Achieving round stummels without a lathe

[Snorri]

Hello folks,

I am new to the forum and new to pipe making. I have been researching for several weeks now and have found this forum to be an invaluable source of information, so thank you for your contributions! I am getting ready to make my first pipe, and I am looking for a little bit of advice.

Unfortunately, due to my budget I only have access to a drill press. I also used to work in a machine shop, and a drill press is much more familiar to me than a lathe. I guess my biggest question is, is it possible to turn out decent pipes without a lathe? Meaning, can I achieve the same symmetry, roundness, etc, without turning the wood? If so, what is the recommended path? The PIMO pipe crafting book mentions using a hole saw first to achieve a round bowl. I can see the logic behind this method, but has anyone actually tried it? I wasn't able to find any examples, at least on here.

Finally, is there a recommended shape for beginners, without access to a lathe?

Thank you in advance. I apologize for being an annoying newb and asking the same tired questions 1,000 other annoying newbs before me probably have.

Snorri

[LatakiaLover]

The short answer is yes. Quite a few pipe makers (in absolute numbers, not percentage terms) are DP guys, including a few famous ones.

Probably the main argument against making pipes lathe-lessly is you won't have nearly as many people to swap ideas & etc with.

I'm a repairman who made a "drill press pipe" a few months ago just to see if I could, and it was neither difficult nor particularly dangerous:




As the old saying goes, just remove everything you see that doesn't look like what you want it to. (That's NOT true of a lathe---learn how to use one properly BEFORE just jumping in, or you can be seriously injured. There is a lot more to using a lathe than a drill press.)

[Ocyd]

I dunna have any of them fancy lathes or drill presses or band saws. You can get a nice round bowl with a pencil, compass/circle template, some files and/or rasps, a decent pair of eyes and some good old fashioned elbow grease. A saw is good too if you have a bit more material to remove than you want to spend time grinding off.

These people seem to be all crazed about billiards for some reason I'm not quite sure I understand. If you ask they'll tell you you need to do 12,000 of them and then one more.

[Snorri]

Thanks for the advice gents. That's a fine looking pipe LatakiaLover, definitely makes me feel better about going the drill press route. Like you said, there is a steep learning curve to the lathe, and given my financial situation it seemed wiser to 'go with what you know'.

[LatakiaLover]

These people seem to be all crazed about billiards for some reason I'm not quite sure I understand. If you ask they'll tell you you need to do 12,000 of them and then one more.

It's a matter of developing your eye. A well-cut billiard is an extremely unforgiving shape, but accessible to anyone. The perfect thing to carve iteratively if you want to get better fast. There's also a national-class carving contest this coming summer that will be for that shape, so lots of PMF'ers will be interested in it for the duration.

[BobR]

George, I have to say you did a great job shaping that pipe. Is there any advice/ tips / tricks you can give to us new guys (without a lathe) on how to get a nice round symmetrical bowl? Did you use any kind of template or other method or did you just do it by eye? I do understand how a compass could be used at the top of the bowl.

Thanks!

[Tyler]

The short answer is yes. Quite a few pipe makers (in absolute numbers, not percentage terms) are DP guys, including a few famous ones.

Probably the main argument against making pipes lathe-lessly is you won't have nearly as many people to swap ideas & etc with.

I'm a repairman who made a "drill press pipe" a few months ago just to see if I could, and it was neither difficult nor particularly dangerous:




As the old saying goes, just remove everything you see that doesn't look like what you want it to. (That's NOT true of a lathe---learn how to use one properly BEFORE just jumping in, or you can be seriously injured. There is a lot more to using a lathe than a drill press.)

How many hours do you have in that pipe? (It's lovely, by the way.)

[LatakiaLover]

How many hours do you have in that pipe? (It's lovely, by the way.)

Originally about ten, then another two a month later to slenderize it further, then another two a few weeks ago to countersink the rim.

If I'd had a better eye I would have headed straight for what I ended up with in the first place, so wouldn't have had to finish it three times. So, whether it's a "12 hour" or a "14 hour" pipe is one of those arguable-either-way things.

[LatakiaLover]

George, I have to say you did a great job shaping that pipe. Is there any advice/ tips / tricks you can give to us new guys (without a lathe) on how to get a nice round symmetrical bowl? Did you use any kind of template or other method or did you just do it by eye? I do understand how a compass could be used at the top of the bowl.

I just shaped it by eye on the same equipment I make repairs with. A knife grinder style belt sander, and a bench-mounted disk sander. Final shaping was with files and sanding sticks.

[mightysmurf8201]

When I first got the PIMO book, I did try the hole saw method on my drill press. Does it work to achieve a perfectly cylindrical bowl? Yes. But you still have to shape the bottom half of the bowl or so. But the way I see it, a lot of us use a lathe to achieve symetry in the bowl and many other parts of the pipe, so there's nothing wrong with using what you have at your disposal to get the best results possible. We all have to start somewhere, and chances are that if you stick with pipe making, you'll probably end up upgrading your tooling and methods anyways. In the meantime, make pipes and learn all you can from each one you make. Your methods and tooling will evolve as you learn and find your groove.

[dogcatcher]

Think of a drill press as a vertical lathe without the good turning capabilities of a lathe. A lot of lathe owners drill on the lathe, but very few drill press owners attempt to turn wood on their drill press. At one of the penturner supply houses, Penn State Industries, they have "lathe" adapter for a drill press, I wouldn't recommend getting it, but it may give you some ideas. http://www.pennstateind.com/store/dplathe.html

[wisemanpipes]

people that drill freehand exclusively are forced to create "round" classics by eye, on the shaping wheel.

its not terribly hard but you definitely need to have a keen eye and patience.

I think in a blog post by todd J (on his site). he shapes a really large lumberman or lovat strictly on the shaping disc just cuz.

also, I know that Michael Parks rarely, if ever, shapes stummels on his lathes (except Rhodesians/bulldogs). he strictly uses a drill press and disc sander. he is known for English classics and most of those require symmetry.

now the 2 makers I have mentioned above have roughly 30 years combined experience and have truly gifted eyes for detail, but that doesn't mean you cannot do it.

my biggest tip would be get a compass, as well as a laser level

-Evan

[LatakiaLover]

Think of a drill press as a vertical lathe without the good turning capabilities of a lathe. A lot of lathe owners drill on the lathe, but very few drill press owners attempt to turn wood on their drill press. At one of the penturner supply houses, Penn State Industries, they have "lathe" adapter for a drill press, I wouldn't recommend getting it, but it may give you some ideas. http://www.pennstateind.com/store/dplathe.html

Absolutely not recommended. Besides the safety issues of such a Rube Goldberg device, the bearings in drill presses are not designed to handle significant side loads.

[BobR]

Evan, is the laser level just to draw lines on the block or are you suggesting another use?


Bob

P.S. Can bulldogs etc. be made without a lathe? I expect the answer is yes it's possible but does anyone here know anyone that does it? I would guess it's quite difficult.

[LatakiaLover]

P.S. Can bulldogs etc. be made without a lathe? I expect the answer is yes it's possible but does anyone here know anyone that does it? I would guess it's quite difficult.

Without scribed rings a bulldog is just another shape. With the rings it's a lathe-only one.

[PremalChheda]

P.S. Can bulldogs etc. be made without a lathe? I expect the answer is yes it's possible but does anyone here know anyone that does it? I would guess it's quite difficult.

Without scribed rings a bulldog is just another shape. With the rings it's a lathe-only one.

I have a bulldog that was not shaped on a lathe.



Photo by Adam Remington sourced from

http://briarmeditations.blogspot.com/20 ... izona.html

It is possible. Either by etching the ring by hand or making a device to cut it precisely.

[LatakiaLover]

I just thought of another way: a router table

It would be scary to use, but would work pretty well as long as you had a bit for each pipe you wanted to make.

[LatakiaLover]

It is possible. Either by etching the ring by hand or making a device to cut it precisely.

Yeah, I was thinking of old style, paired, deeply cut rings in the English tradition. If only a groove of some sort is wanted, things open up a bit, tool-wise.

[PremalChheda]

It is possible. Either by etching the ring by hand or making a device to cut it precisely.

Yeah, I was thinking of old style, paired, deeply cut rings in the English tradition. If only a groove of some sort is wanted, things open up a bit, tool-wise.

I am not certain, but I think Michael Parks used to cut some pretty deep double rings with his drill press and a device he made for it before he got a lathe. I will ask him the next time I speak with him.

[andrew]

I just thought of another way: a router table

It would be scary to use, but would work pretty well as long as you had a bit for each pipe you wanted to make.

More than scary, dangerous. Trying to route small blocks of hard wood is begging to lose body parts. If you could attach the block to a larger object for control, that might work.

andrew