept my pipe in my kilt sock when wearing a kilt. Not in warm weather, since my leg sweat would mess up the finish of the pipe.

[GlassMan]

So, if one were to possibly try out pipe smoking, where would you suggest one get an inexpensive pipe, and what would be a good beginners tobacco.

I love the smell of pipes, but I'm not sure I want to actually smoke. Need to give it a try before I commit loads of money.

I would definitely say to avoid a cheap pipe. The briar is usually of very poor quality and the exterior is often heavy colored and laquered to disquise the poor quality wood underneath. All that garbage causes the wood to be unable to breath properly and will lead to a hot, unpleasant smoke.

You can get some very good quality pipes in the $50 to $70 range without an issue. I would suggest for a good deal to visit www.paylesspipes.com out of New Orleans. The guys there have great prices and excellent customer service.

A good starter pipe is a Peterson. They are made in Ireland of good quality wood but are very affordable.

Also, don't immediately go for something too aromatic or too strong. I would avoid trying a heavy English blend or a Balkan right off. And under no circumstances should you get any of those horrible drug store tobaccos. They are rubbish and will turn anyone off pipe smoking.

A good idea would be to go to a reputable tobacconist and let them help you select a pipe and a tobacco that fits you. They can also instruct you in the proper ways to fill a pipe and smoke one. For example a pipe smoker NEVER inhales, he only puffs the smoke into his mouth and then releases it. We enjoy the flavor. It's one reason for the lower risk of pipe smoke compared to cigarettes. It also means that we absorb an almost infintisimal amount of nicotine and thus don't suffer the same addiction that cigarette smokers endure. At times I've been so busy with work that I don't even realize that I've gone days without a pipe. No cigarette smoker can ever manage that feat. Once their nicotine levels drop they have to get a fix from a smoke.

And I hope this has not offended or hurt Graham in the least. He's a good man and I respect him and his opinions greatly. I'm also sorry for the losses he has suffered. It's a horrible thing. Thankfully I guess I am blessed with good genetics in regards to vices because I come from a line of heavy drinkers, heavy pipe & cigar smokers, who also have horrible eating habits but still manage to live into their 90's and beyond. But I've also seen family friends who were addicted to cigarettes and who wound up breathing oxygen and carrying around their cylinders with them everywhere late in life because their emphysema was so terrible.

Everything we do in life carries risks, and it is up to you to exercise your judgment as to whether a particular act is worth it or not.

[Robin]

I stopped smoking my pipes years ago, but I still cherish them...some very nice James Upshall straight grain pipes. Craftmanship all the way.

[GlassMan]

There is actually a large community of people who buy and collect pipes for their beauty and don't smoke them. They just polish and display them.

[Muddy]

I agree with what another poster said, do not ever smoke drug store
blends for the pipe. They taste like yak *****. A nice mild English to try
is the aforementioned Dunhill Early Morning Pipe. Aromatics smell nice to
me when someone else is smoking them but they taste yucky (to me).
You should try them though and see what your palate likes. There are
so many tastes and blends out there it's a life-long adventure. Also, if you
suffer from too much juice in the bottom of the bowl I have found sticking
to the straight shank "billiard" style pipes has helped me immensely in that
department. The bent shanks tend to let the saliva drain down and collect
in the bowl.