Billiard Contest

[Sasquatch]

I'm glad buster - I feel a bit of a prat saying "Well, I'm so much better at this than the rest of you that I'm not even going to enter." So I thought I'd make fun of myself just a little.

[nolo]

Sasquatch:

Thank you, great idea.

[Sasquatch]

Okay. I don't mean for this to be a pipe-making photo essay, but I hope to have taken pictures that are a little useful, that point out some of the salient features of what we consider a pretty "ordinary" billiard.

First things first - draw up a pipe, copy drawing onto a suitable block. I cut my block at about 3 degrees - the shank on a billiard is NOT at 90 degrees to the bowl. If you do this, your pipe will look like it's curling up. Cant the bowl forward just a hair. This can be done any number of ways, including just knocking the top of the bowl off at an angle. I like to do the whole pipe at 3 degrees.




Now I'm cutting - I do the shank first as my jaws hold the stummel better that way - other way round and I might be pinching the bowl to do the shank. These two pictures show an identical stummel - one with no bevel on the inside of the rim, one with a bevel. The bevelled one looks much lighter and thinner.





Done with the lathe, I have a stem cut rough and fit. Stem length = stummel length.



Taper on the stem should be fairly straight - those old Dunnies and Charatans had pretty hard lines.




This here is what a whole bunch of guys will build when they are asked to make a billiard. The pipe is bottom heavy, something like a brandy, but without any grace. Just an ugly fist. Don't make an ugly fist. Take a LOT more material out of the bottom, give the thing some smooth curves.



This is better, and notice the bowl of the pipe does NOT dip below the line of the shank. It isn't melting!





All polished up now:

[Sasquatch]

Now, let's just look at this pipe, how it sets up, and what could be better.

Billiards have a pretty standard formula, mathematically, but you still have to make a "nice pipe" no matter what the math says. But the math says that the bowl height from the shank is the same as the shank length, we want the shank to be 1/4 or so of the bowl height, no more than a third, probably. Stem and stummel have the same length. Each piece of this pipe is 3" long, pipe is 6" long and 2" high.

The fattest part of the bowl is somewhere around the middle, it's not way up and it's not way down. A little chubby, but not "apple" chubby, is fine. You could certainly have straighter walls than this pipe does - this is a little relaxed.


The lines on this pipe that I think might be improved include the stem taper - I think from the top, the stem could taper more, or maybe the shank should taper less.... If you don't taper the shank at all, it will look "pinched" at the bowl intersection, so it has to have a little bit of taper, but only a little - certainly we are not intending that the stem taper and the shank taper "match" - they can and should basically be seperate pieces.

[Alden]

Nice work Sas, thanks.

[caskwith]

Very useful set of pics and a really nice pipe as well.

[billiard]

I am still not sure if I will get to another billiard before the deadline as I have a couple I need to make first, but I did a practice run on a billiard yesterday with some briar I did not think would make it all the way to a smooth pipe. Tossed it on the "in progress" page on my site (pipe's page here: http://billboylepipes.weebly.com/mmb.html ) and it sold before I woke up.

Whether I make another to participate in this with or not is immaterial but I wanted to give kudos to the contest as I find it is a great way to learn if you are still new, like me. So thanks much for it.

[smokindawg]

Count me in........ I'll give it a shot.

[Joe Hinkle Pipes]

If it isn't too late, I would like the oppertunity to lose this contest. I was wondering if I would have time/materials before the contest ends. looks like, with Wayne's ebonite coming in will be able to do it.

[e Markle]

If it isn't too late, I would like the oppertunity to lose this contest.

Sure, you're more than welcome.

[Joe Hinkle Pipes]

I am planning to make a copy of the first pipe i owned. The shank is cracked and the stem worn to almost nothing, but i want to replace it with this pipe so she can retire with a little dignity. The question is, is a saddle stem acceptable? I assume that stem style will not be a factor in the final decision.

[e Markle]

I am planning to make a copy of the first pipe i owned. The shank is cracked and the stem worn to almost nothing, but i want to replace it with this pipe so she can retire with a little dignity. The question is, is a saddle stem acceptable? I assume that stem style will not be a factor in the final decision.

There's nothing wrong with a saddle bit on a billiard. The only question is how well did you execute it?

Just as an aside, I prefer to smoke (and thus to make) saddle bits because they're comfortable, but aesthetically, I usually prefer tapers. That will have exactly zero impact on the results here though.

[Taspiper]

Shit Sas, why so much blood on the chuck! Power tools are dangerous you know....

[Sasquatch]

That's why!

[sapo59]

I'm in. Still learning alot but I'd like the critic.

[archaggelosmichail]

I've just finished the pipe.

[Philthy]

Havent been on the site in forever much less made a pipe. I am backed up on knife orders, too. (dadgum day job is getting in the way of my hobbies) Never the less I would like to enter. Pretty sure that means last place is sewn up fellers so you can fight it out for the top spots now.

[ND Pipes]

Sas - nice idea regarding the set of pic's... hope we will see the pic's of the other billiard (the improved one) soon also... i am waiting for this with great interest... for sure a really really good idea...
regards
daniel

[Joe Hinkle Pipes]

Finished the billiard. Its probably my best so far overall, but still has a lot of aspects im not totally satisfied with so no worry about losing to me. PMed pics to ernie. So we have 3 contestants finished already?

[Massis]

I'm still working on mine after I screwed up the last block...

Hard to get some time in the workshope in between renovating the house (completely) and spending some time with my pregnant wife...