Mentoring? A suggestion for the experienced carvers.

[Adui]

Those of you who have been doing this for some time, Find the time to take one of us new guys and mentor them. I have a mentor from another site who has taught me more in the two months he's worked with me than I would have learned in a year or more alone, even with this board as a reference.

The way it works with him is I send pics of my work at each stage, he evaluates it and tells me what to fix. This has helped me to turn my hobby of carving into the hobby of a craftsman. I know I've much more to learn, but when I post pics of my 10th pipe, an author and my first commission, I think you will agree that I am miles ahead of the last pipe I posted here.

Assuming a couple of these masters decide to do this I have a suggestion for the apprentices. Listen, learn, send many pics and don't get discouraged when what you think is a masterpiece turns out to be a turd.
In my case I have agreed to not put any pipes up for sale till my mentor thinks I'm ready. The Author was a request, I cleared it with him before agreeing, and he has mentored me through that piece as well.

Done right this is the next best thing to actually working in someone elses shop.

[Sasquatch]

What's the hours, and is there holiday pay?

[Adui]

What's the hours, and is there holiday pay?

You set the hours, and the pay is the satisfaction of watching a n00b become a competent carver.. So you decide if that is holiday pay or not :p

[Sasquatch]

I've actually done this with probably a dozen or more carvers, my inbox is often full of questions, and that's exactly why most people won't get into this kind of thing - getting 4 emails a night about "what now?" is just a huge waste of time, and that's all from the same person, imagine if you were talking to 4 or 5 people! It gets old really fast, you can't get away from it without hurting people's feelings, and too often, they become dependent, unable to move without the Master's Consent. Not always, of course, but it's... a little dangerous for us on the teaching end, it's easy to blow a few hours a day out your ass (ie not making pipes).

[Adui]

I get that, and I wasn't suggesting taking on more than one at a time. You have a life too. I just know I've found it tremendously helpful for me, and hoped you guys who run / started this board might consider it for others.

[n80]

I get what Sasquatch is saying. I agree that such an arrangement is a valuable resource but it can also be taxing on the other end. It is great when you can strike such an arrangement. I especially envy those who are able to spend time in a master's workshop.

For most serious pipe makers it just isn't going to be worth it. Realizing that, I sort of take a collective approach and pick brains here and elsewhere and pick up what I can. It isn't ideal, it can be hit or miss and it takes extra effort.....but that effort is mine and not someone else's.

Having said that, I agree that what you have is a good thing and would be beneficial to any motivated beginner.

[wdteipen]

I don't know about taking on an apprentice but spending a day or two in an experienced maker's shop is pretty valuable and many are generous enough to have you; especially if you come bearing a small token of your appreciation like a tin of tobacco, six pack of beer, or bottle of bourbon. Have some goals in mind that you would like to focus on and pick their brains and see how they do it.

[Sir_Saartan]

My take on this:
isn't mentoring what you guys are doing here with us noobs anyways?

the only difference is: you decide when you can/ want to do it.

For easy access, one could consider a "Noob / Mentoring" sub category in the pipe making section of the
forum, where noobs post pictures and whoever feels like it comments. That way, people like me wouldn't spam
the other parts of the forum, where you guys discuss things that are more delicate.

I've been lucky that I've had several great people spend time to point things out to me
in my PSD thread. And while it's not guaranteed you'll get your answers when you would
like to have them, someone always shows up eventually.

I believe - especially for people like me who do this as a hobby - it's a pretty one sided
affair with no benefits for whoever decides to help me. I doubt Sasquatch, Maddis or
caskwith have sold even one pipe through their effort in helping me.

eventually I'll commission a pipe to them myself (once the funds are right) but I would've done
that regardless.

Regarding pay: that reminds me of Kevin Bridges doing his comedy bit about
"1 pound jobs" in Britain: "I'm scant, but I feel terriffic. I'm wondering: do you guys
at british gas accept self esteem as pay? I'm at my phone, how about I turn on the
camera and smile at you".

Satisfaction doesn't pay bills. Making pipes in their cases does.

[DocAitch]

I have one “apprentice” in my shop. He is an 81 yo engineer and it is interesting to watch him develop as a pipe maker. His approach is way different from mine- he has a project in mind with drawings and measurements when he starts, and I rarely have anything but good grain and “pipe” in my head. We have made accommodations to each others styles and I have learned a lot from him. He is making pipes that I would happily smoke.
It does require time, and I find that I don’t do anything substantive while he is there, but I have enough things on the fire that I can stand and sand something while supervising what he is doing. We also enjoy each other’s company and shoot the breeze about common military experiences etc.
There have been a couple of other guys who have visited the shop and I stay in touch with them, but don’t find this too odious.
All-in -all, I find teaching rewarding and enjoyable, and I do learn new stuff from the new guys.
I will add the caveat that I am primarily a hobbyist who now makes enough to pay for materials (barely).
DocAitch

[Tyler]

Those of you who have been doing this for some time, Find the time to take one of us new guys and mentor them. I have a mentor from another site who has taught me more in the two months he's worked with me than I would have learned in a year or more alone, even with this board as a reference.

The way it works with him is I send pics of my work at each stage, he evaluates it and tells me what to fix. This has helped me to turn my hobby of carving into the hobby of a craftsman. I know I've much more to learn, but when I post pics of my 10th pipe, an author and my first commission, I think you will agree that I am miles ahead of the last pipe I posted here.

Assuming a couple of these masters decide to do this I have a suggestion for the apprentices. Listen, learn, send many pics and don't get discouraged when what you think is a masterpiece turns out to be a turd.
In my case I have agreed to not put any pipes up for sale till my mentor thinks I'm ready. The Author was a request, I cleared it with him before agreeing, and he has mentored me through that piece as well.

Done right this is the next best thing to actually working in someone elses shop.

I'm a little late to this thread, but I would like to point out a two things:
1. You have expressly stated that reason the forum was created, but through a different means -- a forum instead of a one-on-one situation -- in order to help as many as possible while protecting the time of the helper.
2. All experienced carvers were once newbies. We know what it's like, only for many of us it was uphill in snow both ways (no internet). Us old farts are cheering for you newer guys. Post, receive feedback, and make another. Make friends. Ask for help. Keep working. Mentorship can happen a lot of ways, but I'd suggest a formal process focused on one-on-one matches being the least likely to broadly succeed.