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As for finishing, it will take on a nice shine when buffed, if you have access to a buffer. Otherwise, I would sand as fine as you can, apply some wax and polish with a soft cloth like flannel.
Anybody can become a woodworker, but only a Craftsmen can hide his mistakes!
-Walter Blodget
Thank you yak! Both for the pointing out stuff and for the kind words! I know it is no fun being the one to point out stiff that could be better.
I am really trying to take it as advice and mentoring rather than a knee jerk reaction of being hurt:)
Right now I am just going to use it as it is and then get a new stem and stuff later on sometime.
I will pull the stem a bit out and take a couple of pics where it is easier to see where the actual transition between wood and vulcanite is.
I didn't really understand all you said about how the stem ideally should be, so a bit clarification or a sketch would be great!
Also a few words about the length of the shank would be great! I hear people talk about how typical it is for new guys to make really short shanks, but I had a hard time seeing how long the shank would be when I drew it up on the block prior to drilling it.