PITH 2020!

[LatakiaLover]

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PS ---

The distance between the red arrows shoould be the same, top and bottom.

i.e. cut the bottom "swoop" of the saddle AFTER creating the flat plane on the bottom, not before.

Also, your swoop cuts are too flat/relaxed/gradual.
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[miscoipipes]

.

PS ---

The distance between the red arrows shoould be the same, top and bottom.

i.e. cut the bottom "swoop" of the saddle AFTER creating the flat plane on the bottom, not before.

Also, your swoop cuts are too flat/relaxed/gradual.
.

"The distance between the red arrows shoould be the same, top and bottom."

- I used this Dunhill saddle bit for the reference (the bottom is 1mm longer) and now I can see it was a mistake.


"i.e. cut the bottom "swoop" of the saddle AFTER creating the flat plane on the bottom, not before."

- I did it the opposite way, thanks for the right direction!

"Also, your swoop cuts are too flat/relaxed/gradual."

- I was using this pippin file for the saddle but did not have enough practice to do it right. Will do my best to make it right the next time!


I really appreciate your comments, thanks for taking your time and help!

[n80]

I just ordered some other stuff from RawKrafted and saw that chuck. Yes, too much after what I have already spent and plus I am just a hobbyist.

Sea monster, I will attempt that work flow.

However this got me thinking about modifying the VF chuck jaws. It seems to me that I could drill and tap the jaws for a small bolt or set screw with the end ground to a point. Even if it didn’t work I don’t think it would ruin the jaws otherwise.

[miscoipipes]

I've had a similar issue with those Jaws in a Nova chuck.... If the block isn't dead square, the chuck had too much flex. Currently I'm having much better luck with the chuck Premel is carrying....

but here's how I got around it:
Try and square the chuck as well as possible first. then when you make your layout lines, use a ruler that is a half inch wide to draw parallel lines with your drill marks (the chuck is an inch wide, so the parallel lines will allow you to line up the outside edges of the chuck). Find the center point on the end of the block and use a blunted pin, similar to what you would use for freehand drilling, in your Jacobs chuck in the trail stock to add alignment. Drill the mortise. then, but a center drill or other pin with a wide angle point in the tail stock, loosen the chuck a smidge, just enough to tap the block, the cone in the tailstock keeps the mortise hole aligned.

you can also use Brad point bits to drill both mortise and airway. The little spur makes a little poke that you can use to align centers....

Sent from my bloopty-bloop, using hooty-hoo.

I'm using the same VF Jaws and a half inch wide ruler for the lines. And also square the blocks before drilling. It works for me

[LatakiaLover]

Great that you were following a pattern.

Dunhill often took that shortcut, though. Production considerations of some sort, I imagine.

The easiest way to get a deeper slope cut is with a Dremel-style sanding drum, followed by sanding with a pre-curved piece of cork to hold the paper:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DAVuwiv ... 10&t=1m25s

[J. Mouton]

Here are a couple of rhodesians I have so far. I'll probably do another or 2 and a couple of bulldogs before the deadline. More than likely I will just let whomever gets mine pick from what i have available.

[KurtHuhn]

I just use the "tower jaws" on my Oneway chuck. It can be fiddly, but it shouldn't be a show stopper. Jaws with pins would help, but I have not, as yet, found a reason to get any. Just pay attention to detail and set the block right, using your drill bit as a guide, and all should be good. There's no magic bullet.

I do not square the block, and the tower jaws have enough freedom of adjustment that it can be a blessing and a curse. On the one hand they allow blocks that are out of square to be held and set straight, but on the other hand they have that extreme level of freedom.

The VF jaws look really good as far as work holding. I've been thinking about making some like them. My suggestion for those is to square the block - that seems important for the way those are constructed. There doesn't seem to be a lot of freedom to adjust fine angles from side to side - again, a blessing and a curse.

You could, if you were so inclined, modify the VF jaws to have pins. It would be fiddly, and you'd have to be very precise, but it is eminently possible. I could confidently do it with my tooling with little effort, so if anyone wants that done, just let me know.

[miscoipipes]

Great that you were following a pattern.

Dunhill often took that shortcut, though. Production considerations of some sort, I imagine.

The easiest way to get a deeper slope cut is with a Dremel-style sanding drum, followed by sanding with a pre-curved piece of cork to hold the paper:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DAVuwiv ... 10&t=1m25s

I will try this procedure on the next one for sure!
Do you have a tip for creating a nice bowl-to-shank junction on a bulldog? I was using a pippin file following with a sandpaper on a thin cork...
Sorry for bothering you too much but I really want to learn from your past mistakes as much as I can

[LatakiaLover]

Do you have a tip for creating a nice bowl-to-shank junction on a bulldog?

I've heard that chainsaw files are the hot ticket for that transition, but I have VERY little experience shaping stummels in ways that don't relate to stem replacement.

I'm sure someone will be along shortly, though.

[KurtHuhn]

Do you have a tip for creating a nice bowl-to-shank junction on a bulldog?

I've heard that chainsaw files are the hot ticket for that transition, but I have VERY little experience shaping stummels in ways that don't relate to stem replacement.

I'm sure someone will be along shortly, though.

Generally speaking, I like to use files for that. For my workflow, I find that it gives better control and results than the wheel. That might just be me, or my tools, or something else. There are files with round edges that are *perfect* for this use. You can use them to butt right up against all the key surfaces and get them shaped just right. They remove material surprisingly fast as well.

[wdteipen]

However this got me thinking about modifying the VF chuck jaws. It seems to me that I could drill and tap the jaws for a small bolt or set screw with the end ground to a point. Even if it didn’t work I don’t think it would ruin the jaws otherwise.

This is exactly what I did before I upgraded to a Trent Rudat chuck (which has pins.) I had Nate King modify my tower jaws with set pins and it worked relatively well and is a great substitute if you can't afford a better chuck. I got by with that setup and never had to square a block for 3 or 4 years. The one downside is that the tower jaw setup is limited in the size of block you can chuck, has more play than a more substantial chuck and jaws, and doesn't hold quite as firmly.

[Keresaspa]

I've changed my target from 838 to 145 due to some flaws on the bowl (I'm going to make another one based on 838 soon). I just decided to chuck the pipe on the lathe again and cut the rings to look more like a Dunhill's blasted bulldog.
On the other hand, I didn't flatten the bottom to create a pentagonal shank on this one! I thought it doesn't work for my stamps as works for Dunhill's (But I would like to know your thought about it too, maybe you can change my mind to make it flat).

I don't have sandblasting equipment, and due to the quarantine situation, I can not go out to find a place (Jewelry Makers Workshop) to do it for me at the moment. So I need to deal with my existing tools to create a rusticate that I like...

I just leave it right there to hear your critiques before I final polish the stem, do the rustication and finish the pipe.
Feel free to kill my work if I made any mistakes, I'll be happy if I find out them...

[Keresaspa]

some more shots

[Adui]

I'm WAY behind, but finally in the game. My VF order is en route and I will have the first two blocks to use in this party sometime next week. I don't have a chuck for my lathe yet, so still doing it old school for now, but who knows?

[jasonpatrick]

I drilled a couple of holes in the VF jaws with my drill press and use a set nail to line up. It's definitely not as precise as the rawkrafted one though. When aligning, I use the center grove on the VF jaws as well as the live center to set up. When I'm realigning (I try to avoid this like the plague), I use the set nail combined with whatever drill bit I previously used to line up. I would never attempt to drill on the same axis, but it's worked for shaping.

Another thing to think about is the shape of your chamber bit. I've been using a much pointier shape which gives me more meat below the chamber.

Sent from my bloopty-bloop, using hooty-hoo.

That is apparently how the Geigers got past Bo Nordh's problem.

Kurt, I have VF jaws on my chuck which means there is not a single precise point of contact for accurately changing that angle. On the last pipe every time I tried to line it up on the axis of the airway (after drilling the mortise) it seems like the end of the shank was rotating in a small arc and I never could get it to rotate on the desired airway axis. I guess it will just take a lot more fiddling to get the pipe in the right position. I ended up drilling the last airway freehand. It hit the mark just right but I consider that luck rather than skill and have no confidence that I could do that consistently.

[Adui]

I am way behind, but I still want to participate. I have decided to wait once again, as my loving wife is allowing me to order the chuck jaws from VF on the 15th. This means that I wont even be starting any pipes till around the 20th or later of April. With the deadline of July 31st I am behind already, assuming I wanted to create multiple pipes and submit the best. BUT I'll surely get one in!

[n80]

Adui, just do the best you can. Learning the lathe has been a steep curve for me. Two decent pipes. Two trashed pipes.

I'm making Rhodesians. Two so far. Both are decent pipes but not what I'd want to submit for the PITH. Hoping to get a few more made before the deadline but wanting to make other shapes during this time as well. I think if it gets close to the deadline and I don't have a presentable pipe I'll just withdraw. I don't think that hurts anything in regard to the swap.

[seamonster]

okay, maybe there's not a right answer here, and I'm in the middle of TIAFOing, so maybe I'll answer my own question, but looking for some group-think here:

With a blasted bulldog, better to cut the beads before or after the blasting?



Sent from my bloopty-bloop, using hooty-hoo.

[Adui]

My very uneducated guess is after. But this assumes you can get it back in the lathe well enough centered.

[KurtHuhn]

Before. Just be careful blasting around the ring.