First, some observations:
Morta is a fickle material. Much different than briar. It seems harder, and yet contradictory, also much softer. It splits and chips pretty easily and the growth rings are much more fragile when compared to the other stuff. After a couple of file swipes it was apparent that overall the material is much more resilient to carving.
The wood on this particular block of morta is near jet black. It has not been dyed in any way. I love the look especially paired with the nickel cap and band. This is also the first bit of green cumberland I've used. Overall I think it all works together.
This pipe is almost a nosewarmer 4 1/2" and light at 1.125 oz. About a Dunhill group 4 in size. I made it sort of short and stocky to experiment with proportions.
Finally I had the stummel sandblasted by a friend of mine named Eric. He does glass and sculpture here at the university and has access to a ginormous blaster. Since this was our first time blasting morta we took things kind of easy. The blast is pretty light. Next time We're going to crank up the PSI a little more and try and achieve that crosshatched look you see on some morta pipes.
The shaping on this one isn't quite as dialed in as I'd like. Luckily the sandblast seemed to even some things out.
Please let me know what you guys think.
