hello from a pipe smoker

[thibbit]

Greetings,
I have been perusing the forum here for a few hours and thought I ought to join if i'm going to do this e smoke thing.

I suppose ill give you a little back-round then ask a couple of questions.

I am a rather heavy smoker, about a pack and a half a day cigarettes plus about 6 to 8 bowls of pipe tobacco. I really don't give a flip for the cigarettes other than the nicotine they deliver but I love my pipe, I even smoke a hookah from time to time.
I work with my hands and need them free when I'm smoking.
I wouldn't really be interested in the idea of an e pipe but for the fact that I now have a bouncing baby girl to think about.

Having read the thread on the mini pipe/ladies pipe I was thinking of going with that and using the automatic version.
As this is my first foray into this territory i surely wouldn't mind some advice, especially on the whole filling cartridges / atomizers thing and getting my moneys worth.

I would quite like the imput from silk (as he is or was a pipe smoker) and Nick O'teen (who seems to have ironed out all the bugs with his mini pipe setup) and e-pipeman (for the same reasons). though anyone with some experience with any of the e-pipes currently on the market would be welcome, and let me know if you have smoked a tobacco pipe please.

How many batteries do i want to have around, who makes a juice that tastes like a good tobacco blend, how much juice should I order, how many atomizers and cartridges is it prudent to have on hand, and a reputable supplier in the or will deliver to the U.S.

I would also like to say, nice job on the site. even thought I still have about a hundred questions many more were answered by poking around and gleaning the advice of the commenters. If not for that advice I don't think I would have decided to try this.

thanks, Thibbit

 

[watsit2ya]

Hello,
I haven't tried the pipes, so can't offer any specific info on those particular pvs. But I have found that I need more than one device, even if it's the same model. If anything goes wrong, you'll want a backup.

Someone will probably be along with actual pipe experience.

 

[thibbit]

I rather assumed as much, I wouldn't want to have the thing break on me and not have a back up, (and boy do i break things) thanks for the reply.

 

[Whistle_Pig]

As a former pipe smoker, let me say "Welcome to ECF!" I actually still have my pipes, and some unopened tins of tobacco. I can't advise you on the e-pipe, because I use an eGo and a drip tip. But I will throw out some flavor suggestions.

Bear in mind however, that I didn't smoke Captain Black, or Borkum Riff, or any other pipe tobaccos of that nature. My choices were Rattray's Old Gowrie and Black Virginia, State Express Roundels, Balkan Sobranie #759, Bengal Slices, and other Virginia/Oriental/Perique/Latakia blends from time to time. Given that, I highly recommend the Perique and Latakia juices from FreedomsmokeUSA. Also the Shade and Dark Vapure. I typically mix things up a bit -- a bit of Perique in the Shade, or Perique/Latakia together. It's all good, IMHO; I just mix based on how much of each particular flavor I feel like at the moment.

 

[thibbit]

Got to say im happy they are making traditional flavors then, I'm a custom blend sort of fellow as well. I haven't touched capt black or bokum riff in quite a long time, stokabe and dunhill tend to be my go to tobacco producers.

Is the eGo something you can puff on while you work or does it require you to hold it?
edit: never mind i just looked it up, its manual.

 

[Mr.Self_Destruct]

Got to say im happy they are making traditional flavors then, I'm a custom blend sort of fellow as well. I haven't touched capt black or bokum riff in quite a long time, stokabe and dunhill tend to be my go to tobacco producers.

Is the eGo something you can puff on while you work or does it require you to hold it?
edit: never mind i just looked it up, its manual.

I would say almost all devices are gonna be too heavy to hold with your mouth. The only ones you can do that with are super minis. Super mini's have batteries that are small and carts that don't hold much liquid.

Good luck with your search! I'm sure you'll find something.

 

[Dubs58]

I cant say much about what device you want to keep your hands free with but, when I smoked a pipe It was a ritual. My local shop would make me up a tri-blend of 24K, Amaretto & Honey. I would kick back with a strong beer, scotch, boubon and let the day pass.

I also smoked cigs (roll your own & mboro reds) & cigars (all full bodied nicaraguans) !

Why did you like a pipe vs. a cigarette in the first place..? For me it was the flavors offered that cigarettes didnt..but I didnt like flavored ciarettes!?!?

I thought about buying a e-pipe/cigar but found out that I really dont need it as much as I thought, I bought a few different e-cigs (901.510 & my latest eGo) and hit it when I need to & leave it when I dont (much like a pipe)


I havent bought a "e-cigar" or an "e-pipe" but, whatever you choose just "Try" some flavors like the RY#4, Coconut, or even something like watermelon ! I know it may sound crazy but they taste great !


Sorry, I dont write things very well but im trying !

 

[VaporMadness]

I'm not a present or former pipe smoker.

It does take some patience to actually figure out what your vaping preferences are. There's a diversity of hardware and software (liquid) to sort thru. It's a fun journey though.

> How many batteries do i want to have around?
Absolutely no less than 2... one in use, another charging.

> How much juice should I order?
A very rough estimate would be to budget for 2 to 3 mls per day.

> How many atomizers
Absolutely no less than 2... one in use, another ready for use should that one die.

> ... and cartridges
Cartridges can be reused over and over and over (and over). You don't need a lot of those. What you do need is cartridge stuffing material. Blank carts come with polyfil, but most people find that the polyfil material doesn't work so well and it definitely doesn't last very long. It can be rinsed and reused a few times, but that's about it. A bag of this polyfil stuff can be bought for a few bucks. A lot of people use a foam material (including me) used to filter water in fish tanks. It lasts a long time with simple cleaning (i pour freshly boiled filtered water over them to clean). See the "Blue Foam Mod" threads for details (BFM). Enought foam material to last a long time is similary inexpensive. Also a lot of people fore go filling carts and "drip" instead, see "Drip Tips".

> Pipe Tobacco Liquid
AmericanEliquidStore Sweet Tobacco is the most pipe tobacco like liquid I've tried.

You'll probably want to identify what your preferences are before loading up too much on any one thing. I don't have an ePipe so I can't tell you anything about those attys/carts/batts. But I do have a variety of PVs that aren't in the shape of a pipe. I think the most pipe like atomizer that I've used is the 801 (somewhat cooler and smoother vapor). The 510 and the KR808D cartos behave more like cigarettes (warmer harsher vapor).

There are many variations (resistance levels) available with the 510/901/801 atomizers that produce different vaping characteristics when used at different voltage levels. I don't know if this diversity exists in the ePipe form factor?

I'm sure some former pipe smokers could help you out here a lot more than I can.

 

[e-pipeman]

The difficulty you're going to have is hands-free vaping. Most devices are just too heavy to do that with. However, if you got an Intellicig Evo with a short battery then you could go hands free. It's an automatic so you'll be using cartridges, but you can fill these yourself when not working. It looks like a small cigarette.

Just a word to the wise - I have yet to find an eliquid that tastes like pipe tobacco. If you want to replicate that taste then I wish you good luck. However, there are many very good flavours out there.

I had an automatic mini-pipe and you could just about hold it in your mouth (heavy, though). However, in common with most vaping devices it needs a certain amount of fiddling about with - which requires hands, unfortunately.

I smoked a tobacco pipe for 36 years (not continuously - sleep was needed sometimes).

Hope that helps.

 

[Caddyman]

fwiw, i think the optimal hand free device would be a super mini (auto model RN4081) with cartomizers (cartridge and atomizer together)

it is small, light weight, i can hold it in my mouth without a issue, and the cartos hold a good bit of juice and are easy to fill.

also, good for a starter as it is very CHEAP!

i use this setup now and it works well

cig here Starter Kits
carts here Cartomizers For All Batteries

i buy my cartos blank and get liquid to fill them, easy and economical.

 

[thibbit]

well lots of info to respond to, thank you all for your replies.

@ dub58, there is very little about smoking my pipe that i don't enjoy.
the packing, the flavors, the smoke, pointing with it... the only thing i don't enjoy is when a piece of tobacco gets lodged in the airway and i have to poke it out, that and the price of special tins.
I never set my pipe down when smoking it, relit tobacco tastes horrible to me (i do know folks who do this), i pause occasionally but never let the ember die.
The flavored tobacco dose not sound crazy to me, i have a hookah and my favorite flavor is apple, though mint and liquorish are mighty tasty as well.

@ vapormadness, Excellent info thank you much.

@ e-pipeman, The occasional fiddling isn't that big a deal depending on what were talking about. as a pipe smoker i have to clear ash and play in the bowl on occasion anyway. what sort of thing are you referring to? and i assume that the pipe you're referencing is the mini pipe?
If you're familiar with stokabes 1Q that is my everyday smoke, but i don't have any problems experimenting with the flavors that are out there.
As far a weight goes, I'm a stem biter, i have a big german tourist pipe that's about a foot long and that doesn't stop me (gets in the way sometimes but that's different)

@caddyman, I'll keep that in mind thanks.

again thank you all for the responses.

 

[VaporMadness]

How come there aren't any e-pipe atomizer replacement parts?
Electronic Pipe Kit / E-Pipe Kit i E-Smoker / ePipe Starter Kit
Ruyan E-Pipe Wooden : Wholesale E-Cigarette - China Ruyan Wholesale - Discount Electronic Cigarette Wholesale From China

oh... i see... so to get a new atty you get a whole new bowl assembly?
dse601 Pipe - Eastmall International Co.,Ltd

Do these epipe attys last longer than the ecig attys?

I've never looked to closely at the ePipes, just curious. I haven't look much, but honestly, I'd be concerned with the lack of variety out there in the ePipe form factor and with the cost of replacing attys. It did take me a while and a fair amount of trying different things until I hit upon a satisfying setup. Ultimately that involved hi-drain batteries and low resistance atomizers, which I haven't stumbled across yet for ePipes. And generally attys just aren't expected to last all that long (from a couple of weeks on the low-side to a few months on the hi-side). Maybe these ePipe attys are made differently, and are expected to last longer (or maybe I just didn't find a site selling the right replacement parts?)

oh... i see... so the mini-pipe actually uses a penstyle atty and 801 carts...
KR608A mini e-pipe - Wholesale & Retail Best E-smoking Supplier
... but those 14250 sized batts are a little small.

 

[e-pipeman]

@ e-pipeman, The occasional fiddling isn't that big a deal depending on what were talking about. as a pipe smoker i have to clear ash and play in the bowl on occasion anyway. what sort of thing are you referring to? and i assume that the pipe you're referencing is the mini pipe?
As far a weight goes, I'm a stem biter, i have a big german tourist pipe that's about a foot long and that doesn't stop me (gets in the way sometimes but that's different)

Good. If weight isn't an issue then you really want a good device like the eGo or Mako. In both cases battery life is good, it's reliable and you'll get lots of vapour. Yes, I was referring to the mini/lady pipe earlier. Imho this is no good for dripping, and as you get into this more you're likely to drip instead of using cartridges. Also the battery cover pops off FREQUENTLY, which is no good on the move. Once it was a good device - but things have improved greatly since then. Good luck!

 

[VaporMadness]

If part of the appeal of the pipe is wood, you may want to take a look at some of the wooden box mods as possible alternatives. Like the Kaji, the REO and the Phidius Woodimus.

 

[ChuckB]

I'm an ex-pipe smoker and I don't use an e-pipe. I use an automatic 510 with whistle tips when I'm putzering around in the shop. Volcano e-cigs has an automatic that isn't sound activated, it's pressure activated (just the blue led Magma) and I haven't had any problems with it firing when it shouldn't. If you use the regular automatics just be sure to loosen the atty and set it to the side before making a lot of noise.

 

[thibbit]

I have decided that the couple of pipes being offered currently have some issues that i dont realy want to deal with right now, so instead i'm going to go with the more traditional shape.

On thorsday I called modern vapor and ordered a 902 kit and an additional battery, 2 additional atomizers, some extra carts and a variety of juices.
Really i have to say that the customer service there is what really sold me on the product. They were quite helpful in their suggestions and answering questions. In addition they threw in a few sample juices for me to try. This is exactly the sort of repartee that I expect from my normal tobacconists' shop. Further i got the firm impression that they would stand behind their products, that hasn't been tested yet but ill be sure to announce it if they don't.
I had tried to contact a couple other companies prier to them and i have to say that they either didn't get back to me or failed to convince me of their product.

I got the shipment today and have been playing with it for a couple hours now, its rather neat. puffing away with the manual battery is weird, timing or something? (thats probably one of those things that comes with time) The auto battery feels just fine, draws pretty nice too. the cart screwed me up for a bit i was expecting it to be open on both ends.
The only thing I can say for sure right now that i don't like is the portable charger, I can already tell that the big button on the front is going to be a problem while caring it around in my pocket or backpack.

I figure Ill just smoke my real pipe on those occasions that demand a pipe.

If you use the regular automatics just be sure to loosen the atty and set it to the side before making a lot of noise.

^
^This I did not know about, I had assumed they were pressure sensitive not noise. oh well too late now)

 

[ChuckB]

Not to late at all. If you're like most of us, you'll probably end up with multiple devices anyway before it's all said and done.

Let's see, at the 6 month mark (in about a week), I've accumulated:
L88B (Blu/Volcano), Joye 510, Magma 510, J108 disposables, DSE801 penstyle, RN4072 penstyle, plus a couple of box mods. Next on my list is a 901 and probably a KR808 after that.

One of the nice things about PVs they all have strong points for different situations. For a quick hit with great flavor it's hard to beat a L88B. For long, relaxing vaping sessions the penstyles are great, good flavor and great vapor. The day in day out work horses are the 510 types, great throat hit, good vapor, and pretty good flavor.

I'm probably a bit more of a collector than most people are, I just have to try one of each, but I think many people end up with two or three different models and learn to use them for their strengths.

Anyway, good luck with what you get, I'm sure you'll be happy with it.

 

[thibbit]

@ chuckB, I wouldnt know anything about the collecting bit ( sarcasm )
as pipe smoker i currently have 11 different pipes and have been the author of at least another 10 pipes unfortunate demise.

 

[VaporMadness]

902 kit and an additional battery, 2 additional atomizers, some extra carts and a variety of juices.

And your off to the races! That looks like an excellent choice for a first PV purchase. I've never used the 902, but the 901 is a pretty good setup, and I imagine there are some similarities between the two.

 

[thibbit]

Colour me astounded, I got this 902 yesterday just before I went to work, I got to work at 4pm and plugged the charger in and didn't touch a cigarette all day, went home at midnight and around 4am looked over at the pack of smokes on my table decided that as there were only two left I should put them out of their misery. lit one up smoked half of it and decided it was crap, smushed it out and went back to puffing on the 902. I am friken astounded, i normally have a smoke around the half hour. I really thought that much of the hype on this board was just a case of "fanboy".
Now it just couldn't keep up with me while I was playing left4dead though, I killed all three of my batteries and they wouldnt charge fast enough. So I switched to my pipe which I have to say tasted even better for not having coated my tongue with cigarette smoke all day.

As for the product after using it hard for a day I'm going to say I like it,
It is light enough to easily hold in my mouth (the tip is shaped a bit like the end of a pipe stem so that helps).
Swapping out and filling the carts is painless.
I cant get used to this manual battery, but the autos work just fine for me if a bit short in life (then again when I'm gameing fps every other breath is smoke). Strangely one of the batteries makes the vape taste weird, the other 2 batteries I have are fine, but the one gives the flavour a plasticy taste.
The atty body did get a bit warm to the touch, when I noticed that I gave it a short break.
The charger case that I'm not a fan of for the placement of the main button would not itself take a charge after all night on the plug. I called the folks at modern vapor and they are sending me a new one along with a shipping package to send the old one back in (I don't even have to pay shipping, nice)

While I was at it I ordered three more auto batteries and another wall charger... (come to think of it the starter kit really should come with a wall charger, fortunately i had ordered one in addition to the starter kit to start out) and an auto pass through. The auto pass through is not on their inventory but he is ordering one in for me.

Of the flavors that i have tried I really like the double mint. I'm not a fan of the apple or coffee that they carry witch is supprising as I love both of those flavors. The apple is really weak and the coffee tastes more like caramel, weak caramel.