The quote is from the the topic (mentioned ) "Shaping THEN Drilling" .Tyler wrote:...In the pattern of the Danes, I am trying something new. I am shaping a stumel BEFORE I drill it. The benefits of doing this are nice. You can take the shape out of the block at an odd angle in order to take advantage of the best grain, and if a pit arises, you can adjust the shape with much more freedom since you are not bound by the holes....
..I've heard this strategy before, and it does make some sense, but when you think about it a little more, if you hit a pit early in the shaping, it usually isn't a problem, it will be gone before you get to your predrilled or not predrilled, designed shape. If you hit a pit late in the shaping, and you remove it, you probably won't have enough briar left for a pipe anyway, so my thinking is, it doesn't really matter whether you drill first, drill last, (you could actually drill between) and I don't think it has anything to do with skill.
Edit: Thinking about this a little more, and understand, I have never drilled after with a spoon bit in a 3-jaw and the pipe bowl in my hands. I think it would require considerable skill to keep it lined-up on two axes, but more than skill, I think, courage.