Page 1 of 1

professor_throway

Posted: Mon Dec 12, 2016 12:49 am
by professor_throway
Real name:Stephen Niezgoda

Age: 40

Location: Columbus OH

Years a pipe smoker: 5ish

How you got into pipe making: A total novice at this point. A few "restorations" and flea market repairs. A few months back bought a reddit/r/pipetobacco POTY Buckeye and, since I was local, Premal invited me down to Smoker's Haven to watch him take the pipe from Briarworks stumel to completion. Never much though about the process of pipemaking as I really didn't have much interest in woodworking, however walking in and seeing a metal lathe and a bunch of other tools I understood something clicked. Sit in front of a computer all day, need something tactile as a hobby.

Other interesting facts: I am a professor of engineering at OSU (in the materials science department and in mechanical engineering). My research and teaching area is metallurgy and solid mechanics of metals. Prior to studying engineering I worked as an aircraft mechanic (airframe and powerplant ratings). While in school to get my FAA certifications I worked as an industrial mechanic and machinist (I fixed the machines that printed and posted your junk mail). Recently got permission from my financial advisor (i.e. wife) to start building a small machine shop in the house.

Re: professor_throway

Posted: Mon Dec 12, 2016 11:20 am
by oklahoma red
Welcome Stephen!

Re: professor_throway

Posted: Mon Dec 12, 2016 6:57 pm
by LatakiaLover
Machinist-minded guys tend to like pipe making. A balanced combination of precision and creativity/artistry is necessary to be good at it, and while a high percentage of the world's humans sketch and so forth, (relatively) few ever get their hands on precision tools. Meaning your experience gives you a solid head start. Enjoy the ride. :D

Re: professor_throway

Posted: Thu Dec 22, 2016 6:00 pm
by pipedreamer
Welcome!!!

Re: professor_throway

Posted: Fri Dec 30, 2016 4:20 pm
by mightysmurf8201
Welcome! You're very fortunate to be near Premal. He's very knowledgeable.


Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

Re: professor_throway

Posted: Mon Jan 02, 2017 3:29 pm
by CondorPipes
Welcome Stephen,
I understand your situation with regards to your "financial advisor"...I've had the same financial advisor of almost 15 years now and she was one of the main driving forces that got me to jump into pipe making. When you say darling I want to build a shop in the garage/house and start making pipes and the response is anything other then "you're crazy, hell no, not a chance" etc you know you have a good one!! You'll have to post a few pic of your machine shop when you get it set up.

Sean