Opinions on bamboo stems

[Growley]

I want to get some feedback on your thoughts on stems for bamboo pipes. I've got a rather large bamboo shank pipe that I'm fitting a stem for. I know it's custom to make the ebonite "knuckle" circular, but in this case, my bamboo is much wider than it is tall, so I've got a pretty big oval shank, not round. My brain tells me to follow the shape of the bamboo and create a knuckle that matches.

Is it ok to try to mimic the bamboo knuckle on the ebonite by following it's natural form, or do people just make them round because that's really the best way?

[Tyler]

Do it however you want and see. If it's extremely oval, it'd probably look weird being circular at the knuckle, but that easy to fix if you make it round and don't like it.

[Joe Hinkle Pipes]

I am working on a bamboo pipe at rtf he moment and was thinking the same thing about the stem. I came to the conclusion that it dosesnt matter a bit. If you take your time and do a good job someone will like it. I think it will look much better if you leave the bamboo unmolested and shape the ebonite to the bamboo's shape.

[Growley]

I am working on a bamboo pipe at rtf he moment and was thinking the same thing about the stem. I came to the conclusion that it dosesnt matter a bit. If you take your time and do a good job someone will like it. I think it will look much better if you leave the bamboo unmolested and shape the ebonite to the bamboo's shape.

Yes, I definitely wouldn't change the shape of the bamboo.

[pipedreamer]

I do what tyler said. Then I give it a good look.If it looks good then it is good.