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This construction of the drive dowel/stummel can be done directly on the lathe without using my drill press jig. Just take care not to have the plastic drip off or the construct sag.
DocAitch

Cutting the top of a bulldog and the accent rings on a small lathe presents a challenge. There is not enough swing on my HF 8x12” metal lathe to use the traditional methods- pipe jaws (don’t have them on my 3 jaw chuck) or jam chuck working from the left (because the shank will not clear the saddle/...

I sort of feel your pain, but am a novice to machine work and wouldn’t know slop if I fell over it. I do know run out and can compensate (somewhat) for that. I did exactly what you counsel against- bought a Harbor Freight 7x10” metal lathe. I actually learned to make OK stems on it with a little car...

I like it better as well. Still needs a bit more stem. I am not sure what you finished the surface with, but I find that the dull areas deep in the recesses of the surface after using carnauba on a wheel can be polished out by heating over a heat gun and using a fingernail brush with shortened brist...

I like women’s make up pads (several hundred in a large packet)because you can rub and even the stain or shellac as you apply, but they are wasteful of stain and shellac.
I might consider pipe cleaners after realizing this, and maybe just use one pad after applying the stain with cleaners..
DocAitch

You should have a happy customer. I would be delighted.
DocAitch

Sounds like those inserts may be pressed “meerschaum”.
An alternative to egg white would be water glass- (sodium silicate).
I can’t comment on working the insert, I don’t know what you have available.
DocAitch

This is an attractive pipe. The stummel is well done, and the pipe is generally attractive. I agree with Wayne on the stem, and to answer your question, yes, the waist is too far back. You have, in effect, created a stem that has a convexity (fatness) i the first 1/2 and a concavity in the second, a...

I will agree that getting down the basics for lathe drilling is your priority for now. I will comment that shaping before drilling can be a broad expansion of your ability to approach certain shapes (blowfish anyone?) It is also certainly a way to reduce wastage, and is an excellent way to optimize ...

And to add to Wayne’s comment on heating, if you have a Delrin tenon in there, avoid heating that area. The epoxy may let go.
I wrap a wet paper towel over that area while heating.
DocAitch

I think that if you get some inexpensive blocks from either Vermont Freehand or RawKrafted you can begin immediately. I purchased some briar from Premal at RawKrafted that he advised me to wait 6 months on before cutting, but otherwise, I have just cut them when I got to them. I can’t speak to the d...

Welcome, you’ve come to the right place to learn.
DocAitch

Even if we don’t agree on every aspect of Jack’s thinking, it is a pleasure to follow his analyses, and George’s and Sas’ input are also a pleasure to read.
DocAitch

This is well worth reading. One post and I am hooked.
DocAitch

Sas understood my reference to oblique angles. Put your left index finger in the chamber, hold the finger straight up, and rotate the pipe in steps of 5-10 degrees around your finger. Check the bowl silhouette at each of these oblique (not straight lateral or front/back) views. The sides/profiles of...

No images.
DocAitch

Your self critique is pretty much spot on. I would add that the bottom rear of the bowl has a more vertical transition silhouette than the front.The entire bottom of the bowl should be part of a sphere and you should have symmetry at all oblique angles, not just the laterals.
DocAitch

I basically do that- knock off the corners at one end, center the other end with the live center- turn enough to grasp in the chuck and reverse the piece. I may lose a millimeter or so because the alignment is not exact, but that rarely if ever is a problem. I don’t use enough square stock to bother...

I think that Todd Bannard advocates chucking the shaft of smaller chucks in a larger metal turning chuck, like what I think you are recommending above.(I am not all that familiar with lathes and lathe terminology). I turn square stock in 3 jaw chuck by grinding off the corners, using a live center o...

I started out using a die grinder- like a large Dremel rotary tool using 1/4” diameter tool shafts.
Extremely dusty and difficult to control, but with practice you can use it like a knife to carve.
Be careful because you can easily wind up with a vibration nerve injury.
DocAitch