Corn cobs...

Great questions all around and I hope you get some answers too. Being a newbie and weather getting colder outside, a corncob sounds appealing as I’d hate to ruin any of my good pipes. Hope you get some answers soon.

MM cobs are great and can last years or even decades if cared for. Clean them as any other pipe, but prevent cake from forming as it can crack the cob. They just don't need it.

Cob stems aren't permanently attached so it may have experienced some mortise swelling from ambient humidity. Place the cob in the freezer for an hour an see if the stem loosens. Once you have the stem out, rub beeswax or graphite onto the tenon to prevent further sticking. Love cobs myself, and often prefer them to briars and meers.

Honestly, cobs smoke great. It's easy to dismiss them because they're cheap, and so the assumption is they deliver a lower quality smoke... but that's not true at all. I'd go so far as to say they smoke as good (meaning: dry, cool, and deriving flavor from the tobacco) as any briar I've ever smoked. I've never had a "high end" briar, but doubt if they'd beat a cob.

I think I still like briars "better", but can't honestly say it's because they smoke better. They smoke good, and the feel and smell of the warm wood, the shapes and finishes, the appearance... all part of the overall experience. But pure smoking quality... hard to beat the cob.

Nothing special needs to be done with a cob. The same "rules" for briar apply: smoke cool and slow, etc. Be aware that most MM cobs come with a filter in the stem that you may or may not want to use (I toss them myself). I mention it because if you don't realize it's in there and smoke too many bowls through the same filter, it gets nasty.

Also, on the first few bowls you smoke down towards the bottom, you will probably notice a charred wood taste. That's what it is - the top of the wooden stem insert charring. Goes away after a couple smokes.

Enjoy!

They don't. Other than aesthetics, these smoke identically.




My 2015 Reverse Calabash has been smoked hard over the past five years, and still going strong.

Very helpful answers. Much appreciated. Thanks, guys.

Thanks for the info. I'll do that.

Here's their website.
corncobpipe.com/

Some interesting info about how they make the pipes.
corncobpipe.com/from-cobs-to-pipes/

I have 4 mm legend pipes. They are a great smoker. I use them mostly. I also keep one in my backpack for when I go hiking.
I agree with putting the pipe in the freezer for a while, hopefully that will help.

I dump the filters, and I believe most do the same.
Note that they smoke best after the piece of stem in the
bottom of the bowl burns away and a little cake builds up on the bottom.

I dump the filters; one less thing to worry about. I have several MM cobs and I try to keep a couple of unsmoked cobs around to give to new or potential pipe smokers. Cobs are a great way for folks to try out pipe smoking without spending much money and they smoke as well or better than the cheap briars that most new smokers start with. I would also agree they smoke as well as any briar, regardless of price.
I'm a particular fan of the "upscale" cobs. My favorite is the Charles Towne Cobbler. The larger bowl and acrylic stem make for a great pipe. I like them so much I bought a second as a back-up, just in case.

I went over to Forever Stems to check them out. They have closed the business, so I guess you need to hang onto what you have.

This is what LegendLover was referring to...anyone can do it with a minimum amount of work.

That's a great price too!