I haven't owned a pipe in a decade, but I do gaze longingly at that, Sir. If I recall the nomenclature it's a Church Warden?
I've never owned better hardware than what is sold in local shops, nor developed much preference for finer blends. I confess to enjoying the smell of someone elses pipe to any I've owned. Might just need a clue from those more knowledgeable than I.
We do it all on this thread. From drug store favorites to Dunhill classics...we love it. I wear overalls and ride around in a Ford, so most of my pipes are rustic and low to midrange. I prefer unflavored or Navy style Virginia, though I've been messing around with aged Burley lately. I don't smoke aromatics (flavored) very often.
I drove my '86 Ranger to a thrift store couple days ago. They wanted $25 for their slightly faded Dickies bib overalls. I declined as new ones sell in that price range. I'm OK with a vintage razor or clothing (except for socks and undergarments). I'm not so sure about another mans pipe. I know there's a market for them. Before I invest in another I think I'll lurk and see what y'all enjoy. There may be question asked. Rustic sounds like a style I could enjoy.
Key Imperial! I really like rustic and natural or sandblasted finishes. Never had good luck with glossy finishes. For me, medium (30-45min, group 3 Dunhill size) bowls, traditional shapes and mounts, straight or slight bent acrylic stems and unfiltered pipes are my usual biases these dsys. These are based on my individual usage conditions and frequency, tobacco preferences and experience. Yep, it's a big rabbit hole. Just like razors.
As per your usual post that's precise, condensed, & focused information. Recently I've viewed a couple threads from post#1 to current. This conversation has been going on for nearly three years with an average of three post each day. That's a metric butt ton of info to sift thru. I'll need a long rainy day.
I am going to show my ignorance on proper parts of the pipe. I noticed a while back Peterson came out with a different pipe stem where the draw would come out of a top hole in the mouthpiece vice the middle of the mouthpiece. Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk
Sorry for delay in responding @Bama Samurai answered for me, yes Churchwarden, my first one plus it's made of Olive wood, another first for me.
In response to the buying frenzy, I enjoyed the new baccy (my BM had some) in a Basil Meadows Bing. IMO it is worth they hype...the big online vendors already sold out.....
What's nuts... This is one of the most on topic threads ever, with lots of pics and commentary. Don't tell anybody, but this is the first thing I look at each day. @Erik Redd might even convince me to try Latakia tobacco again some day. As you read you'll notice some patterns. They occasionally poke fun at me, because I smoke rusticated so often, and have been accused (falsely, and in jest) of being a hack for Orlik of London, as well as conspiring to rid the world of Latakia. Much of my enjoyment in pipes comes from the whole ritual. Flake tobacco is my most common choice, and I enjoy the process of preparing the leaf, as I fully break it and rub it out. I feel like 15 minutes minimum drying time really improves the smoke quality of Flakes. 90% of Flake is Virginia based, and is one of the oldest styles, just after twist, or rope tobacco. It is my absolute favorite style of tobacco. And of course, Orlik Golden Sliced is my "desert isle" tobacco, and VA/Perique Flake that also happens to be the same price range as commonly known American blends. It's a gem of a tobacco. It also blends into anything with ease, making my leftover jar a fun thing to smoke. Another reason I really like rustic finishes is the increased surface area. Since the Virginia I like is high in natural sugar and grown more acid soils, it burns hotter than it's alkaline and nicotine rich Burley or Oriental cousins. VA also happens to have lower nicotine for same reasons. The rustic finish helps my chosen tobaccos stay cooler during the burn, if only in my mind and hand. The dark colors mean that I don't need to baby the pipes, because mine see daily use. I am definitely a function forward thinker in pipe world. Basically there are no wrong answers in pipe world. Only combos that aren't so good. And Latakia.
