pipemakersforum.com

Allow me to flaunt my ignorance here, but Google is not helping me on this one. What are the measurements that make a bent pipe a 1/8 bend vs. 1/4 vs. 1/2 vs. 3/4, etc.? Is there an actual range of degrees that these fractions represent? And where is that measurement taken? The center line of the bowl and the center line of the stem tenon? Or is this just some sort of visual approximation?

The bends are close approximations of degrees between zero and 90 degrees. Zero degrees being a straight pipe with no bend and 90 degrees being a full bent pipe where the shank face is parallel with the rim. So, 22.5 degrees would be 1/4 bent, 45 degrees would be 1/2 bent, 67.5 degrees would be 3/4 bent, and so on.

Thanks. Kind of what I figured, but never could find any actual statement about it on Pipedia or similar sites.

Except that I've heard people call a half bent a full bent. I think the explanation above is perfectly reasonable, but not everyone in this world is, even pipesmokers.

Sure, lots of people don't know what the hell they are talking about, but that's not our fault.

Wayne pretty much covered it, but here's another source in case you wanted to look it over. I'm not 100% on board with everything on this page, but it's a good reference nonetheless.

http://www.fujipub.com/ooops/shapecom.html