Rotorhead88 Intro
Posted: Wed Dec 23, 2015 8:52 pm
My name is Allen Kipp and I hang my hat in upstate NY. I've smoked a pipe on and off since my days in the service and started seriously a few years ago when my dad handed down his collection to me. My only higher end pipe is a Radice Bulldog that I love. Like most things in life, my taste in pipes far exceeds my budget so I decided to explore pipe making as most things I can't afford, I make.
I'm an Engineering Fabricator by trade, which means I machine, weld and build one off machines and machine parts. Love the work actually.
I've made 5 pipes so far but have been able to pretty much self critique using info and critiques on this board. My most recent pipe is a decent little sandblast and is to the point that I wouldn't be embarrassed to be seen in public with it. I still have a lot of work to do on technique and I believe slot work on mouthpieces will be what puts me in the looney bin but I find pipe work to be very challenging and rewarding when I get something right.
I hope to be able to someday visit and watch a maker work. I have tooling and tool skill out the wazoo but have realized that tools do not make the pipe maker at all. I want to watch someone marry up design, aesthetic and technique and see that translated to machine work. I think that's where the voodoo happens.
Anyways, thank you all for sharing so much info and technique with newbs like me. It's an amazing resource worth it's weight in gold.
I'm an Engineering Fabricator by trade, which means I machine, weld and build one off machines and machine parts. Love the work actually.
I've made 5 pipes so far but have been able to pretty much self critique using info and critiques on this board. My most recent pipe is a decent little sandblast and is to the point that I wouldn't be embarrassed to be seen in public with it. I still have a lot of work to do on technique and I believe slot work on mouthpieces will be what puts me in the looney bin but I find pipe work to be very challenging and rewarding when I get something right.
I hope to be able to someday visit and watch a maker work. I have tooling and tool skill out the wazoo but have realized that tools do not make the pipe maker at all. I want to watch someone marry up design, aesthetic and technique and see that translated to machine work. I think that's where the voodoo happens.
Anyways, thank you all for sharing so much info and technique with newbs like me. It's an amazing resource worth it's weight in gold.
Congrats J.