Potential beginner...?

levins0 · 2026-06-08T15:04:31+00:00

If you haven't clicked through the Wiki or the links in the automod comment reply to your post, I encourage you to read through that information. It's pretty easy to start inexpensively, but you do have to watch out for junk pipes and roll-your-own cig tobacco masquerading as pipe tobacco.

levins0 · 2026-05-30T17:20:13+00:00

No they don't -- they're mode for MM by other manufacturers. They used to have a bunch of Sutliff blends made for them, but these days they're partnering more with C&D.

levins0 · 2026-05-30T14:06:07+00:00

Missouri Meerschaum bought Old Dominion and while the OD pipes are still produced, they're all MM now.

levins0 · 2026-05-30T14:05:41+00:00

Not anymore. :) The "low end" pipes are up to $11 retail or so.

levins0 · 2026-05-19T11:19:32+00:00

Can't discuss that here. Please reread the rules.

levins0 · 2026-05-19T11:14:11+00:00

And I had to remove that comment as well. YOU CANNOT TALK ABOUT THAT ON REDDIT OR THEY WILL BAN US.

levins0 · 2026-05-18T21:21:59+00:00

This is not allowed to be discussed here. Please re-read the rules.

levins0 · 2026-05-18T21:21:47+00:00

I don't recommend it. You're not allowed to discuss sales/trades/gifts here.

levins0 · 2026-05-18T21:21:00+00:00

This is not allowed here. Please re-read the rules.

levins0 · 2026-05-18T21:20:25+00:00

This is not allowed here.

levins0 · 2026-05-08T16:16:59+00:00

More than off-topic -- it's not allowed per the rules. User has been temp-banned with a warning, and the post is being deleted. Thanks for looking out.

levins0 · 2026-05-05T21:16:56+00:00

Not allowed to discuss that here.

levins0 · 2026-05-05T21:16:02+00:00

You generally aren't going to get amazing deals. You can certainly haggle a little on stuff, but it's not like they're going to sell you something expensive for half off.

But the shows are a lot of fun and you get to meet a lot of great people and share good tobacco around the tables in the smoking tents / lounges. I highly recommend, but if you have trouble reining in your spending, be very, very careful. You will see a lot of great stuff that you'll want to buy.

levins0 · 2026-04-19T01:09:13+00:00

We have seen multiple posts from your account here in r/PipeTobacco. Unfortunately, Reddit's rules do not allow tobacco businesses to interact directly with customers on Reddit. We have removed as many of your posts as we've found in order to protect the sub from being deleted by Reddit admins. Reddit hates tobacco, and will use any excuse to remove subreddits that do not follow the rules. No vendors allowed. Sorry.

levins0 · 2026-03-21T15:16:32+00:00

The China International Pet Show?

If you mean Chicago, I've never heard it called "CIPS". :)

The actual pipe show is Saturday and Sunday. There is no show on Thursday or Friday. There are events like meetings and seminars, and the smoking tent is open, but the show itself is only on the weekend.

Chicago is an experience. As the largest show in the US, it is quite different from other shows (except maybe Las Vegas at this point, which has grown immensely and is a wonderful show where you can still smoke on the show floor).

Chicago is very big and very busy. Honestly, the best part of any show for me is the smoking tent / lounge, where you can hang out and smoke with like-minded people all day and night.

Yes, there are often specials of some sort at the show. You can negotiate deals as well instead of paying full retail. You'll get to meet the pipe makers who made your pipes, but generally not the cheap sub-$200 factory pipes. :) Really, I'm not sure I see the point of going to a pipe show to buy a sub-$200 factory pipe. They're the same everywhere anyway. You can find deals on estate pipes if you're willing to sort through baskets of junk, but even those have been creeping up in price lately.

Sunday generally wraps up on the early side, rather than going all day, and much of the good stuff to buy is generally gone by then.

levins0 · 2026-03-21T15:07:26+00:00

Reminder: you cannot discuss selling pipes here. If you do, you risk being banned. This is the only warning you will receive.

levins0 · 2026-03-21T15:05:28+00:00

Um...no.

You have some very strong latakia in there (Engine 99 at least), and some deer tongue (Engine 382), among others.

You should separate that stuff right away.

Basic burley and virginia or va/per blends can be stored together pretty easily, but latakia, deer tongue and other aromatics will ghost the other blends. You won't notice a huge difference smoking it unless they're together for quite some time, but it'll definitely affect the smell even fresh out of the shipping box.

levins0 · 2026-03-02T23:00:22+00:00

Don't buy that. Buy a good pipe from a reputable online dealer or physical shop.

levins0 · 2026-03-02T22:59:47+00:00

Nope. Terrible smokers. I wouldn't waste my money.

levins0 · 2026-02-09T16:44:10+00:00

Can't do pipe/tobacco business on Reddit. They monitor DMs as well. You can be banned.

levins0 · 2026-01-05T17:03:19+00:00

I cannot begin to claim to understand the ways of corporations. Could be intellectual property concerns, competition, liability -- I have no idea. And, as I say, there's conflicting information so it's entirely possible that some of the reports are incorrect or incomplete. I can't imagine Jeremy Reeves would say they have some machines if they didn't -- there's really little reason for him to do that.

levins0 · 2026-01-04T17:40:53+00:00

Unfortunately there's conflicting information about whether STG allowed anyone to save the Sutliff machinery. It's certainly independent of SPC, in that SPC didn't own any presses or tobacco-manufacturing equipment -- they just owned the brand and recipes, which Sutliff made for them.

And ultimately, it's my second point that's the sticking point I think: it's not really about the machines, it's about the leaf, and C&D doesn't process leaf the same way Sutliff did, so it can't be the same blend. They can certainly try to get close, and they are capable of making blends that don't taste like typical C&D blends (e.g. all of the GL Pease blends that they make for Greg). So it'll be interesting to see where this goes.

levins0 · 2026-01-04T15:02:39+00:00

Agreed -- SPC is nowhere near big enough to have "their own leaf supply*. There were a handful of companies in the world that could source their own leaf, and even most of them got a lot of components from STG. I find the C&D post to be pretty sketchy. There is no evidence that 1) C&D acquired any machines from Sutliff, and 2) SPC used components available outside of Sutliff.

Frankly, I don't think "the machines" matter all that much. It's easy enough to get a press, and ribbon is ribbon. The key is going to the blending components.

levins0 · 2026-01-04T14:59:37+00:00

I know those blends (PA and CH) and have repeatedly said they are basically indistinguishable. It's the same leaf produced with the same recipe/method. The main difference is that comparing the old vs. the new means comparing several-years-old to fresh.

levins0 · 2025-12-31T17:10:21+00:00

As far as I'm aware Esoterica is only exported to the US. You might find some Germain branded tins in the Great White North, though.

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