I am going to attempt an Oom Paul style pipe. Probably just a pipe dream (I know that was bad) but I gotta try. My question at this point is which should I drill first the mortise or the draught hole? (hopefully my terminology is correct) My thought is to drill the mortise first so there would be less chance of the bit walking off.
Oops just realize I posted this in the wrong section.
Stem drilling
Due to the very acute angle of the draught hole in an Oom Paul (I have 9 of them, my favourite smokers), I would drill the draught hole first, since the draught hole usually ends up exiting/entering the side wall of the mortise (as opposed to the bottom of the mortise).
You should use a pilot starter bit to avoid the main bit drifting/walking. If you have enough wood to spare, you can initially face off the shank end somewhat square to the intended draught hole to help line it up and prevent walking. Thereafter, you can face off the shank end again, square to the mortise, preparatory to drilling the mortise. Drilling the mortise second also allows you to gauge how deep to drill the mortise in relation to where the draught hole is. That's my reasoning, hope it makes sense.
You should use a pilot starter bit to avoid the main bit drifting/walking. If you have enough wood to spare, you can initially face off the shank end somewhat square to the intended draught hole to help line it up and prevent walking. Thereafter, you can face off the shank end again, square to the mortise, preparatory to drilling the mortise. Drilling the mortise second also allows you to gauge how deep to drill the mortise in relation to where the draught hole is. That's my reasoning, hope it makes sense.
Regards,
Frank.
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Grouch Happens!
People usually get the gods they deserve - Terry Pratchett
Frank.
------------------
Grouch Happens!
People usually get the gods they deserve - Terry Pratchett
I have done 2 Oom Paul's so far, and both of them with the mortise drilled first. Didn't have any problems with doing it like that. The second one even take a pipecleaner straight through the stem into the bowl.
But that said, I think Frank's way might work as well, maybe even better. Square off perpendicular to the draught hole, drill the draught hole and then face the shank perpendicular to the mortise and drill the mortise.
But that said, I think Frank's way might work as well, maybe even better. Square off perpendicular to the draught hole, drill the draught hole and then face the shank perpendicular to the mortise and drill the mortise.
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KurtHuhn
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If *I* was doing an Oom Paul, I would drill the mortis first, then drill the airway.
Every Oom Paul I've ever seen has had a mortis deeper than the tenon, and a draught hole in the mortis that's not lined up with the hole in the tenon. This is usually called a "sump arrangement" and is a good compromise in pipe where you can't spend a lot of time lining things up. You see this primarily on factory made pipes - every deeply bent Peterson I own is like that.
That being said, with a little thought, you *can* make the holes line up. It's difficult, but not impossible. For instance, you can make the airway come close to the chamber wall, but not break through it, as you drill from the mortis side, then using a cutter ball, break through to the chamber. this is easier said than done, and easier drawn than explained. Another trick is to offset the airway in the tenon so that it will match the location of the airway in the mortis. You can't use factory stems for this unless you replace the existing tenon though. Or, you can just plan carefully and lay everything out before drilling. It's a little time consuming, which is why I haven't done very many. That and sanding between shank and bowl is a real PITA.
Every Oom Paul I've ever seen has had a mortis deeper than the tenon, and a draught hole in the mortis that's not lined up with the hole in the tenon. This is usually called a "sump arrangement" and is a good compromise in pipe where you can't spend a lot of time lining things up. You see this primarily on factory made pipes - every deeply bent Peterson I own is like that.
That being said, with a little thought, you *can* make the holes line up. It's difficult, but not impossible. For instance, you can make the airway come close to the chamber wall, but not break through it, as you drill from the mortis side, then using a cutter ball, break through to the chamber. this is easier said than done, and easier drawn than explained. Another trick is to offset the airway in the tenon so that it will match the location of the airway in the mortis. You can't use factory stems for this unless you replace the existing tenon though. Or, you can just plan carefully and lay everything out before drilling. It's a little time consuming, which is why I haven't done very many. That and sanding between shank and bowl is a real PITA.
I was viewing it from the point of view of a traditional Oom Paul, which usually has a bowl 2" or more in height, with the shank being only 10 to 15 degrees off the vertical and slightly taller than the bowl. I figured it would be easier draught hole first, rather than trying to drill the draught hole into the side wall of the mortise at a severe angle. Admittedly, it's all theory on my part, since I haven't yet tried a go at an Oom Paul. As the Oversized Ostrogoth mentioned, they usually have a sump, as do all of mine.
Incidently, I recall reading that the late Bo used that same technique of breaking through the bowl to the draught hole with a small ball bit to obtain a round hole rather than oval/eliptoid.
Incidently, I recall reading that the late Bo used that same technique of breaking through the bowl to the draught hole with a small ball bit to obtain a round hole rather than oval/eliptoid.
Regards,
Frank.
------------------
Grouch Happens!
People usually get the gods they deserve - Terry Pratchett
Frank.
------------------
Grouch Happens!
People usually get the gods they deserve - Terry Pratchett
I think these are all good suggestions and I did end up drilling the mortise first but only because I was impatient and didn't wait for a reply 
My next question was going to be whether it was ok to tap into the daught hole as has been suggested so that it is in the center of the chamber. Wasn't sure if this would cause problems or not.
My next question was going to be whether it was ok to tap into the daught hole as has been suggested so that it is in the center of the chamber. Wasn't sure if this would cause problems or not.-
KurtHuhn
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Center of the chamber? As in bottom center? If so, then yes, that will cause all kinds of problems. Pipes with their airway in the bottom center of the tobacco chamber are impossible to pass a cleaner though, will smoke wet and goopy, and are holy hell to keep clean. The airway should always meet the chamber on the side, a mm or so above the bottom (IMO), and centered left to right.
Now that makes sense! Everything I had read (to this point) talked about the airway being centered in the chamber and I had always taken this to mean centered in the bottom, and I couldn't figure out how to achieve this easily. But it does probably explain why the pipes I have made to this point have all smoked wet and goopy. I had also heard the 1 - 2mm rule also and took this to mean that the bottom of the airway should be 1 - 2mm below the bottom of the chamber in other words my pipes have a small oval ditch in the bottom where the airway enters. If you had a forehead smacking emoticon I would place it here. Thank you Kurt for clearing this up, I want to ditch work now so I can go home and fix a couple pipes.