pipemakersforum.com

The images are of a Contrast Staining test on a cheap, flawed, briar second block. My sanding is not meticulous or perfect. Disc Sanded 40, 60, 120 to remove dark weathered surface, expose light wood, and smooth surface a bit. Hand Sanded 220, 400, 600, 1000, 1500, 2000, 4/0 Emery paper. Wet the blo...

her sexy French accent she said, "Mi-ike, this ez art." Bah! If she was really french, she would say "Zees ez art!" You're absolutely right, Nick, but no, She is definitely French... http://home.windstream.net/messm/Pipes/Arriving-Small.jpg ...but I am American, so my translatio...

I just discovered this source for Wood Dyes which may be really good. W.D. Lockwood Co. NYC, a real manufacturer since way back, many colors, buy direct from: http://www.wdlockwood.com/ or more conveniently from an online store, in Brooklyn, NY: http://www.toolsforworkingwood.com/ Very preliminary a...

Mike, It's much easier to cut the tenon to fit the mortise rather than relying on a measurement. Just leave the stem in the lathe chuck and push the stummel onto it. If it won't go, cut a couple more thousandths off and try it again until you get a nice snug fit that you like. When using this metho...

When I returned from San Sebastian, and my friend, Brigette, returned from Paris, I asked her "Is this art?' and in her dark sunglasses and her sexy French accent she said, "Mi-ike, this ez art." (imaginary) Very Creative, but be careful not to scare off your customers. This is just m...

I have to say, I am not as poor as I may have implied, and I have a lot of candles, already, (Thanks, Todd) but they seem messy, and they can get soot on the tip. I even have a 5 gal. propane tank and a torch, and I have three blow driers, but the stove-top cone works really good for me, and Kurt hi...

I do what Mike does, but I like to take my measurements to the eleventh decimal place rather than stopping at the fourth. For those of you who do not have a computer numerical controlled lathe capable of machining internal components for the space shuttle, I would suggest getting a 5/16" drill...

I'm a bit new to tobacco pipemaking, too... What other kinds of pipes have you made?? I made some pipes similar to Native American Indian pipes (which may have been used to smoke something other than tobacco). But here is an interesting fact. "...the Mayan people of Central America were among ...

No problem, Kettletrigger. I did not measure the #U bit .3680 in. I measured the mortise with a simple caliper marked in 32nds of an inch, but magnified. I can estimate maybe to about 1/8 of 1/32, .0039, but usually only about 1/4 of 1/32, .0078. I like to have a somewhat accurate target dimension w...

Sorry about the late reply, I've been busy. I'm a bit new to tobacco pipemaking, too, but I have made several pipes. I can't say that I have this all worked out, but I use the traditional Ebonite Tip - Tenon, and drill the traditional Mortise in the Shank. Here's an example. Turned Tenon to .3750 in...

But Seriously, Thanks Kurt For The Test Results.. I think you were very thorough and objective, and it does help clear up some things. I, also think I may be especially sensitive to sulfur. Sounds like, from your results, the sample I sent you must be NYH. Also, Andrea, at PME said it was made in Ha...

. . . . I have an improvised method of testing materials for Shore D hardness, ...a nail punch with a 30 deg andle tip and a point of .1 mm radius. I carefully set a 10 lb sledge hammer head on top of it, and then measure the diameter of the hole it makes. Then do the trig. to calc. the depth, and ...

jeff, Thanks for the concise run-down on the different stem materials, very informative. No doubt I am in the minority about the smell. I'm guessing, that by the time pipes reach customers any objectionable smells probably have subsided, so that works okay if the pipemaker can tolerate it. Scent is ...

Thanks, Rad,
I'm sending a little piece of the PME rod in question to Kurt for testing. He has some SEM and some NYH, so, I think I will hold everything until we see what Kurt says.
I'll keep your post in mind.
MM

Todd, I resigned from West Point very early in my Plebe year, so I am sure I would not fit any posible stereotypical West Point personality, and after a couple of years of Georgia Tech, I changed directions, altogether. I'm more design, arts, craft oriented, I think. As for the chattiness, when you ...

KurtHuhn wrote:

Frank wrote: If you still have the stinky offcut, perhaps you could send a chunk to Kurt for "independant testing", if he's so inclined.

I'm game. It has actually piqued my interest.

Okay, I will send you (Kurt), a chunk. I will use the Contact address on your website.

...Many new pipemakers have tried to re-invent the wheel. The results are never better than the original. This is not an attack. I repeat, this is not an attack. I think Rad is an okay guy, a smart fellow, and I like his pipemaking. I have looked at every pipe on his website, and I think he is a re...

One more ad hominem attack, and this thread gets shut down. Keep it civil folks. Mike, ... I am glad to hear that you aren't singling anyone out, because it sure seemed different at this stage of the quote. But, okay, whatever, I'm all for keeping it civil, and I'm glad you did step in to clean thi...

That's fine with me, Kurt. I don't like the kind of insults that I have been seeing thrown at me, either, and I have been trying to keep this in the factual, technical realm, but just for the record, I took a few ad hominem attacks before I fired back.

...im very sorry for you mike.... Thanks, daniel, I appreciate your concern, but I'm okay. You don't have to feel sorry for me. No one jumped on my head at West Point; they just yell at you. It's training, and it helps you learn to keep your cool when you're under fire in military combat, when all ...