I noticed the bowl of my pipe started to get hot even though I’ve been “sipping” and then a little bite that abated. How do you get the pipe to billow? Do you continue to pack as you smoke or let it burn down?
let the tobacco dry out a lot of the bite is from being too wet. I like my pipe tobacco very very dry.
different tobaccos also have different bites. Also a churchwarden works wonders for bite 
@bob thanks. I’ve had some peterson’s old dublin cellared for 2 years, I took some out and put it on a piece of paper for 30 minutes. Guess it needs more time? Also I’m working with a beginners cob pipe. Though I dream of having a church warden…
The old rule with tobacco is that it shouldnt feel wet, but springy. If it’s so dry it crumbles into dust when rubbed then you’ve gone too far. Cob’s are good but often burn a bit hot. Get an estate briar for a few dollars off Ebay.
How bad of a bite was it? I have smoked some Red Virginia at the edge of a bite but the pipe was not to hot to hold in my hand. A tasty way to smoke it in my opinion.
I noticed the bowl of my pipe started to get hot even though I’ve been “sipping” and then a little bite that abated. How do you get the pipe to billow? Do you continue to pack as you smoke or let it burn down?
I assume you are asking should you be tamping the pipe as you smoke. If so, the answer is yes. If you don’t periodically tamp, the pipe will start to go out. I suspect you are puffing overly vigorously in order to keep the fire going. If that’s the case, it’s not surprising you are experiencing some bite. If you are having trouble keeping your pipe going, try breathing out through the pipe every now and then (note: exhale gently, certainly don’t blow, as this will just spew ashes everywhere). This acts as a bellows to keep the fire lit without exposing your tongue to the smoke so much that you experience bite.
Yes, so tamp as you go? Check. I’m careful not to over puff and keeping the fire going wasn’t as much work as I’ve known it to be before. The slight exhalation is a good idea. Thanks a bundle.
oh and it’s o.k. if the pipe goes out.
here is how I avoided pipe bite: After 50 years of pipe smoking, I quit the briar and took up snuff…I have a lot of pipes if anyone wants to trade snuff… :(|)
The tobacco has plenty to do with bite.Read reviews before you buy, some tobacco will bite the most veteran pipers regardless of prep or execution .Pipe tools have tampers ,knifes and pokers. knifes used mostly for cleaning maintenance. Smoke your pipe it may need a tamp rather than a lite you don’t want to compress the ash just want to have it come into contact with the amber and the remainder of the bowl. but that poker is also handy to poke through the tobacco when packed too tight .not just to clear a shank hole. I personally pack the bottom of my pipe first, I check the draw then pack the middle ,again checking the draw then topping off the bowl. Matching up tobacco with the pipe shape ,bowl depth and or diameter will impact the taste and character of the smoke. The same tobacco will behave differently in different pipes. It takes a short while until you get it right,so hang in there! enjoying a pipe is pure relaxation and the best stress reliever I have found.
I really only have some SWS, 2 petersons, and 5 SG tobacco. I have a corn cob pipe and am expecting a new italian briar pipe of inexpensive type. I was wondering about pipe types and tobacco types matching. Or even if it was ok to smoke a variety of tobaccos in one pipe. I’ve got the packing down, I believe, although I haven’t been filling it to the brim. I’ve noticed a dearth of smoke except for the light ups. I suppose I’m just waiting for my mouth to get accustomed to the different type of smoke, stronger and less smooth than a cigar. Thanks again for all the veteran advice. Its not like smoking my precious puros but I’m getting closer I think. Lol
A good rule of thumb is to dedicate a pipe to only smoke one type of tobacco - i.e. English/oriental blends in one pipe, virginias/VaPers in another, cased/aromatic blends in yet another. Your virginia blends will taste horrible in a pipe that was previously used for English blends. The “ghosting” effect is very real and quite difficult to get rid of. Not to mention, you will never get the best experience out of a particular tobacco if there is a significant ghost from another blend tainting it.
I don’t even know the differences yet. The variety of blends and types and brands is a bit overwhelming.
While i agree will @lincolnSnuff above the main thing is to keep aromatics and all the others apart pipe wise. Aro’s leave the most Ghost!
Smoking a large variety of different tobacco’s in one pipe is a reciepe for disaster; as @lincolnsnufff and @bigNose point out correctly. My personal advice would be to consider buying a clay pipe, as these to me seem to ‘ghost’ the least, a small/medium bowled, long stemmed clay churchwarden is hard to beat in my book. As regards the bite issue, the best bits advice that anyone ever gave me related to this are: A) A high number of re-lights isn’t a ‘failure’ in your technique; you just get a natural break and enjoy a longer smoke - it doesn’t have to continually be burning. B) Your pipe should be always on the verge of going out between sips; there should only really be occasional whisps of smoke from the bowl - Billowing smoke means your overpuffing. Hold pipe bowl to cheek - it you can’t comfortably leave it there for more than 5 seconds it’s burning too hot. C) Although it’s one of the suggestions that lead to the acusation that ‘smoking is a dirty habit’ using your finger to [carefully!!!] gently tamp whilst smoking will definately stop you from over packing.