Quote:
Originally Posted by Barcochris
What is the child women man method. I am not sure I have heard of that one. is it how hard you push on the pack?
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Correct. Conventional wisdom (or something similar to that end) dictated this technique many millenia ago. Start with the empty pipe, bowl opening UPWARD. It would difficult to fill the bowl otherwise. Drizzle (or gravity feed) your favorite tobacco into the bowl till its full. Some tobacco prefers to be dried out, some does not, your taste and baccy choice dictates your drying time and decision.
First the child's touch - use your forefinger (toes would work too, but would be more difficult) to "touch" the top of the tobacco and it will settle down further - don't push or pack.
Then drizzle more tobacco up to the brim again. Now the woman's touch (or, if your woman is stronger than you, as in my case, reverse gender references) - touch the top of the tobacco a little more firmly. Again, don't be pushing it down, we ain't dialing a phone here.
Finally drizzle more tobacco into the bowl, over the brim, making a happy mound above the rim. Now comes the man's touch (see gender reference above) - firmly pack it till level with the rim of the bowl. It helps to draw gently through the mouthpiece (using your mouth, of course) during this last step. It should draw with minimal (or no) resistance. If not, dump and start over. If you have a mound still sticking up, pull some out and return to the pouch/tin.
It also helps to have some "dust" or really-really-really dried out tobacco handy. Sprinkle it on top like pixie dust - it will ignite with a happy whoosh and give a nice start on the charring light. Allow the charring light to go out completely, tobacco bits will be curling and poking out. Use the tamper (finger NOT recommended with hot burning things) to SPREAD the ash around evenly, edge to edge. Burnt ash is like a catalyst, it helps the tobacco under it to burn easier. Relight - and enjoy!
A note on tamping - the idea is to SPREAD the burnt ash and let gravity pull it down onto the next layer of (unburnt) tobacco. Do not PRESS as you will screw up the careful packing you have spent the last hour setting up. Be especially careful around the edges, you should get a flat EVEN disk of ash, or you get uneven burn.
If you notice the pipe keeps going out, you are packed too loose, and you need to use a stronger touch next time on the man's part above. Every baccy burns differently.
Also note that some tobacco blends need to be packed REALLY loose (all MacBarens, for example), skip the man's touch in that case (soft touch on step 3).
Additionally note that if you are smoking a flake by stuffing'n'folding into the bowl, this method does not apply.