[mike t]

i got a few pipes that are unsmoked in my collection i usually break them in one at a time. do any of you guys do this or start breaking em in as soon as you get em.

 

[DSturg369]

Either way works, but it'll happen quicker if all at the same time.

 

[Jivey]

I have never really "broken in" a pipe. I have never had a brand new one, but the ones I have had were all estates that were professionally cleaned. I just put them in my rotation and start smoking. If I notice that it has no cake I will load the bowl a bit smaller. I personally don't see a need to really break them in. All of that might change though if I ever get an expensive newer pipe.

 

[mike t]

it will. i got a savinelli linea piu 5 some time ago new it took about 28 or 29 i'm ocd but it's cool to watch the process

 

[pffintuff]

I usually break them in as soon as I get them. But it's not a big deal. All you gotta do is smoke them.

 

[Nachman]

I usually break them in as soon as I get them. But it's not a big deal. All you gotta do is smoke them.

The important thing is to smoke it all the way to the bottom of the bowl so even the heel will break in, but I do that every time anyway.

 

[shotokun16]

Watch! I found this very informative and i've notice the rule burning to the bottom doesn't really create a good cake. Usually,m whenever i smoke to the bottom it tastes bitter, cruddy, and unsatisfying. Why would i undergo that suffering? Just smoke and don't worry. Avoid windy days though...

 

[RJpuffs]

Watch! I found this very informative and i've notice the rule burning to the bottom doesn't really create a good cake. Usually,m whenever i smoke to the bottom it tastes bitter, cruddy, and unsatisfying. Why would i undergo that suffering? Just smoke and don't worry. Avoid windy days though...

Burning to the bottom is more about protecting the heel than caking it down there. When a pipe is new and with unknown smokability, there is a chance that it generates excessive moisture. If you don't smoke it down all the way, the heel (the lowest point of your bowl) may collect that moisture amidst the dottle, and it may permeate the young briar and eventually soak through it or make it rancid smelling. Hence the advice to break in a new briar with 1/3 then 2/3 etc, this is to ensure you burn all the way down, keeping things dry and also start the caking process without risking a burnout. The advice is aimed more toward noobies, who may not recognize burnout or soggy heel symptoms - and could lose their new pipe.

 

[Xodar]

Burning to the bottom is more about protecting the heel than caking it down there. When a pipe is new and with unknown smokability, there is a chance that it generates excessive moisture. If you don't smoke it down all the way, the heel (the lowest point of your bowl) may collect that moisture amidst the dottle, and it may permeate the young briar and eventually soak through it or make it rancid smelling. Hence the advice to break in a new briar with 1/3 then 2/3 etc, this is to ensure you burn all the way down, keeping things dry and also start the caking process without risking a burnout. The advice is aimed more toward noobies, who may not recognize burnout or soggy heel symptoms - and could lose their new pipe.

I'll confess I am confused here as well. If the dottle starts tasting terrible I dump it out, cheefing my way through unpleasant smoke smacks more of work than relaxation.

If I am drying a briar out normally in a rotation should I have to worry about this "soggy heel" syndrome? I thought resting pipes eliminated moisture and sour pipe issues.

It also seems like I am more likely to get a burn out smoking wet dottle at molten temperatures then just dumping it out.

Am I the only one who dumps wet dottle 95% of the time I smoke? Not that it's going to make me start smoking that nastiness, lol, but "If it tastes bad dump it" seemed so obvious to me I had been doing it months before I ever saw this type of thread.

 

[freestoke]

Burning to the bottom is more about protecting the heel than caking it down there. When a pipe is new and with unknown smokability, there is a chance that it generates excessive moisture. If you don't smoke it down all the way, the heel (the lowest point of your bowl) may collect that moisture amidst the dottle, and it may permeate the young briar and eventually soak through it or make it rancid smelling. Hence the advice to break in a new briar with 1/3 then 2/3 etc, this is to ensure you burn all the way down, keeping things dry and also start the caking process without risking a burnout. The advice is aimed more toward noobies, who may not recognize burnout or soggy heel symptoms - and could lose their new pipe.

+1 and I'd say that situation persists. Smoking the tobacco to the bottom keeps a wet heel from developing and the resultant sour pipe from ever developing. Basically, if you can't smoke all the tobacco in the pipe, you've either got a pipe with a bad drill, you're packing it poorly or you need to work on your technique.

 

[Hermit]

I just smoke em. They break themselves in.
(just don't let it get too hot.)

 

[RJpuffs]

I'll confess I am confused here as well. If the dottle starts tasting terrible I dump it out, cheefing my way through unpleasant smoke smacks more of work than relaxation.

If I am drying a briar out normally in a rotation should I have to worry about this "soggy heel" syndrome? I thought resting pipes eliminated moisture and sour pipe issues.

It also seems like I am more likely to get a burn out smoking wet dottle at molten temperatures then just dumping it out.

Am I the only one who dumps wet dottle 95% of the time I smoke? Not that it's going to make me start smoking that nastiness, lol, but "If it tastes bad dump it" seemed so obvious to me I had been doing it months before I ever saw this type of thread.

A wet dottle indicates a problem - either pipe construction error or operator error (bad/loose/tight fill, drawing too hard/soft). When I first started - wet, soggy messes were the norm - and the pipes were good handmades. I'd only get about 3/4 of the bowl before it would literally put the fire out from all the water. As filling improved, sipping improved, pipe burn time and smoke quality improved. Now - I smoke down to the bottom, relights are rare (except for deliberate inattention), ain't no dottle, ain't (much) moisture. Again - the "break in rules" are for noobs to prevent soggy or molten accidents. Starting with less tobacco means less moisture, and more chance of burning to the heel in a dry(er) fashion.

I haven't broken a pipe in for a couple of years now - but if I did, even now, I would still do 1/3 2/3 3/3 just out of habit and to "feel" out the new briar.

 

[freestoke]

I haven't broken a pipe in for a couple of years now - but if I did, even now, I would still do 1/3 2/3 3/3 just out of habit and to "feel" out the new briar.

Or you could use the Mark Twain method: "I always hire a cheap man--a man who doesn't amount to much, anyhow--who would be as well--or better--dead, and let him break in the pipe for me. I get him to smoke the pipe for a couple of weeks, then put in a new stem, and continue operations as long as the pipe holds together."

 

[RJpuffs]

Or you could use the Mark Twain method: "I always hire a cheap man--a man who doesn't amount to much, anyhow--who would be as well--or better--dead, and let him break in the pipe for me. I get him to smoke the pipe for a couple of weeks, then put in a new stem, and continue operations as long as the pipe holds together."

Hah - there's always that method! :laugh: