How not to burn it!
The following is the
transcript of a pamphlet the late Achille Savinelli had produced
many years ago as a guide on how not to burn a pipe.
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Dear Sir,
A major problem among pipe
smokers seems to be how to avoid burning your pipe, and the
most widely accepted solution is to take slow puffs and to slow down even
further if the pipe
gets too hot. But how can the pipe smoker - a novice perhaps - recognize when
his pipe is
too hot?
The bowl of a lit pipe is
always hot, and to establish exactly what temperature 'too hot' is without
appropriate instruments is somewhat difficult. I resolved the problem in the
following way:
The idea suggested itself
to me from a visit I made to a mechanic to whom I had taken a car the
transmission box of which tended to get 'too hot'.
"Look", he said,
"all you have to do is put your hand on it and count slowly to six. If you
can do
this, then it is not 'too hot', but if you have to remove your hand, it means
that something is wrong
and you should stop the motor at once."
The suggestion worked well
and I thought of applying it to my pipes. I suggested it to a friend who
had burnt several pipes by too fierce drawing. He belongs moreover to that
category of pipe smokers
which some called "smokers with armor-plated tongues"' meaning that
what burns first is not
the briar, but the tongue.
So here now is the
mechanic's system as applied to the pipe. When a pipe is being broken in, clasp
it firmly with your hand from time to time and count slowly up to six. If you
can do this, then carry on
smoking in peace. If not, then stop until the pipe cools down sufficiently for
you to continue.
This is not a long
operation. Five to ten seconds usually suffice, and you won't even have to
relight
your pipe. And even if the pipe does go out, there is no harm done. Light it
again. I would claim that
many pipe burns are caused by smokers who, afraid that their pipe might go out,
draw too often and
too hard. It is better to use a few more matches or a little more gas than
to burn your pipe.
Haven't you noticed
that old smokers in general are those who let their pipes go out more
frequently?
The more softly you smoke, the fresher - and you derive a greater satisfaction
from it.
If you adopt "the mechanic's system", I can assure you that you will
never again burn a pipe.
Yours,
Achille Savinelli
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