My first Straight Billiard

[DMI]

I kid you not in four years I have never made a straight billiard, bent ones, Lovats, Canadians and other variations yes.

Greek briar, gold plated band.
Airway:3.75mm 9/64 -ish
Stem material: Delrin/Ebonite
Overall length: 15cm 5 7/8"
Stummel: 7.5x5cm 2 15/16x1 15/16"
Chamber: 2x4cm 3/4x1 9/16"
Weight: 1.5oz 42gm






David.

[AlfaDog]

Beautiful pipe, David. There's alot to like about this one.

[rijks]

Good job ! all is in details.

Best regards,

[DMI]

Thanks,

As has been pointed out no end of times getting the billiard right is a kind of way marker in the pipe makers journey, while the angle of the rim (parallel to the shank) is not really classic it gives the pipe a 'speedy' look which I like. The pipe lost a lot of weight getting the shank/bowl transition sorted and got shortened by a good 1/2 inch because of a flaw.

I should also add it's a freehand.

David.

[ToddJohnson]

A very nice pipe, and while I would not quibble with calling it a "billiard," I think it could benefit from more taper (as it moves upward), a larger radius at the front of the bowl, and a couple of degrees of forward cant on the top if you're shooting for a more "archetypal" billiard.

TJ

P.S. The button could be more pronounced and a bit more "crisp."
P.P.S. The tobacco chamber is drilled about 5mm too shallow, but you can fix this with a dremel.

[Joe Hinkle Pipes]

Todd hit all the major points. I would also add that the taper of the stem would look better if it started directly after the shank ends rather than halfway down the stem.

[brurobas]

I love straight billiards and this one is gorgeous!

[DMI]

Taper on stem noted.

Chamber drilling, I have got into the habit of leaving a slot in the bottom of the chamber that leads to the draught hole it is not as pronounced on this one because of the cant. I have had mixed reactions to the idea but generally positive, most feel that it improves the even burning of the baccy. I'll post a pic of the next one I do.

Buttons, I have real problems with buttons and slots, if they go to plan they come out nice and crisp but a lot of the time I over work them and I end up with something like this which I call 'slimline' which sounds better than 'it went wrong'.

David.

[AlfaDog]

A very nice pipe, and while I would not quibble with calling it a "billiard," I think it could benefit from more taper (as it moves upward), a larger radius at the front of the bowl, and a couple of degrees of forward cant on the top if you're shooting for a more "archetypal" billiard.

TJ

I'm sorry my lingo is not up to speed. Could you describe where it's needing more taper, radius and cant? I'm working on my billiards and if I can better see where you're talking about it would really help me.

[DMI]

CANT= Forward leaning, on the billiard family the chamber traditionally leans forward by 3-8 degrees, this is normally reflected in the rim.

RADIUS= The curve at the bottom of the bowl, mines a bit squarish

TAPER STEM= Starting from the mortice the stem should taper evenly down to the bit, the taper on my does start at the mortice but after about a third of its length the taper becomes more rapid.

TAPER BOWL=The bowl should taper slightly towards the top.

Take a look at this one:

http://www.alpascia.com/detail.asp?detail=23630

[AlfaDog]

David -
Thank you for your reply, that helps alot. I've got to say though, from looking at the reference picture you showed me, you're not off by much! Good job. I've got more billiards to build.

[ToddJohnson]

Taper on stem noted.

Chamber drilling, I have got into the habit of leaving a slot in the bottom of the chamber that leads to the draught hole it is not as pronounced on this one because of the cant. I have had mixed reactions to the idea but generally positive, most feel that it improves the even burning of the baccy. I'll post a pic of the next one I do.

Bullshit.

TJ

[ToddJohnson]

A very nice pipe, and while I would not quibble with calling it a "billiard," I think it could benefit from more taper (as it moves upward), a larger radius at the front of the bowl, and a couple of degrees of forward cant on the top if you're shooting for a more "archetypal" billiard.

TJ

I'm sorry my lingo is not up to speed. Could you describe where it's needing more taper, radius and cant? I'm working on my billiards and if I can better see where you're talking about it would really help me.

"More taper": bottom of bowl moving toward top of bowl.

"Radius": Front of bowl as it rolls down toward bottom and moves back toward the shank.

"Cant" Entire bowl should "lean" forward and top of bowl should "tilt" slightly forward.

TJ

[The Smoking Yeti]

P.P.S. The tobacco chamber is drilled about 5mm too shallow, but you can fix this with a dremel.

How do you go about fixing it with a dremel? Do you just cut in a bit with a fluted cutter then sand things back even?

I've tried fixing this with my Pohlmann drill bit when I free-hand drill, but if I didn't go deep enough with my 1/2" tapered pilot hole, it's no dice.

[DMI]

Taper on stem noted.

Chamber drilling, I have got into the habit of leaving a slot in the bottom of the chamber that leads to the draught hole it is not as pronounced on this one because of the cant. I have had mixed reactions to the idea but generally positive, most feel that it improves the even burning of the baccy. I'll post a pic of the next one I do.

Bullshit.

TJ

Puzzled, the idea of continuing the airway as a channel to the centre of the bowl or that it makes a difference. If it's a waste of time then I need to rethink my drilling.

Yes you take a dremel and cut away then smooth it down.

David.

[e Markle]

Taper on stem noted.

Chamber drilling, I have got into the habit of leaving a slot in the bottom of the chamber that leads to the draught hole it is not as pronounced on this one because of the cant. I have had mixed reactions to the idea but generally positive, most feel that it improves the even burning of the baccy. I'll post a pic of the next one I do.

Bullshit.

TJ

Well, if you want to do that, maybe you could drill with a 5/32" (or 4mm -whatever you use for the draft hole) straight down to meet the draft hole instead of doing it this way. At least it would look intentional. This looks like... well, Todd covered it pretty well.

[e Markle]

P.P.S. The tobacco chamber is drilled about 5mm too shallow, but you can fix this with a dremel.

How do you go about fixing it with a dremel? Do you just cut in a bit with a fluted cutter then sand things back even?

I've tried fixing this with my Pohlmann drill bit when I free-hand drill, but if I didn't go deep enough with my 1/2" tapered pilot hole, it's no dice.

Just use the dremel to profile the bowl to your preference.

You could hit it with the 1/2" again too.

[DMI]

Thanks Ernie, it's not the idea it's the execution.