Rusticated poker with cumberland

[BrianMadsen]

Hello gents! This is the newest pipe.
It was a comission, based on a poker i made earlier this year, but the customer wanted it black with cumberland.
Comments and constructive critique are more than welcome.
Have a great day!

[sandahlpipe]

Two things to not pick from me.

1. I don't know why you chose that placement for the rustication. It looks a bit strange to me.
2. The sides of the stem just after the saddle have a bit of a pinch before the fishtail. I would like to see those be straight in line from the shank to where they meet the fishtail.

Other than that, it's a nice pipe.

[pipedreamer]

I'm with Jeremia on this!!!

[LatakiaLover]

IAWJ

[caskwith]

I happen to like the rustication angle, and the pipe in general, nice work. I agree with comments on the stem though, the pinch makes it look kind of odd and a bit like a cheap pre-form.

[shikano53]

I like the pinch.

[BrianMadsen]

Thanks for all the replies. I am still practicing saddle stems with a smooth transition. I only use a wood lathe, so there's a lot fine tuning by hand after turning. I know the pinch isn't that great, and i would also love to make a saddle stem without it, so i will practice some more.

I made a poker earlier this year with the same rustication pattern, and the customer for this comission wanted the same rustication.
I love how it looks, instead of just using the "typical" ring pattern around the bowl. I just like to experiment a bit.

[DocAitch]

I also like the rustication and think that it represents a higher level of craftsmanship that the random pattern usually seen. I also thought the stem was OK, but two of my favorite smokes are pokers with precut stems.
DocAitch