Long smokes uncomfortable. What's a better pipe shape?

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Will_Power

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Briar Brothers,

I'm not a frequent pipe smoker, but I enjoy it when I do.

I have a Peterson Donegal Rocky XL90- a half bent billiard - that I love a great deal (for aesthetics, but more so for the fact that my sister bought it as a going away present for me when I moved away from home years ago).

I've smoked a few times over the past two weeks and have discovered that keeping the pipe in my jaws for an extended period of time really isn't that pleasant an experience for me. It starts to hurt my teeth.

Could you all recommend a better shape of pipe to help alleviate my discomfort? I know that we're all gambling with our oral/dental health here to one degree or another, but I'd like to mitigate that if possible.

I posted this over at r/PipeTobacco on Reddit, and a guy there has suggested Oom Pauls, but the large bowl is a daunting for me (I struggle enough smoking through my big billiard. Would full bent egg work just as well?

Also, being a clencher, would finding some of the rubber tip covers be wise?

Thanks in advance for your help.
 
anything full bent will be easier to "hang" from your mouth.

the rubber bits help keep a good grip on the pipe, but dont alleviated the jaw strength needed to hold the pipe.

if i were you i would just hold the pipe in my hand

overall i would say i am more of a holder than a clencher, as i too get uncomfortable with pipes after clenching for any amount of time.

hope this helps!
 
I'd recommend a Peterson 03 or 221. I have both, the bowls are average sized, good for about a 40min+ smoke, and being lightweight and bent they are easy to hang. The 03 is probably the lighter of the two. FWIW

Fraternally

Jers

 
Peterson Irish Made Army shape 69. It is lightweight, has the military bit I like so much and hangs easy as heck.
As for the covers they are completely preference. I don;t need one on my IMA69 but they do make my Mario Grandi was more comfortable in the mouth. They are cheap enough you can grab a couple and make the decision for yourself. If you don't plan on reselling the pipes later and they are just for you the bit of chatter on the stem doesn't much matter. Just my opinion. Good luck brother.
 
For me its less about shape than it is weight. I find anything <50g will clench easily, straight, bent or otherwise. My easiest to clench pipe is a Peterson 264 (canadian). Another is a Castello Pot that is also straight. I like the Peterson System pipes a lot, but I find that the stems are a bit too rounded at the bit to be really comfortable for my purposes.
 
Jers":i2nyaz4e said:
I'd recommend a Peterson 03 or 221. I have both, the bowls are average sized, good for about a 40min+ smoke, and being lightweight and bent they are easy to hang. The 03 is probably the lighter of the two. FWIW

Fraternally

Jers
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A full bent System pipe as above will "hang" in the mouth a bit easier than a straight pipe. That has been my experience over the years. I would agree that the 03 size of Pete would provide a shorter length of smoke also. But I'm personaly not a fan of the "P" lip that they have but that's just my preference. :p
 
monbla256":wo6klg9v said:
A full bent System pipe as above will "hang" in the mouth a bit easier than a straight pipe. That has been my experience over the years. I would agree that the 03 size of Pete would provide a shorter length of smoke also. But I'm personaly not a fan of the "P" lip that they have but that's just my preference. :p
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I must admit that I prefer my 221, which has a fishtail as opposed to 'P' lip. I still enjoy the 03 but if it came to a choice then it's the 221 that's my favourite. Needless to say YMMV.

Kaiser'83's Irish Made Army 69 also looks like a great option - I've been thinking about how best to smuggle one of those past Mrs Jers for a while!
:lol!:

Fraternally

Jers
 
Jers":p327vt9h said:
Kaiser'83's Irish Made Army 69 also looks like a great option - I've been thinking about how best to smuggle one of those past Mrs Jers for a while!
Click to expand...
Just blame it on the Shadow lol.
 
kaiser83":pbhks8h9 said:
Jers":pbhks8h9 said:
Kaiser'83's Irish Made Army 69 also looks like a great option - I've been thinking about how best to smuggle one of those past Mrs Jers for a while!
Click to expand...
Just blame it on the Shadow lol.
Click to expand...
:lol!: :lol!:

:scratch: It just might work..........

Fraternally

Jers
 
First of all, you might want to try holding, at least more often than you do it now. It's really hard to enoy smoking when your teeth hurt, and shifting toward holding could help.

I've foung that he worst pipes for my popping jaw problem have thicker, rounder stems near the bit. (Like the P-lip, though I have half a dozen.) The clenching smoker has to bite down on them harder to keep them from slipping.

A straight, long-shanked, large-bowled pipe is a lever designed to torture a clencher's teeth and jaw.

Bents are better for clenching (shorter lever), even though you'd never know it from all the publicity shots of Bing Crosby et.al.

Smaller, lighter pipes whatever the style would help you.

For me, the best pipes have a wide, thin fishtail bit, preferably made of vulcanite, though this material does require regular maintenance.

If you decide the bit is causing your discomfort, you can simply have it replaced with one that is ergonomically better for you.
 
If you really want to do hands free smoking, a full bent is a good way to go. A fishtail stem will help things too.

Short of a full bent, I would suggest jaw strengthening exercises :) or smoking more. I clench a 55 on a daily basis while I drive to work. Used to kill my jaw. Now its great.
 
You could also try targeting light pipes - no more than 35 oz max, and down to 28 oz can usually still give a usable bowl size in traditional designs. Fancy or bulky designs have too much wood to be light.

Two makers who regularly offer pipes in that range are Kurt Huhn's Countryman Collection and Trevor Talbert's Ligne Bretagne line, but there are others. Don't buy a pipe that doesn't list the weight and shoot for that range and you might be pleasantly surprised.

Steve
 
I'm a clencher I have rubber bit cushions on all my pipes and I gravitate toward large bowls. I second the first post and also recommend oom pauls as great smokers and effortless hangers no matter how large the bowl and mine (I have three oom pauls) are humongous. Remember that the length of your smoke depends upon the amount of fuel in your fire. Charge your bowl with the amount of tobacco that you wish to smoke. Conversely, you need only smoke as long as your comfort level requires. A pipe containing tobacco may always be re-lit at a later time for continuation of the pleasure without any ill effects to the pipe or to the blend.
 
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