For those of you who do bamboo pipes. How do you decide what style stem to use, tapered or saddle? Do you use a certain style with specific shapes ( apple shape with a saddle)? Or is it just whatever you feel like making at the time? In the last few weeks I have done 4 bamboo pipes and have used both style stems. I was getting stems ready for 2 more last night and was wondering what you guys use as a guide, if there is one. I was surfing through Tom Eltang's photos on flicker and he uses both types but I didn't really pick up a trend as to what makes him pick one over the other.
Larry Faulkner
www.TamperWorks.com
Stem shape for bamboo shanks
Hi Larry-
IMO, it's kinda hard to get a tapered stem to look right on a bamboo pipe. Not that it can't look right, as you saw on Tom's website. I think that it's very complimentary to imitate a faux knuckle in the stem and then a sort of saddle from there.
When done right, I have been fond of sharper transitions using a disc in between bamboo and stem (and at times between bamboo and shank). This is not seen very often, but I think Todd J. has done it, Jack Howell, John Crosby- probably more than that, but they are the first that come to mind. With those I think you have more freedom with the stem because the transition is different (at least it that's my imprsesion). I have not attempted this yet because I've not wanted to sit down and develop the process for my wood lathe- but it seems like it would be one of those things thats easy to over-do and make gaudy.
IMO, it's kinda hard to get a tapered stem to look right on a bamboo pipe. Not that it can't look right, as you saw on Tom's website. I think that it's very complimentary to imitate a faux knuckle in the stem and then a sort of saddle from there.
When done right, I have been fond of sharper transitions using a disc in between bamboo and stem (and at times between bamboo and shank). This is not seen very often, but I think Todd J. has done it, Jack Howell, John Crosby- probably more than that, but they are the first that come to mind. With those I think you have more freedom with the stem because the transition is different (at least it that's my imprsesion). I have not attempted this yet because I've not wanted to sit down and develop the process for my wood lathe- but it seems like it would be one of those things thats easy to over-do and make gaudy.