Gaslight help please

[Grettman]

I am new to pipes.

I have been at it about a month and enjoy it very much. Started with escudo navy. Love it! But.. Recently bought some Gaslight but I’m having a hard time smoking it. It’s in a form that I’m not used to and want some advice on how to pull the tobacco from the “block” to fill the pipe. Seems very hard to keep it lit (I folded big flakes of it into the pipe) but I think the pieces are too big. Should I tear the tobacco into little pieces? Keep it as big flakes ??

[Houtenziel]

I am new to pipes.

I have been at it about a month and enjoy it very much. Started with escudo navy. Love it! But.. Recently bought some Gaslight but I’m having a hard time smoking it. It’s in a form that I’m not used to and want some advice on how to pull the tobacco from the “block” to fill the pipe. Seems very hard to keep it lit (I folded big flakes of it into the pipe) but I think the pieces are too big. Should I tear the tobacco into little pieces? Keep it as big flakes ??

Gaslight is a Plug, albeit a pretty loose one... I still found that I had to slice off a thin chunk and rub it out, as I just couldn't get a consistent mix by crumbling it with my fingers. I usually use a serrated knife to cut thin slices, as I find it tends to get less stuck than a normal blade. My basic process was to slice off some as thin as I could, and rub it into a little pile. If the strands still looked a little big, I'd give it a couple chops to get it a little finer. Gaslight is pretty wet so I always had to let it dry for at least 15 minutes prior to smoking.

[Tsal]

I've never tried Gaslight but the prep technique crosses over to all flakes and plugs. I would follow houtenziel's method. I'd also add not to worry about relights, learning how to smoke flake or plug tobacco takes some finesse. You'll get the hang of it.

[Islayphile]

houtenziel's method is sound IMO.

In my experience, Gaslight smokes and tastes better in a smaller briar much to my dismay since it tastes so good and I always find myself wanting more.

[Houtenziel]

houtenziel's method is sound IMO.

In my experience, Gaslight smokes and tastes better in a smaller briar much to my dismay since it tastes so good and I always find myself wanting more.

I tend to agree with this, and also because Gaslight is also one of the stronger(nic wise) Latakia blends out there. Gaslight is intense, and is one of the few blends where I noted drastic flavor changes through the bowl(which I found extremely pleasant and interesting). Using a small bowl allows a smaller cross-section of tobaccos to burn, which amplifies this effect.
If you are adventurous, try smoking Gaslight in a smaller bowled Meerschaum pipe. I did this, and I am pretty sure I heard colors and saw sounds.

[Thelonious monkfish]

Yeah, what they said. There's no wrong way to pack, prep, smoke a pipe unless you don't enjoy it. Try it a few ways, dry it out more, rub it out more, or less, pack it well ahead of time, etc. It sounds like your tearing the plug apart layer by layer, this is fine but might not give you a consistent flavor profile as plugs are formed by stacking whole leaves, you might be picking off primarily Kentucky leaf one bowl and Virginia the next, or whatever it's comprised of. Slicing flakes off is the way most prep plugs. Don't have any Gaslight on hand here but there's some Pease Jacknife to demonstrate. Pease plugs are not terribly dense so don't expect uniform, fully intact flakes to fall in a pile as you cut in.

Jacknife



Being sliced up

[Houtenziel]

Yeah, what they said. There's no wrong way to pack, prep, smoke a pipe unless you don't enjoy it. Try it a few ways, dry it out more, rub it out more, or less, pack it well ahead of time, etc. It sounds like your tearing the plug apart layer by layer, this is fine but might not give you a consistent flavor profile as plugs are formed by stacking whole leaves, you might be picking off primarily Kentucky leaf one bowl and Virginia the next, or whatever it's comprised of. Slicing flakes off is the way most prep plugs. Don't have any Gaslight on hand here but there's some Pease Jacknife to demonstrate. Pease plugs are not terribly dense so don't expect uniform, fully intact flakes to fall in a pile as you cut in.

Jacknife



Being sliced up

Man.. does anyone else suddenly have a craving for brownies?

[Thelonious monkfish]

Yeah, what they said. There's no wrong way to pack, prep, smoke a pipe unless you don't enjoy it. Try it a few ways, dry it out more, rub it out more, or less, pack it well ahead of time, etc. It sounds like your tearing the plug apart layer by layer, this is fine but might not give you a consistent flavor profile as plugs are formed by stacking whole leaves, you might be picking off primarily Kentucky leaf one bowl and Virginia the next, or whatever it's comprised of. Slicing flakes off is the way most prep plugs. Don't have any Gaslight on hand here but there's some Pease Jacknife to demonstrate. Pease plugs are not terribly dense so don't expect uniform, fully intact flakes to fall in a pile as you cut in.

Jacknife



Being sliced up

Man.. does anyone else suddenly have a craving for brownies?

Surprisingly no but I do want to take a bite out of every plug I handle...

[Bullwinkle]

You do not want to smoke peeled off layers.
I'll take a plug and roughly chunk it up then give a couple of pops in a blade grinder. Then thoroughly mix and leave air out for a couple of hours.
Then enjoy.

[Grettman]

you all are amazing. Thanks so much for the advice! I will give these suggestions a try. I was pretty bummed that I didn’t think it through first . This resulted in a bad smoke tonight. I know... petty problem... I only smoke one weekends so opportunity is limited but I’ll try again tomorrow! Thanks again!!!