All,
Finished two pipes, full of flaws. I'm not sure what to call them. They're in the "anixihartz pipes" sub-gallery. The 2nd one was made with some Tim West second briar, thought it would be nice for the practise, it taught me a lot...
--Michael
Beginner Pipe pics
-
achduliebe
- Posts: 729
- Joined: Thu Nov 23, 2006 8:00 pm
- Location: United States/South Carolina
- Contact:
Hello Michael,
Good looking first pipe you have there. The first ones always seem to be so time consuming, but don't worry, the more pipes you make and the more tooling you add will trim that time down. Just keep it enjoyable and your work will flourish. Keep it up and have fun.
Good looking first pipe you have there. The first ones always seem to be so time consuming, but don't worry, the more pipes you make and the more tooling you add will trim that time down. Just keep it enjoyable and your work will flourish. Keep it up and have fun.
-Bryan
"You should never fight, but if you have to fight...fight dirty. Kick 'em in the groin, throw a rock at 'em"
www.quinnpipes.com
"You should never fight, but if you have to fight...fight dirty. Kick 'em in the groin, throw a rock at 'em"
www.quinnpipes.com
Hi all,
Just got back from the local B&M with my pipes. Showed them off and got some feedback:
-they didn't want to sell them
-the resident expert valued them both at $45 each
-the owner of the shop said that the reason for not purchasing them was that I was an unknown pipemaker
What are your thoughts?
Thanks,
--Michael
Just got back from the local B&M with my pipes. Showed them off and got some feedback:
-they didn't want to sell them
-the resident expert valued them both at $45 each
-the owner of the shop said that the reason for not purchasing them was that I was an unknown pipemaker
What are your thoughts?
Thanks,
--Michael
Thats the catch 22. If you cant get your pipes out there how can you be known. Im my opinion, I have seen some of the most beautiful pipes from one man shops that I would have over any dunhill or peterson or any of the big time operations. I like a well crafted, hand made pipe made will care over a machine factory type pipe. Of course that is my opinion and Im not putting down the Dunhill or any other brand, so dont flame me. We all have or preferences.
Forrest
Forrest
Hello Michael,
I think these are very nice early efforts, but I'm not surprised at all by the reaction you received at the B&M. I'd say it's going to take an unusual shop to want to carry an unknown maker, even when the pipes are top knotch mature efforts. I'll be interested in what the more experienced makers here have to say on this score. I know many of them have shops that carry their pipes, but at what point is it a good idea to even try?
My uneducated newbie take on this is that it's unrealistic to expect to sell ones early efforts. I just finished #10, and I'm still not comfortable at all with the idea of letting them out of the shop, let alone trying to sell them. I think I'm getting close to being able to give one away without major embarrassment. My son is a pipe smoker, and has great taiste in pipes and tobacco. I'm hoping to make one I feel good about giving to him as the first to leave my shop, then depending on how that goes, maybe a couple to some close friends, and if I get REALY brave, maybe I'll see if I can impose on a more experienced maker and give them one for a critique.
If nothing else, I think you need to smoke these and see how they smoke. I've learned a lot by smoking mine and refining my process accordingly. I figure it takes some seriuos investment in the process before you can expect to sell any. Plus, you can't beet the satisfaction in smoking a pipe you made yourself!
I think these are very nice early efforts, but I'm not surprised at all by the reaction you received at the B&M. I'd say it's going to take an unusual shop to want to carry an unknown maker, even when the pipes are top knotch mature efforts. I'll be interested in what the more experienced makers here have to say on this score. I know many of them have shops that carry their pipes, but at what point is it a good idea to even try?
My uneducated newbie take on this is that it's unrealistic to expect to sell ones early efforts. I just finished #10, and I'm still not comfortable at all with the idea of letting them out of the shop, let alone trying to sell them. I think I'm getting close to being able to give one away without major embarrassment. My son is a pipe smoker, and has great taiste in pipes and tobacco. I'm hoping to make one I feel good about giving to him as the first to leave my shop, then depending on how that goes, maybe a couple to some close friends, and if I get REALY brave, maybe I'll see if I can impose on a more experienced maker and give them one for a critique.
If nothing else, I think you need to smoke these and see how they smoke. I've learned a lot by smoking mine and refining my process accordingly. I figure it takes some seriuos investment in the process before you can expect to sell any. Plus, you can't beet the satisfaction in smoking a pipe you made yourself!
Scott E. Thile
Collector, smoker, and aspiring pipemaker.
http://sethilepipes.com
Sysop: http://pipedia.org
---------------------
Collector, smoker, and aspiring pipemaker.
http://sethilepipes.com
Sysop: http://pipedia.org
---------------------
Scott,
Thank you for the perspective. I've been known to be a little impatient. I will take your advice on smoking my own pipes and see what they do. I have made pipes before out of walnut and fruit tree wood. I found them to not have the "best" smoking qualities. I suspect that briar will be better, but will have to find out how much.
Thanks Forrest for the empathy. I didn't feel encouraged by the folks at the store. Instead, I really got more determined than ever to make a whole lot more pipes and show myself that I can do this thing!
--Michael
Thank you for the perspective. I've been known to be a little impatient. I will take your advice on smoking my own pipes and see what they do. I have made pipes before out of walnut and fruit tree wood. I found them to not have the "best" smoking qualities. I suspect that briar will be better, but will have to find out how much.
Thanks Forrest for the empathy. I didn't feel encouraged by the folks at the store. Instead, I really got more determined than ever to make a whole lot more pipes and show myself that I can do this thing!
--Michael
-
LexKY_Pipe
- Posts: 875
- Joined: Thu Nov 23, 2006 8:00 pm
- Location: Lexington, Kentucky USA
Tano, since I'm on, I'll answer. Over on your left, under "Menu," you'll see "Gallery." and once you access that, down at the bottom of the list on the right (if memory serves), you'll find the "anixihartz pipes" link. The gallery seems to be the place many use to upload their pix in order to reference them in their posts.
-- john
http://justapipe.com
http://justapipe.com
Flix, IMO, you are expecting way too much out of your first couple of pipes. There are a lot of nuances and small things that make a really good pipe. A pipe that a shop will want to sell and that you will be proud to stamp your name on.
Keep at it, keep studying, smoke your pipes and make changes in the engineering between pipes so that you can discover what makes a pipe smoke better and what makes it worse. Once you've broken one in, try a new stem with a different sized airway, or open up a funnel in from the button, or reshape a button and see if it's more comfortable. Did any of these make the pipe smoke better? If you started with a 1/8 airway in the shank (and/or stem), open it up to 9/64 and then 5/32 and then 11/64 to see how that affects the way a pipe smokes.
When you make a pipe, how tight to the tobacco chamber can you get before the pipe burns out or the wood explodes? How thin a shank can you make before it gets too fragile? How sharp can you keep the corners and straight lines in panels or for creases in the design or edges around the top or the edges in the stem?
Make changes to the finish and try different things out. Start using dye right after shaping and between each different grit paper to see how it affects the look of the grain. Try using different colors. Try different colors during the course of sanding. Try different buffing waxes to see what you like.
When you've worked out those elements that result in a comfortable pipe that smokes quite well, you'll be a lot closer to being ready to sell! Consider this. Would you buy a bed from a furniture maker that was just getting started in his garage and it's the very first one he's made, not to mention his very first piece of furniture?
As you get going, solicit feedback from collectors, from pipemakers, and from this forum.
You've started on a journey that never ends and it can be rewarding, frustrating, entertaining, fun, profitable, and frustrating and frustrating and aggravating!
Look at each bit of feedback as an opportunity to learn a new technique or design element.
I've been making pipes for about a year and a half and feel like I've just scratched the surface. I received some incredible feedback at the LA show this year, even though it was in the form of: this sucks, this sucks, this sucks, this sucks, your pipes lack balance, the lines don't flow, etc. It was quite frustrating, but I learned a tremendous amount.
Examine high grade pipes from known makers. Why are their pipes selling for $500 or more? What is it that they are doing that you aren't? What about the shape? The juncture of the shank to the bowl, etc.
Hope this bit of advice comes across in the positive manner that it's meant to be. I'm not trying to get you down or intimidate you with what there is to learn. I'm trying to get you excited about the craft and let you know that there is quite a ways to go, and you'll never learn it all. None of us do, it's part of the enjoyment of pipe making.
Some folks start with a very good, well developed eye for the sculpture of briar, others struggle at it quite a bit. When you make a pipe that you are really proud of, that you want to stamp with your name, that is elegant with clean lines, then take it back to the shop and get some more feedback.
Good luck!
Joel
Keep at it, keep studying, smoke your pipes and make changes in the engineering between pipes so that you can discover what makes a pipe smoke better and what makes it worse. Once you've broken one in, try a new stem with a different sized airway, or open up a funnel in from the button, or reshape a button and see if it's more comfortable. Did any of these make the pipe smoke better? If you started with a 1/8 airway in the shank (and/or stem), open it up to 9/64 and then 5/32 and then 11/64 to see how that affects the way a pipe smokes.
When you make a pipe, how tight to the tobacco chamber can you get before the pipe burns out or the wood explodes? How thin a shank can you make before it gets too fragile? How sharp can you keep the corners and straight lines in panels or for creases in the design or edges around the top or the edges in the stem?
Make changes to the finish and try different things out. Start using dye right after shaping and between each different grit paper to see how it affects the look of the grain. Try using different colors. Try different colors during the course of sanding. Try different buffing waxes to see what you like.
When you've worked out those elements that result in a comfortable pipe that smokes quite well, you'll be a lot closer to being ready to sell! Consider this. Would you buy a bed from a furniture maker that was just getting started in his garage and it's the very first one he's made, not to mention his very first piece of furniture?
As you get going, solicit feedback from collectors, from pipemakers, and from this forum.
You've started on a journey that never ends and it can be rewarding, frustrating, entertaining, fun, profitable, and frustrating and frustrating and aggravating!
Look at each bit of feedback as an opportunity to learn a new technique or design element.
I've been making pipes for about a year and a half and feel like I've just scratched the surface. I received some incredible feedback at the LA show this year, even though it was in the form of: this sucks, this sucks, this sucks, this sucks, your pipes lack balance, the lines don't flow, etc. It was quite frustrating, but I learned a tremendous amount.
Examine high grade pipes from known makers. Why are their pipes selling for $500 or more? What is it that they are doing that you aren't? What about the shape? The juncture of the shank to the bowl, etc.
Hope this bit of advice comes across in the positive manner that it's meant to be. I'm not trying to get you down or intimidate you with what there is to learn. I'm trying to get you excited about the craft and let you know that there is quite a ways to go, and you'll never learn it all. None of us do, it's part of the enjoyment of pipe making.
Some folks start with a very good, well developed eye for the sculpture of briar, others struggle at it quite a bit. When you make a pipe that you are really proud of, that you want to stamp with your name, that is elegant with clean lines, then take it back to the shop and get some more feedback.
Good luck!
Joel
Thank you all for the comments, esp. Joel. Sometimes the best message isn't exactly what you want to hear! 
I've made two more, out of JHLowe 2nd briar, and will not be showing these to the public. Instead I will smoke them and see what I've got. My drilling is 5/32" for the air holes, with a tapered 5/32" for the stems. That seems to work very well for an open pipe...
BTW, I've made a bunch of pipes, from Loquat and Walnut. I've smoked them all and they pretty much suck as smokers. I've decided to stick to briar until I can figure some things out. Then go back to my 100lb stack of wood in the basement and make some more pipes from the other materials. Let's see what comes of that.
Later,
--Michael
I've made two more, out of JHLowe 2nd briar, and will not be showing these to the public. Instead I will smoke them and see what I've got. My drilling is 5/32" for the air holes, with a tapered 5/32" for the stems. That seems to work very well for an open pipe...
BTW, I've made a bunch of pipes, from Loquat and Walnut. I've smoked them all and they pretty much suck as smokers. I've decided to stick to briar until I can figure some things out. Then go back to my 100lb stack of wood in the basement and make some more pipes from the other materials. Let's see what comes of that.
Later,
--Michael
Michael, Keep at it! I just ordered a bunch of olive wood and am going to make some pipes out of it. It's a pretty dense wood that smokes quite well. I've also got some mesquite chunks that are quite dry and thought I'd give that a go too. Never know what's going to work!
Don't forget to check on the toxicity of any wood you use for pipes. Both from the making (dust) perspective and for smoking.
Enjoy the experience and the experimentation.
Joel
Don't forget to check on the toxicity of any wood you use for pipes. Both from the making (dust) perspective and for smoking.
Enjoy the experience and the experimentation.
Joel