Here's my No:11

donbernard · Post by **donbernard** » Sun Jan 27, 2008 10:38 am

I have just completed (?) this pipe.
It's my No:11 and it's a first for me.
Ground my own "Spade Bit", drilled the holes (very happy), and of course the rest. The stem is also hand made from a lucite rod, with a "Teflon" tennon, this too is a first for me.
The shank-extension was mounted perfectly on a "sleave" like a "skewer".
This is all achieved without a lathe. Just my Dremmel and drill press and the rest is all hand work.

The Pipe is not yet "Perfect", but I'm getting there!!!!!

However, I am undecided about which stem to use in this pipe.
I have two stems, shown below are the two versions. (The Pic's don't show it too clearly)
The top two pic's show it with a fat stem, the next two have a thinner stem. I would appreciate some comment and opinion about which looks better or which suits this pipe (if appropriate).

I hope I get the Pic-Posting right, here goes!

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kkendall · Post by **kkendall** » Sun Jan 27, 2008 12:26 pm

VERY Nice, Ron! Personally, I think the heavier stem works nicely with the large shank treatment, and BTW - Very nicely done there, too!

Frank · Post by **Frank** » Sun Jan 27, 2008 3:56 pm

Personally, I prefer the thinner stem. My preference would also be for slightly less bend to the stem.

kkendall · Post by **kkendall** » Sun Jan 27, 2008 4:02 pm

Actually, looking at it some more, it looks like the stem dia as it goes into the shank extension should be the same dia as the shank dia before the treatment.

Nick · Post by **Nick** » Mon Jan 28, 2008 8:49 am

Nice!!! I like the fat stem best.

hollywood · Post by **hollywood** » Mon Jan 28, 2008 8:55 am

Looking very good. I really like the larger stem with that extension, but to me it appears that the shank should be a bit bigger to match. That is one cool looking extension and looks to be executed very well. Nice job!