bamboo - general questions

[ND Pipes]

I have been searching for some time but can't find the answers...
...
I am using a SS tube inside the bamboo and as a tenon to go into the acrylic/ebonite stem (so, mouthpiece does not have a tenon but a mortise in which SS tube is going into)...
this all is working nice (in general) but i have some doubt sregarding how to clean, seal the bamboo...

i clean the bamboo with alcohol and with sandpaper grit 2000... however, i can get it to be perfectly clean (scared to sand more) - i would be happy to get it as clean as possible - to look proffesional and well done... the knuckles are also looking a bit dirty...
after sanding i am polishing the shank and applying carnauba on the bamboo using a soft wheel... it works more or less o.k. but still, it is not perfect (IMO) and i would like to improve... i would like to get it clean, well made...
can somebody tell me how...
here is the picture of my latest pipe (still have to use a dremel tool to sand a bit more on knuckles - i was thinking to use a glue to seal the knuckles to prevent them to get dirty while working on a briar (during the proces of making a protect the bamboo with the masking tape not to get dirty but still i can't protect it perfectly)....
to tell it simple - i am not to happy with the result and would like to improve.... so, help needed.... thank you all...

[Alden]

Nice pipe Daniel !
Good questions too, looking forward to hearing some answers.

[RadDavis]

I see nothing wrong with what you've got there. The idea is to get it as clean as possible, but this doesn't always mean perfectly clean. After all, the stuff grows underground, and the occasional stain is not going to sand out for you. I wouldn't worry about it as long as there are no gouges in the surface of the bamboo. Just get it as clean as you can.

Rad

[taharris]

Great post!

I am just starting on my first bamboo pipe.

Do most use just the SS tube as the tenon? I was thinking of using Derlin to fit into an Ebonite mortise.

Any guidance would be appreciated.

Todd

[Tyler]

You are already doing more than most. Bamboo is not something that folks expect to be flawless, in my experience.

As for glue, it is not uncommon to hollow the nodes out a bit and fill with epoxy forming a slightly raised bead. It's a nice look, and a total pain to do.

Do most use just the SS tube as the tenon? I was thinking of using Derlin to fit into an Ebonite mortise.

As for the mortise and tenon, I think the most common way to do it is to glue a stainless steel tube in the mouthpiece, using the tube as the tenon. That means the mortise is in the bamboo.

Tyler

[Bosaiya]

You are already doing more than most. Bamboo is not something that folks expect to be flawless, in my experience.
...
Tyler

I agree. To my untrained eye it looks more like an attempt to make something that looks like bamboo out of clay or porcelain. If you're going for the wild and wooly look of bamboo then leave it looking like bamboo. Or do what you please with your pipes. I don't remember reading any hard and fast rules.

[wdteipen]

Your bamboo looks pretty darn good if you ask me. It's a heck of a lot cleaner than I've ever gotten mine. As for sealing it, I have a bamboo pipe I'm working on that I've but a very thin coat of shellac on to seal it. I'll let you know how it works out.

[Sasquatch]

If I have a really white wood that has to stay really white on a cabinet or a piece of furniture, ordinarily I'll avoid shellac or oil based or urethane based finishes, because they all penetrate and yellow things to some degree. On bamboo, I actually like this, it relaxes the color a little. But if you want to seal it up, protect it, and not discolor it at all, the Varathane brand "Diamond Finish" is really nice. It's very thin, water based, and goes on with no yellowing effect at all. A tablespoon of this stuff would do about 100 pieces of bamboo - it goes really far.

[ND Pipes]

Your bamboo looks pretty darn good if you ask me. It's a heck of a lot cleaner than I've ever gotten mine. As for sealing it, I have a bamboo pipe I'm working on that I've but a very thin coat of shellac on to seal it. I'll let you know how it works out.

Wayne please do - i am interested to know the result - thank you and best regards
daniel

[ND Pipes]

If I have a really white wood that has to stay really white on a cabinet or a piece of furniture, ordinarily I'll avoid shellac or oil based or urethane based finishes, because they all penetrate and yellow things to some degree. On bamboo, I actually like this, it relaxes the color a little. But if you want to seal it up, protect it, and not discolor it at all, the Varathane brand "Diamond Finish" is really nice. It's very thin, water based, and goes on with no yellowing effect at all. A tablespoon of this stuff would do about 100 pieces of bamboo - it goes really far.

ohhh - thanks Sas...!!
regards


....

guys - thank you... seems to me i am o.k. for now... i have some more info's - from what i know i will sand it a bit more just to clean it a bit more...
and the one i am working on now has nothing of those "dirty" areas... so, i am not that unhappy there...
...
guys thank you again and best regards
daniel

[ND Pipes]

i have more questions...

so far - i have been making bamboo pipes using a piece of steel tube - that tube was connecting the bowl to the shank and the shank ended with that tube going into the mouthpiece as a tenon...
the problem i have is as following - what to do when we have bamboo rods that are thin - so thin that i can't drill the bamboo in order to let the pipe go through - i allready broke one perfectly good piece of bamboo because of that.....
...
i have seen that guys are using a tube or tenon's of a kind to connect the bowl to the shank ... and also, they use a teflon tenons glued to the mouthpiece and going into the bamboo shank... they cut the bamboo on lathe in order to glue the ring on the bamboo (my lathe is not so precise) ... i am not so sure this will hold good during time...
i need a rock solid method to make a pipe with a thin bamboo shank... anyone care to help... thank you all and best regards
daniel

[KurtHuhn]

Hi Daniel,

I got your PM, but figured I would post here for the benefit of anyone else wondering the same thing.

Bamboo, when used on a pipe, is best viewed as a "shank extension" instead of being part of the stem. To that end, most pipe makers adhere the metal tube to the stem, and the mortis resides in the bamboo. That way you know you've got a tight fit that won't tend to loosen over time. A ring of acrylic or ebonite is also used to strengthen the bamboo, and help prevent splitting by a careless smoker.

What you want is something like this:


The piece on the left is the bamboo, the ring on the right. You can turn the little spigot (the short tenon on the end of the bamboo) on a metal lathe, but it's just as easy to do on a wood lathe.

My process goes like this:
- Drill mortis in stem end of bamboo
- drill mortis in bowl end of bamboo
- Drill airway in bamboo
- chuck the drill bit I used for the mortis in the headstock of my lathe, and use a cutoff tool to cut the spigot in the stem end, checking with a straight edge for squareness and calipers for correct diameter
- flip the bamboo around and face the bowl end square to the mortis
- Epoxy the oversized ring onto the spigot on the stem end
- countersink the bamboo flush with the ring once the bamboo is cured

It might sound complex, but it's really not. The size of tube I use is usually .18" OD, with a .16" ID. For really tiny bamboo I have smaller tubing, but I rarely use it. This OD equates to roughly 4.5mm, which should leave lots of room to work.