Kurt,
In this picture, what is the material between the removable portion of the stem and the vulcanite ring attached to the bamboo? Not the SS tubing--the material ontop of the vulcanite ring? It was removed later on in the process but I'm not sure what it is or it's purpose--thanks. The pipe came out REALLY nice by the way!
That is actually a piece of adhesive-backed paper to protect the polished surface. The last thing I want is a scratch or scuff right there while rough shaping - or final sanding. I usually take it off after the stummel and shank are largely finished, and I begin work on the stem. Once the stem is fully shaped, and I start to work on that junction of the shank and stem, the stem pretty much won't be removed again until the first time the customer takes it apart.
Are you Greg? I have made a flinter myself, though amateurish, sould love a REAL opinion of it. I thank you in advance for your consideration.
Matt.
Matt,
No, no I'm not Greg... Greg is a phenominal artist/craftsman and one of the nicest people I've ever met. I wish I had just 1% of his talent. The first time I went to his shop we just started talking, I told him about being an amatuer pipe maker and he asked to see some of my work. After seeing my pipes, he offered to sell them in his store.
If you go by his shop I have no doubt he'll talk to you about it. While you're there, ask to see his latest commisioned rifle--it is extremely impressive.
Sorry... just got my ass before my head. I have made rifles, as I have made pipes, and find them both fascinating. Physical storefronts are continually disappearing, and this is not necessarily bad... just evolution. But the pipemakers art will follow quickly, or will find new life... what do you think?
I don't really know Matt, I'm not a business guy. If you would have asked me that before the dot com bubble burst I would have agreed that brick and mortar stores would disappear--now I think there will always be a place for store fronts and that's my hope too.
Oh well... the only thing sure in life is it's dynamicism... constant change is a necessary ingredient for growth, but nothing is ever really lost. Time may hide things from us, but nothing is lost. I think it is sort of like the conservation of mass/energy... things that seem to disappear may not be visible in one way, but reveal themselves in others.
Briar reveals itself in different ways throughout it's time. A piece of wood that started growing before I was born comes into my hands on occassion... and you really think about the changes in it's life over time, and how can you not love the fact that the world is not a static factor in the universe? Consider tobacco... much like wine, there are good years and bad. I have smoked cans 5, 10, and 15 years old. I can guess it was either a wet year or a drought where it was grown. by the way it smokes. There is never another can like it either, due to the microenvironment it contains, and was contained in. Dynamism is beautiful.
