Blowfish WIP

[363]

I am probably way ahead of myself on this but with a little down time I figured I try one. I have some shaping done and would like any feedback as where to head with it, be it the scrap bin or thoughts on how to dial it in. Either way, thanks







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[363]

Sorry in advance if photos are huge, posted from my phone

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[JMG]

Certainly not the scrap pile. It's looking nice so far. My advice isn't worth much, but I'll give you what I got (this is going off of other well executed blowfish I have seen, as I personally have never made one.) The main thing about a blowfish that really makes it look well done or not IMO are whether or not the lines are clean. Some shapes are more forgiving, but the blowfish is one that simply needs to be executed well in order to look even decent. So fare yours is looking pretty good, but the lines, especially on the shank could be more crisp and well defined, but at the same time they need to be fluid. This shape is not a rigid one or mechanical. It's an organic shape, one meant to mimic nature and God rarely works in straight lines.

Also, given where the briar's flaws are showing up, I think it would look stellar if you could sandblast cross grain area on top and bottom and leave that nice bird's eye smooth. But that's just my personal opinion.

Great work so far. I look forward to seeing how this one turns out.

[363]

Thanks JMG, there is a larger pit on the larger birds side. If it makes it past drilling it will most likely get a full blast. As for the shank, I was unsure where to go with it, but I am thinking swooping it up and rounding it over

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[JMG]

Ouch...yeah, I just saw that flaw you mentioned. That's a bummer. If you can't go fully smooth on a blowfish, I personally really love some contrast between the sides and middle. If you could pull off some sort of contrast stain between the two I think that would be the knees of bees, but that's certainly just my preference. I would recommend studying the crap out of other blowfish that you think are well executed and even ones that are not so that you will know what works and what doesn't. This early in the game there's no need to try and reinvent the wheel.

[PremalChheda]

Change shank angle. Pic attached.

[363]

Thanks Premal, I will adress that, being unsure I didn't wanna remove too much. Changing the shank angle will allow for a flush fit, would it yeild the same if I chose to go with a military mount stem?

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[PremalChheda]

Thanks Premal, I will adress that, being unsure I didn't wanna remove too much. Changing the shank angle will allow for a flush fit, would it yeild the same if I chose to go with a military mount stem?

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Yes, you still will benefit from changing the angle for a military mount. Your mortise and airway should be drilled at different angles.

[363]

So I'm not sure if where I took it was the right path, but what's done is done I guess. I took some more off the top and narrowed the straight grain to try and accentuate the birds eye a little more the way I had seen other blowfish done. I managed to get the hand drilling centered at least. Over shot the airway bit by about an 1/8" and one of the stepper bits I used grabbed a little and went a tad deeper than I wanted, so the chamber isn't too pretty. I should be able to make a dowel with sand paper and at least sand some of the funk out of it on the lathe. I also changed the shank angle as close as I could with what Premel suggested. It now looks (to me at least) like a crab claw where the shape meets the chamber. I have penciled on thoughts of where I might take it, but I am wondering if I bring the height of the "fin" or area where the straight grain and birds meet on the left down some it may help the shape better?





With all this said, this pipe will not be sold, but remain with me. (Fyi, 3rd attempt at freehand drilling so don't be too rough )

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[363]

Oh and the mortise and airway are separate angles

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[JMG]

Nice job. I definitely think you should take down the top of the bowl to the lines you have drawn out. It's looking good. Look forward to seeing it with a stem on.

[clickklick]

How is this one coming along?

[d.huber]

The lines on the bowl look pretty good. I'm glad you took Premal's advice and adjusted the angle of the shank face. It needed further adjustment but it looks much better.

On the next one, imagine that your shank is a tube with parallel walls. Make the line of the shank face perpendicular to the lines of the tube.

[363]

I did some more work on it last night, I'll post some photos later today.

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[e Markle]

I managed to get the hand drilling centered at least...
With all this said, this pipe will not be sold, but remain with me. (Fyi, 3rd attempt at freehand drilling so don't be too rough )

For a third attempt at drilling, I'd say you did fine, but "centered" isn't the word I would use to describe your result. That's not a knock, just a gentle push toward higher standards. If you'd like some tips on drilling, feel free to post a step-by-step of your current process. I'm sure a few people would offer helpful insights.

[363]

I managed to get the hand drilling centered at least...
With all this said, this pipe will not be sold, but remain with me. (Fyi, 3rd attempt at freehand drilling so don't be too rough )

For a third attempt at drilling, I'd say you did fine, but "centered" isn't the word I would use to describe your result. That's not a knock, just a gentle push toward higher standards. If you'd like some tips on drilling, feel free to post a step-by-step of your current process. I'm sure a few people would offer helpful insights.

No offense taken, centered probably wasn't the best word choice, but by that I meant that the holes all line up respectably. So I guess I didn't have the shank angle quite right and after talking with Nate changed the shank some. Not to happy with my snafu but it does look a little better.








I feel like I've lost a lot of the original flow that I felt the pipe had, I threw some stain on to get a feel for it better but there is still a lot of refinement to do.

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[sandahlpipe]

What's going on with the bottom of the chamber? Looks like you've got some steps? The fins don't typically protrude beneath the bottom line either. I think that line is where you lost the flow.

[clickklick]

Turning out a bit straighter than I imagined. Is the draft hole over drilled into the bowl a bit? I'm not critiquing, just absorbing as I love blowfish and its nice to see the work in progress.

[363]

Yeah, I had some issues when drilling the chamber/airway that I had originally brought up. I am going to try and sand the chamber out later.

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[scotties22]

What's going on with the bottom of the chamber? Looks like you've got some steps? The fins don't typically protrude beneath the bottom line either. I think that line is where you lost the flow.

NOTHING should EVER be below the bottom line on a pipe.....EVER

I think you took a bit too much off the bottom line of the shank which makes the fins looks a little long. Take a look at the last set of pics you posted (profile shot) and then this set. The shank is a lot thinner than it was. And I'm sure it was a fix of a fix of a fix at this point.