Oom Paul Competition

[Sasquatch]

I dunno what happened to Ernie's billiard contest (and it doesn't matter because I won it without even entering ( I know, right?)), but it was too damn easy. Sissy straight pipe bullshit.

This is gonna be an Oom Paul competition, and I don't mean a pretty bent pipe, I mean 90 degrees. Bowl and Mortise parallel. Full bent. A big, ugly, Paulus Krueger special.





Successfully building a pipe like this requires tremendous care. It's really easy to screw up the drilling. This is also an EXCELLENT opportunity to practice shank caps. He hinted.

The prize....

The prize is a genuine Sasquatch pipe. Not necessarily an Oom Paul, and certainly not the one pictured above, as it was commissioned. But a Sasquatch pipe nonetheless. Shape of your choice.

Deadline: End of March. Period. That's 2 months. I could make 20, you can damn well manage one. That's enough time to order a weird-ass piece of briar, find some stem material, etc.

Restrictions: I think if you've been making pipes for 2 years, you no longer qualify. Therefore, if you've been making pipes for less than 2 years, you DO qualify.

Judging: I'm the judge. Pipe I like best, think best embodies Oom Paul-hood, is the winner.

BEGIN!

[Alden]

Sweet ! Another deadline for me to totally f-up !

[Ocelot55]

Well, technically I qualify for this one, but I'm really gonna have to consider whether or not to enter. Lots of other stuff going on...

[taharris]

Cool! I've never made an Oom Paul before.

Count me in!

Todd

[AaronC]

sounds like fun

[Growley]

While I would love to own an official Sasquatch pipe, the Oom Paul is probably one of my least favorite pipes. Not to mention, I have no idea how to put one together

Looking forward to seeing everyone's entries though.

[Sasquatch]

That's kind of the point though, Growley. It's a hard pipe to build - everything else after this is easier in terms of drilling and maybe shaping too. Therefore it makes an excellent "learner" project imho.

And yeah, they're ugly. That's the point!

[Growley]

That's kind of the point though, Growley. It's a hard pipe to build - everything else after this is easier in terms of drilling and maybe shaping too. Therefore it makes an excellent "learner" project imho.

And yeah, they're ugly. That's the point!

Yeah, ugly comes naturally to me. It's beautiful I'm trying to figure out. Do you know if there are any good links outlining how to make one of these? I saw a Todd Johnson blog post the other day on how to make a calabash and it was very informative. I think maybe after seeing one for an Oom Paul, I might could (how's that for Alabama English) give it a whirl.

I like challenging and technical pipes and the Oom Paul seems to be that.

Brian.

[Ocelot55]

I might could (how's that for Alabama English) give it a whirl.

I like challenging and technical pipes and the Oom Paul seems to be that.

Brian.

I don't know why you would need a demonstration or tutorial. It seems to me that you've already made an Oom Paul of sorts with your ramses. That's a pretty darn steep angle.

[Growley]

I might could (how's that for Alabama English) give it a whirl.

I like challenging and technical pipes and the Oom Paul seems to be that.

Brian.

I don't know why you would need a demonstration or tutorial. It seems to me that you've already made an Oom Paul of sorts with your ramses. That's a pretty darn steep angle.

I think when I read "90 degrees" I mentally pictured the smoke hole being 90 degrees somehow. If we're just talking steep angles then it all makes sense. I just like to know I'm making things right.

[Sasquatch]

The "90 degrees" is the stem - or rather, it's at 0 degrees to the bowl. How you get there... I don't care. The actual drilling on this kind of pipe is usually around 45 degrees - the airway goes over at a pretty good angle but it's not crazy. I could draw up a little "oom paul drilling" diagram if it's helpful. This isn't "go make a perfect oom paul and come back when it's finished" so much as "let's look at what goes into making a really bent pipe".

[kkendall]

C'mon - make it more interesting ... has to pass a pipe cleaner!

[Sasquatch]

What's a pipe cleaner?

[SchmidtN]

Do Oom Pauls have hard rules to them or are they just any pipe with a full bend?

Can it be a bulldog with a crazy bend? Would Mr. King's Gear Punk be an Oom Paul?

[TRS]

Do Oom Pauls have hard rules to them or are they just any pipe with a full bend?

Can it be a bulldog with a crazy bend? Would Mr. King's Gear Punk be an Oom Paul?

An Oom Paul, traditionally, would be a full bent billiard. A bulldog would just be a full bent bulldog.

[Sasquatch]

As Tim says, traditionally an Oom Paul is a billiard shape. I'm not fussed - if you want to do a full bent bulldog, knock yourself out, and good luck with the rings, you'll need it.

But any pipe that is even .4 of a degree of off 90 is gonna get ktfo'd.

[DMI]

http://www.danpipe.de/Pfeifen-K_13981.html

At the end of the link is a cut away of three Brebbia pipes including a full bent.

David.

[oklahoma red]

http://www.danpipe.de/Pfeifen-K_13981.html

At the end of the link is a cut away of three Brebbia pipes including a full bent.

David.

I would say these examples are obviously factory pipes looking at the huge tar pits that their multi-function tooling leaves behind. They are cutting the mortise and squaring the shank end in one shot. The pilot bit is the culprit.
Some of the tweaking of the innards is also obvious in order to make the end of the stem mortise reasonably line up with the the airway.
Most interesting in my mind is the top image that shows a curved airway. Any thoughts on how that was accomplished?
Chas.

[Charl]

Did I say I hate making Oom Paul's?

[oklahoma red]

C'mon - make it more interesting ... has to pass a pipe cleaner!

Sas,
Kim brings up a valid point. I've been playing with the internal geometry on my CAD system and whether or not an Oom Paul will pass a standard pipe cleaner makes a BIG difference. Now if you don't give a rat's ass if it will pass one or not then the project gets a little easier. The main problem as I see it is your requirement for the center-line of the bowl and mortise to be parallel with no exception. Normally an Oom Paul,or Hungarian if you prefer, (seems Uncle Paulie was a rotten SOB) has the bores at an angle. I own two and both have the shank at an angle. The only thing I've been able to dig up as to "standard form" for one of these suckers is that the end of the shank and the top of the bowl should be close to the same level. Close is relative term I suppose as in hand grenades, horse shoes and urinals.
If bowl and mortise are to be parallel then the center-line spacing between them becomes a critical factor IF A PIPE CLEANER HAS TO PASS THRU. The further apart the two become the hairier things get. Another obvious factor is how deep is the depth of the notch between bowl and shank.
Since you are judge, jury and executioner can you let out a few personal thoughts as to what best embodies the Oom Paul form factor? We already know that all other shapes are sissies.
Will the one you are holding in the photo easily pass a standard pipe cleaner? I emphasize standard and not some pissy-ass piece of string pulled thru on a piece of wire.
Chas.