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I never used to square them up, but when I upgraded my belt sander to one with an 8” disk, it made it simple to do, and it does help with fitting it in the chuck.


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I built a closet with denim soundproofing in the walls for my compressor and dust collector. I can still have a conversation in my shop when they’re both running.

I also have noise cancelling earphones, but don’t end up using them much in the shop.


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Welcome, Dave!

Where in Minnesota are you? I’m up in Zimmerman.


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I’ve thought about getting a collet chuck many times. Thanks for sharing the link to this one with recommendation.


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Just get a Precision Matthews 12x36 lathe and you’ll be a happy pipe maker the rest of your career. The rigidity makes everything much more precise than a smaller unit, and it holds a ton of shavings in the chip tray before you’ve gotta clean it out. You can make a 7x14 work, or a 12” wood lathe, or...

The point of the billiard exercise for a beginner is to carve the shape indelibly into your mind’s eye. Once that’s accomplished (and frankly, very few people have the discipline to see it through to 100%—most new makers stop at around halfway) you’re ready to make a bent billiard. It’s really the f...

I nearly always use a slice of darker material to contact the surface to be stained. Then I can allow the stain to bleed onto the darker piece unnoticed. If that’s not an option, shape everything and remove the inlays before staining, then glue up after stain is applied. Sent from my iPhone using Ta...

I recommend a pin gage set, not just single pins. There may be variations enough in the wobble to account for a thousandth or two of fit, so while you’ll use one size more often, a range is better. It’s not too expensive to get a whole set from Shars or eBay. .251-.500 is what I use. The larger piec...

Getting the shape spot on is tough. That’s because it really isn’t the shape in your hands, but the shape in your mind’s eye that you’re working on.


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Beware the cure time on oil based finishes. Tru oil also has a strong smell.


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I know gorilla glue has a couple of formulations that do expand to cure. Not their wood glue, but the one I used to glue the toilet lid back together, and the regular gorilla glue do expand in a foam-like way. I don’t think that’s a 2-part epoxy though. As for G-Flex, it’s basically all I use now. W...

I bought a dunhill on eBay when I started. After a couple years of smoking it and using it as a study, I sold it for within $20 of what I paid for it. But a piece used with good market value and then resell it afterwards.


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Makis briar can be as good, but the chances of getting a great smooth are higher from a Mimmo grade 2 than a random Grecian block. That said, I’ve gotten smooths as nice out of a Makis block as from Grade I Mimmo. Part of it is luck. Buy Makis until your skills are good enough and you don’t want to ...

You do get what you pay for with briar, but it helps to know what you’re paying for. And to do that, you need to have some idea of what’s inside the block. In a $45 block, I’d expect it to contain a few small sand pits, but give me at least a 50% chance that the shape, which I’ve chosen for the bloc...

You can only learn what you don’t know by interacting with others, and when it comes to visual and manual labor, there’s a lot that virtual interaction cannot bridge in that process. When I went to visit Walt Cannoy, he let me shape a billiard, and when I thought it was done, I’d hand it to him, he ...

I’ve been sanding at 220 dry, then 320 dry, then a quick buff to see scratches and 320 and 400 wet. Sometimes, I need 600 to get a good finish. I’ve never seen a reason to go from wet back to dry. You can just wipe some water on with a damp rag and if a spot dries faster, there are scratches there. ...

When I need to use delrin for a tenon and something to line a mortise, I try to make sure it’s two different materials. Then at least heat or cold can allow them to separate. I have one ebonite on ebonite reversed calabash Pipe and it doesn’t like to come apart sometimes. Sent from my iPhone using T...

If you’re leaving plateaux exposed, make sure to clean off any bark with a brush or pick. Then stain or at least seal the surface. It likes to collect grime and look like crap if you don’t. Even sometimes when you do.


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The forum is intimidating. Part of that is we’ve all got personalities, and part of that is our commitment to clear, honest critique. Those who take the critique and apply it will be better off than those receiving a thousand compliments. Seriously, do read the whole forum. Probably 90% of what I kn...

I always repair these defects (anything in the chamber or that could indicate structural weakness) by tossing the worthless chunks of wood into a box. When I get enough, they become fuel for the grill. I recommend not spending a whole lot of time doing repair work, unless you want to do repairs. If ...