new member, first post, first pipe

[Joe Hinkle Pipes]

I want to say first that i have been lurking around this site for about 5 years now, but never felt the need to become a member due to having nothing to contribute. I was finally inspired to order some supplies by a recent series of pipes designed by Greg Pease/Diapiazzo. Their nosewarmer bulldog, as well as some of the nosewarmers made by members of this forum are just what i was looking for in a pipe. Instead of paying for a factory pipe, i decided to sketch my own more chubby version of the Pease bulldog. The first stem i made was a black lucite saddle with smoke lucite inlay. looked like dogshit, so i reversed it and made a diamond shaped smoke lucite stem with black inlay. It looks better, but i should have tapered the stem, as it is now almost a full inch across the bit. I am aware of the flaws in materials, shaping, and finishing, as well as photography, but hey, im learning a lot. my tools were limited to needle files, sandpaper, a cordless drill, and a Japanese hand saw. I have other tools available in my garage, but its been roughly 20 degrees for the past few months, so i worked inside. Please forgive my rambling, and leave any comments that you feel might help me become a better maker. Also thanks to everyone on the forums, i have read a LOT of posts, and i honestly couldn't think of a question that i haven't already come across the answer for.

and now its terrible photo time











and for size reference



when i was putting the stem back on the stummel, i somehow chipped the topside of the face of the stummel. it is now even more ugly. also the contrast stain looked awful, so i sanded back down to just the black. now it has a slightly green tint.

[taharris]

Welcome to the form and to the slippery slope that is pipe making.

I will qualify my comments by saying that I don't particularly care for the design. It is too stubby for my taste.

That said, I think you did a fine job, especially considering the tools that you have to work with.

It is a shame about the chip out of the top, but I think that if you took the top and bottom down enough to eliminate the chip that you may end up improving the composition of the pipe in the process.

And no matter what anyone says, your first pipe will always be your favorite. (I was too ashamed to post a picture of my first pipe, but I still smoke the ugly piece of dog s&*% all the time!)

Todd

[Abi Natur]

Welcome to the forum,it is quiet a thick chubby,a really unusual fatso , but all in all you have something very constructive going on there in your first one,and that is a big deal !
Todd did put it right in his comment in which opinion i fully agree.

Best,
Abi

[Joe Hinkle Pipes]

thanks guys. it was extremely difficult to get the chamber mortise and airway drilled straight using a cordless drill, and was the first area i encountered problems. Most of the other problems stemmed from that. the bowl top and sides can never be symmetrical when shaping after that., plus the mortise has to be squarely drilled to make the stem/stummel junction flush. The pipe started out larger, but due to constant reshaping to find symmetry i was left with a stummel that was about 30% of the whole block. i couldn't visualize how to taper the stem without throwing off the diamond shape. i guess thats why most chubby pipes have a threshold of size, the 1" wide stem is sort of uncomfortable. Im planning a few more nosewarmers right now, using what i've learned from this pipe. i am Smoking the pipe right now. i've been smoking 965 in a english dedicated pipe for about 7 years. when i started breaking this one in i noticed aspects of that blend i hadnt tasted in a few years! I appreciate the comments! i know there were a lot ( or all ) areas that could have been critiqued. This was not my first attempt, my first was a pretty standard diamond shank billiard. i had the rough shaping pretty much finished when a pit developed near the bottom. i sanded a little farther and realized it wasnt a pit, it was the inside of the tobacco chamber. thats embarrassing and a little irritating after about 10 hours of hand sanding.!

[maxmil]

A pipe that could be described as Chubby-Rhodesian.
You should care more adjusting the reed with the mouthpiece, and not leaving lights. This is my opinion.
Regards.
Felix

Una pipa que podría calificarse de Chubby-Rhodesian.
Deberías de cuidar mas el ajuste de la caña con la boquilla, y no dejar luces. Esta es mi opinión.
Saludos.
Félix

[Charl]

Make another!

[Joe Hinkle Pipes]

charl,

thats the plan! I've already ordered 4 more blocks as well as some other supplies, so when they arrive ill get to work and produce some more pipes that hopefully have fewer obvious flaws. I hope have a few hours to get a pipe layed out and rough shaped friday. It just occured to me that i may be able to rotate the yolk on my radial arm saw and use the chuck as a drill press to attain better driling geometry than i was getting with a cordless drill and vise. I guess it just depends on the travel of the saw.