Should I give flake another chance?

Brothers of Briar

Help Support Brothers of Briar:

This site may earn a commission from merchant affiliate links, including eBay, Amazon, and others.
B

banjo playa

Member
Joined
Mar 7, 2011
Messages
6
Reaction score
0
I ordered something called "flake": Cornell & Diehl BURLEY FLAKE

I didn't know what it was until I opened the tin. tried it twice. couldn't keep it lit and didn't really enjoy the experience. so i went back to my drugstore brand.

i want to give the flake another chance, but i don't think i'm packing it right or maximizing the experience. are there any devoted flake fans out there? any tips or suggestions for the novice flakester?

has anyone tried this particular Cornell & Diehl blend? are there better ones i should start with? I am very new to the whole pipe culture.
 
Trying drying it out really well & then rubbing it out. Gravity feed the bowl & tamp gently. Keep tamping gently though the smoke. I can't comment on the tobacco - maybe it's not for you.
 
I don't know which C&D Burley Flake you tried--there are four, all numbered. Which one do you have?
 
i have #3

so i have to rub it so it crumbles into the bowl? i was just cramming it all in there.. ha!

any advantages to flake over other types?
 
Flake tobacco is an entirely different breed of cat than you are used to. Typically flakes are moist ALL the way through, so they require more drying than other tobaccos. Once they are thoroughly dried, that will solve about 50% of the mechanical difficulties,ie; keeping it lit.

there are essentially 3 processes to preparing the flake for smoking:
Folded
Rubbed out
Cube cutting

To fold, simply take 1 or 2 flakes and fold it to a size that will fit your bowl.
To rub out, take the flake between the palms of you hands and rub your hands together, allowing the tobacco to work its way into a pile (I use an old dinner plate to catch it). Load the bowl loosely, char light it, lightly tamp and relight.
To cube, Take the flake and using a knife or scissors, cut the flake into 1/4 to 5/8 inch slices lengthwise, then repeat crosswise resulting in small squares of tobacco. If the tobacco is still moist at this point I will often roll it between my hands, produceing small pellets of tobacco. Load the tobacco by pouring it into the bowl or scooping it in, lightly tap the side of the bowl to settle the tocacco, (don't worry if it looks like the bowl is only 2/3 to3/4 full) Light the tobacco, thoroughly.
I enjoy this method the best, but one last thing, FLAKE TOBACCO MUST BE SIPPED not puffed. If you can master this process of sipping your smoke all else will come.
Good luck.

As stated, this should eliminate about 50% of relights, however, the nature of the beast requires more relights than many are used to, so be prepared. When your pipe DOES go out, useing ONLY the weight of the tamper(NO PRESSURE), level the ash bed and relight, continue this process until the bowl will no longer take a light at that point you should be out of tobacco :D, I love this method for flakes as it gives the greatest enjoyment, for me, but one last thing!
 
Thanks for the detailed response.

Hmm.. maybe i'm not ready for the flake's level of commitment. seems like too much preparation and upkeep. as a new smoker i have really enjoyed just packing it with carter hall and enjoying without too much maintenance. i assume that i'll eventually want to move on and explore other types but for now maybe it's best that i put the flake aside.
 
It's really not as tough as it sounds. I've been smoking for a little less than a year, and I really enjoy flakes! After trying it a few times, I think I've gotten the hang of it. I've only rubbed out my tobacco, and it's worked well for me so far. I've never tried the other methods the Brothers brought up. I'll have to try cube cutting and fold and stuff sometime soon though.

Maybe you also got a blend you don't like. I'm not a particularly big fan of burley tobaccos, but there are many who are. I tend to not particularly care for the taste, and they usually give more of a nicotene rush than I like.
 
It's also worth trying different brands' flakes, as brand to brand there's some variety of how thin and pliant the flakes are... your smoking style may really jive with one particular cut.
 
For me, flakes are much richer in flavor, similar to scotch compared to other alcoholic beverages. I smoke flakes when I'm in the mood for that type flavor.

One thing about flakes I've experienced is they burn hotter if you try to smoke them as quickly as a ribbon cut. This situation has the potential to heat up the bowl to a point that you may hear a loud pop, which probably means you cracked the interior of your bowl. Rubbing the flake out and smoking it slower can minimize the heat buildup.

Another thing you can do for a better experience with flakes, is to buy a smaller diameter deeper bowled pipe. These style pipes are sometimes referred to as "flake pipes."
 
banjo playa":ilnkmtgc said:
Thanks for the detailed response.

Hmm.. maybe i'm not ready for the flake's level of commitment. seems like too much preparation and upkeep. as a new smoker i have really enjoyed just packing it with carter hall and enjoying without too much maintenance. i assume that i'll eventually want to move on and explore other types but for now maybe it's best that i put the flake aside.
Click to expand...
I didn't mean to overwhelm you, but flakes are a little bit more involved than other cuts of tobacco, the upside, for me, is that each preparation seems to yield a different intensity of the particular flake.
Having said that, I tend toward Virginia flakes and have been very happy with the choice, is it more tinkering? I guess so, but worth the effort to me. By the same token, I've been known to whip out the ole Carter Hall and enjoy it as well.

Pipe smoking takes patience and flake smoking even more so, if I can't invest the time, I just wait til I can :lol!:
 
Harlock999":t4phb97f said:
I like Orlik Golden Sliced, and MacBaren Navy Flake, among others.
Click to expand...
Ditto on that! I rotate back and forth between those as well and right now those are the only two flake selections in my pipe cabinet. :cheers:
 
MisterE":me6fp23k said:
I think you should give flakes another chance. :D

I was confused at first with them. Packing and lighting, everything. Read some older posts on flakes in the archives and you´ll find lot´s of info on all aspects of it.

Also this MacBaren article is good:

http://www.mac-baren.com/Default.aspx?ID=1217
Click to expand...
Evening banjo
The link provided by Mister is really one of the better ones out there with respect to smokin' flake.
At the end of the main page you'll see 3 additional links. Select number 3, "How to fill the pipe with flake."

Yes it does take experimentation but once you get a hang for smoking flakes with the fold and stuff method you will find it worth any additional effort!

Let me add a caveat here. When smoked in flake form the tobacco really will swell as it heats and burns. If the plug you form when you fold it up is too large it will swell and restrict air flow. So if you pursue flake, when you play with it the initial bit you put in the bowl should slide in easily, not forced. it will seem too loose in the bowl but it does work.
 
I never rub flakes. If you want rubbed tobacco, but ready-rubbed. I like the slow intensity of flakes.

I just fold the flake and stuff it in the pipe. This makes it hard to light. You have to persevere with a number of matches until it catches on. Unrubbed, though, it smokes slower and cooler.

And the flavour is more intense.
 
If you are looking for a flake like experience without all the preparation, I would recommend Stokkebyes Cube cut. It is a virginia/burly that is cubed so you can just gravity feed a pipe or scoup a bowl from a pouch. I generally tap the side of the bowl to settle and level the tobacco, and though it comes fairly dry, it can be dried a bit which helps with the lighting.
 
When I first tried flake, I had no clue how to break it up correctly, and ended up with bigger chunks inside my bowl. Took a while to get it started, but once it caught I smoked a 2 hour bowl in a medium sized bowl. Bigger chunks tend to last longer, but are harder to keep lit. I find myself gravitating to bigger chunks, but reasonable enough to keep it lit fairly easily...it's really up to you.

A guy at my local tobacconist told me if you are smoking outside leave the flakes a bit bigger, for wind reasons, and smaller for inside smoking because wind is not a factor...what do you think on this?
 
jmwill,
I tend to cube cut most all the flakes and try to keep the size to about 1/8" squares. I find this serves whether indoors or out, but what you were told is essentially correct.
 
Hello!
I have always trouble when i dont rub them out!
dindnt stay lid,uneven burning......

I prepare all flakes what i smoke to ready rubbed,lets say erinmore flake or Peterson UVF.

This flakes are also strong pressed.


C&D Flakes are only light pressed,they fall into ready rubbed when you take them out of the can!

Usually i dry them for 30 minutes to 1 hr. and then i put it back into the can.

I dint taste any kind of flavor change between fold and stuff and ready rubbed.

Drying time and filling the bowl not to tight is the key for any baccy so far.


Michael
 
Top