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The Complete Corncob primer: Difference between revisions
→The Complete Corncob Primer
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Also, the shank of the MM Freehand has a tendency to spilt, if not handled with extreme care. Several members of Smokers Forum have made lasting repairs to the shank using wood glue. Simply pry the splitor crack apart, apply wood glue, and then clamp or tape the split together for a day or two until it dries. | Also, the shank of the MM Freehand has a tendency to spilt, if not handled with extreme care. Several members of Smokers Forum have made lasting repairs to the shank using wood glue. Simply pry the splitor crack apart, apply wood glue, and then clamp or tape the split together for a day or two until it dries. | ||
'''Advice Offered offered by SmokeyTheWerewolf was so good I asked his permission to include it in the Corncob Primer. Thanks very much Smokey. | |||
People say that cobs require no break-in. Compared to a briar pipe, I suppose that's nearly true, but there is a bit of a break-in period. | People say that cobs require no break-in. Compared to a briar pipe, I suppose that's nearly true, but there is a bit of a break-in period. | ||
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With the first few bowls in a new cob, when you get near the bottom, that wood from the shank inside the bowl will start to burn. When it starts to taste bad, I stick with it just a few puffs more to help char that wood out of there. Then I sit the pipe down and let it smolder completely out before emptying the bowl or trying to clean it. I figure while it's sitting there a bit more of the wood may burn, and I don't want to stop it from doing so. After 2 bowls, and then again after 4 bowls I hit that shank with a reamer with very little pressure. I'm only trying to whittle away the charred wood and expose more unburned so it will burn out more easily next time. After 6 bowls, your cob should be good and broken in. | With the first few bowls in a new cob, when you get near the bottom, that wood from the shank inside the bowl will start to burn. When it starts to taste bad, I stick with it just a few puffs more to help char that wood out of there. Then I sit the pipe down and let it smolder completely out before emptying the bowl or trying to clean it. I figure while it's sitting there a bit more of the wood may burn, and I don't want to stop it from doing so. After 2 bowls, and then again after 4 bowls I hit that shank with a reamer with very little pressure. I'm only trying to whittle away the charred wood and expose more unburned so it will burn out more easily next time. After 6 bowls, your cob should be good and broken in. | ||
In that process, most of the the wood shank will have been burned away. The little spaces to the side and under that shank will have filled with ash and just a bit of moisture making a natural pipe mud that will help round out the bottom of your bowl and provide for better smoke draught mechanics and will help protect the bottom of your cob from burnout. | In that process, most of the the wood shank will have been burned away. The little spaces to the side and under that shank will have filled with ash and just a bit of moisture making a natural pipe mud that will help round out the bottom of your bowl and provide for better smoke draught mechanics and will help protect the bottom of your cob from burnout. ''' | ||
Cobs are great year round, but do need a bit more attention in damp weather, since they will absorb some of the surrounding moisture. So, while I usually tell folks to allow their cobs to cool completely before smoking them again, now you need to let them dry out completely too. And that means both inside and out. One thing that might help if it's really damp is to store your clean, dry cobs in Ziploc or similar Freezer Bags. This will keep them from absorbing even more moisture, which won't really be noticed except when you smoke them, and realize something isn't quite right. Cobs have the ability to absorb massive amounts of moisture, and the disapate it over time. Normally it'll only take about a 1/2 hour, but sometimes under extreme conditions it can seem like forever. I've never know a cob that won't eventually recover. Pretty amazing for a pipe with an average price of well under $10.00. Putting them in a warm over, after removing the plastic bit, also works if you use the lowest setting, and only do it for a few minutes. | Cobs are great year round, but do need a bit more attention in damp weather, since they will absorb some of the surrounding moisture. So, while I usually tell folks to allow their cobs to cool completely before smoking them again, now you need to let them dry out completely too. And that means both inside and out. One thing that might help if it's really damp is to store your clean, dry cobs in Ziploc or similar Freezer Bags. This will keep them from absorbing even more moisture, which won't really be noticed except when you smoke them, and realize something isn't quite right. Cobs have the ability to absorb massive amounts of moisture, and the disapate it over time. Normally it'll only take about a 1/2 hour, but sometimes under extreme conditions it can seem like forever. I've never know a cob that won't eventually recover. Pretty amazing for a pipe with an average price of well under $10.00. Putting them in a warm over, after removing the plastic bit, also works if you use the lowest setting, and only do it for a few minutes. | ||