Sanding and growth rings

[kbadkar]

I've been ordering baccy from Knox for a couple years now, but never checked out the forum there until someone here pointed out the Dunhill fill controversy. Anyway the same feller considers himself an expert on all things pipe... he wrote a rave review of Mr. Radical's pipes, but he mentioned something that I wondered about:

"Clearly, no premature jumping up the grit ladder during sanding occurred, and a complete lack of growth ring waviness indicated there wasn't a premature shift to a tripoli wheel to rush completion"

I've noticed that some of my pipes show the growth rings more than others, some not at all. I always considered it a property/characteristic of the wood itself, rather than a sanding issue one way or another. None, of my pipes show any surface waviness associated with the rings. What's your opinion?... or better yet, the facts.

[Nick]

Yea, I always thought it had to do with the wood.

[RadDavis]

It's buffing issue rather than a sanding issue.

If you lean a little too hard on the stummel while buffing with the coarser compound, and the wood is soft, you can raise the growth rings a bit, creating that wavy look.

Rad

[flix]

Rad,
I've done this! I always wondered what was going on. Thanks for clearing that up for all us noobies...

[Leus]

What about wet sanding?

[RadDavis]

What about wet sanding?

I've never done any wet sanding. Wouldn't that raise the grain?

Rad

[geigerpipes]

Wet sanding would and could raise the grain

[KurtHuhn]

Is this a waviness in the surface of the wood, or a percieved accentuation of the growth rings in contrast to the grain? I've made some pipes where the stain accentuates the growth rings, but the pipe is perfectly smooth with no surface abberations.

I'm not sure I "get it".

[RadDavis]

Hi Kurt,

Try buffing a smooth (sanded to 600 grit) piece of scrap briar with good growth rings really hard with coarse buffing compound, and you'll see what we're talking about.

The surface will indeed become wavy.

Rad

[Frank]

I wouldn't put too much stock in that guy's observations.
After barely 6 months as a knoxcigar forum member, he already has 1600+ posts. He obviously believes that he is the expert on pipemaking and all things pipe & tobacco. How much hands-on pipemaking experience does he have?
Perhaps he's related to Random.

[RadDavis]

Hell, Frank, he lives in Wyoming, what else is he gonna do during the winter?

I don't know how much experience he's had in actual pipe making, but I do know that he traveld to Columbus, OH and took a course from Tim West. He wants to go into pipe repair.

And the guy does know pipes.

Rad

[KurtHuhn]

Try buffing a smooth (sanded to 600 grit) piece of scrap briar with good growth rings really hard with coarse buffing compound, and you'll see what we're talking about.

The surface will indeed become wavy.

Ah, gotcha. I've not seen that before. Thanks for clearing it up for me.

[kbadkar]

Okay, so I think I get it now. Over buffing and surface waviness, of course, is a no-no. But the fact that you can see the growth rings on a smooth pipe isn't an indication that the pipe maker is a lazy sander - some blocks just show more prominent growth rings than others.

[RadDavis]

But the fact that you can see the growth rings on a smooth pipe isn't an indication that the pipe maker is a lazy sander

Who said that it means the maker is a lazy sander?

Rad

[bscofield]

Me

[kbadkar]

LL from the Knox forum... at least that's what I deduced from his quote:

"Clearly, no premature jumping up the grit ladder during sanding occurred, and a complete lack of growth ring waviness indicated there wasn't a premature shift to a tripoli wheel to rush completion"

I just wasn't sure if "growth ring waviness" refered to the visibility/prominence of the rings or an actual waviness on the surface of the pipe corresponding to the rings. I think it's clear now from comments posted that the appearance of growth rings is not considered a fault of the pipe maker.

[RadDavis]

Gotcha.

Rad

[kbadkar]

BTW, I did agree with his final conclusions about your work. You are an amazing artist and craftsman. I own one Davis pipe and it is my favorite shape... a little cobra with a gorgeous birdseye panel in front, beautiful grain flowing perfectly with the shape along the sides, a scooped shank, and one of the most comfortable thin and wide bits I have. I am suscribed to your pipe list and I noticed you haven't attempted this shape in a long time. She smokes a little hot, but I haven't found the right tobac for the smallish chamber. I also have a little gap in the shank-stem junction, but I'll fix it myself when I'm absolutely confident enough not to screw it up. Anyway, it does bother me that with all the praise you are getting that I may not be able to afford another RD soon. Your reputation is really growing.

[RadDavis]

Thanks for your klind words.

My prices won't be increasing drastically anytime soon. They'll be nudged up a bit, but I still want to offer the best price/value ratio that I can.

Rad

[Leus]

What about wet sanding?

I've never done any wet sanding. Wouldn't that raise the grain?

Rad

Yes!

Succintly,