Maybe I'm coming down with Pipe Acquisition Syndrome? Maybe?
This just came in the mail today...
I am happy to report that the Nording seems to be a pretty good smoker.
The first thing I did though was to pack up the cob with some Squadron Leader. The draw was a bit stiff (even after taking out the filter). Is this normal for a cob? They both seem to be this way. The only problem I had is that the cob sure tasted like varnish when I was smoking it. YUCK!!! It really ruined my first taste of Squadron Leader.
So I smoked some Squadron Leader out of the cob, suffering through the varnish taste, then pulled out the Nording.
When I went to pack the Nording with Old Gowrie (courtesy of RevSmoke), I was astonished at how big the bowl was! It's HUGE! I packed it less than a quarter of the way and puffed on it for 15-20 minutes. I got a little gurgle out of it about half way through, but slowing down my puffing seemed to cure that. The Nording whistled a little when I sucked on it dry (is that normal?), but with a bit of tobac and a less overly-enthusiastic draw, it quieted down and puffed quite nicely. It's sure a big bowl though! Almost seems like a waste of tobac, though I'm sure it'll be nice when I'm hanging around outside with good friends.
All in all, the Nording seems to be a pretty good puffer. Of course, I'm a newb though, so the Tsuge will probably give me a better idea as to how it compares to another more premium smoking pipe.
As for the Missourri Meerschaums, they reek of varnish. Hopefully that will diminish with time...