bamboo shank

munkey · Post by **munkey** » Tue May 11, 2004 1:21 pm

I have a peice of briar that had a deep defect at the base of the shank, right by the bowl. I still have a little bit of room to work, it seems to be a great candidate for a bamboo shank.

I haven't handled a bamboo shanked pipe, let alone made one.

Those of you that have worked with bamboo, what advice to you have to offer?

- What quality of bamboo is required and where are good sources?

- How do you connect the bamboo to the stummel?
- The stem to the bamboo?
- Do all these junctions come apart, or are any of them permanently affixed?

Thanks,
-Scott

Post by **Tyler** » Wed May 12, 2004 12:43 am

Wow!

I leave town for a few days, and I come back with munkey already making bamboo shanked pipes!!

I don't have time to write up the whole process in detail, but when I get a chance to write it up fully I'll post it in the pipe making section. Todd Johnson said if we ever get to bamboo in here, he'd post some suggestions. Perhaps he'll see this and write up the process and I can just post that to the site. It being the week of Chicago though, I won't hold my breath!

To find bamboo is actually a challenge. Todd Johnson has some for sale, and that is the source I'd recommend. It is expensive though. Go here to find his e-mail to contact him: http://www.stoabriars.com/main.htm

If you e-mail him with a request for bamboo, please point him to this post. Tell him I sent you, and that I was wondering if he might be willing to write some instruction on the process.

Tyler

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Nick · Post by **Nick** » Wed May 12, 2004 9:53 am

Bamboo never apeald much to me either. Just a preference I suppose.

Post by **Tyler** » Wed May 12, 2004 10:00 am

Personally, I like the look of bamboo shanked pipes. I'll admit that it was an acquired taste though. Besides asthetics it does have some very nice additional characteristics. For one, bamboo is VERY light, and the overall weight of the pipe is much decreased when using it for the shank. Bamboo is also very absorbant resulting in a very dry smoking pipe. IT also is a good tool for recovering an otherwise unbalanced pipe along the lines of what munkey is experiencing. Whether a shank is overly short due to a pit or a broken shank, in both instances the pipe can be salvaged with a bamboo replacement shank. Of course, most bamboo shanks are intentionally designed into the look of the pipe from the outset, but it is a nice repair/recovery material.

Tyler

MitchG · Post by **MitchG** » Wed May 12, 2004 11:56 pm

In addition to what Tyler said, I'll add:
1. it's "exotic"
...and from what little I know about bamboo, finding stock which is both thick enough and has those little "knuckles" every 1 to 1 1/2" is dam' difficult, so......
2. it's "rare"
....also, I gotta believe making good joints on both shank and stem is a RPIA, so.....
3. it's "difficult"
....finally, Dunhill does it, so.....
4. it's "pricey"!

jchamb · Post by **jchamb** » Fri May 14, 2004 6:06 am

I have this "love/hate" relationship with bamboo. I have a bunch of it growing wild in my backyard, and every year it's a battle to get rid of it. Unfortunately it's not the kind I can use for pipes...

I recently bought a Stanwell with a bamboo shank, and really like the pipe. Because of the use of metal fittings, the shank and stem are VERY thin, and the pipe is very lightweight. It has a nice look and feel which I like a lot. I even purchased a Tsuge bamboo tamper (after trying to make one from my wild bamboo).

They are nice looking, but apparently take some work to produce properly (and the right parts).

john