Crosspost from Facebook: First Non-kit Pipe
Posted: Tue Jun 06, 2017 11:23 am
As noted in the thread title, I'd posted this about a week ago on the Facebook page (and got some very constructive feedback from DocAitch, I believe), but would love to get more feedback in the event that there's not a ton of overlap on the FB page.
Most of Doc's (much appreciated) feedback echoed the errors I've pointed out, but he also noted that the stem is perhaps too heavy and that harder demarcations between the straight/bird's eye sections would better emphasize the blowfish aspects - though I will say that now that I've smoked it for a week and have spent many hours with it in hand, I'm mostly pleased with those lines being less clearly defined because of how much I like how it feels in my hand, even if they're not exactly proper.
Anyway, still a ton to learn of course, but I feel like this is maybe 75-80% of the way toward being a pretty okay little pipe.
Thanks!
Original Facebook post below:
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After doing 15 pipes from kits, I took the plunge and made my first one from scratch - I guess sort of an egg with some blowfish DNA.
Definitely open to critique (I've got to learn, but maybe be gentle) - I'm aware there's a *LOT* wrong with it:
- A few tiny scratches in the stem I didn't get out, as well as a bit of oxidation that I missed until it was polished - both things I'll live with and do better next time.
- The color got a little bit muddy I think from some wet sanding.
- I did a pretty bad job facing the shank and the stem, and they ended up with a hairline gap that I couldn't manage to get out. I think I probably didn't grind the point off the forstner bit very evenly and it chewed a bit rather than making things nice and flat and clean - and once that got not-square, I really struggled with getting it better. Plus the tenon is just ugly.
- Did the shaping with the stem in, but not all the final sanding, so they don't mate perfectly.
- The button is probably a little huge and is not as clean as it needs to be. I mostly smoke my kit pipes which have the pre-formed vulcanite stems and big round buttons, so to a certain extent that's what feels 'right' to me.
- I also lost a little bit of the grace in that bottom line with some of the later sanding - that little bit of concavity there at the transition wasn't intended in the original shape.
- Bowl might be a bit large for the shank/stem, although I am mostly happy with the shape.
- Maybe a little bit of a kink in the stem bend, although that might also just be the way I shaped the stem - I almost wonder if I'd want to try bending before final shaping in the future.
All that being said, I'm pretty happy with how it turned out, but aspire to be good enough one day to be embarrassed by it. It's my first pipe with a 5/32" airway and first experience with a delrin tenon - and I really like both a lot.
And yes, I know I need to make a billiard for the sake of learning, they just don't sing to me that much :-/
-------------------------------------------------
(Hopefully these images being hosted on Facebook come through)
Most of Doc's (much appreciated) feedback echoed the errors I've pointed out, but he also noted that the stem is perhaps too heavy and that harder demarcations between the straight/bird's eye sections would better emphasize the blowfish aspects - though I will say that now that I've smoked it for a week and have spent many hours with it in hand, I'm mostly pleased with those lines being less clearly defined because of how much I like how it feels in my hand, even if they're not exactly proper.
Anyway, still a ton to learn of course, but I feel like this is maybe 75-80% of the way toward being a pretty okay little pipe.
Thanks!
Original Facebook post below:
-------------------------------------------------
After doing 15 pipes from kits, I took the plunge and made my first one from scratch - I guess sort of an egg with some blowfish DNA.
Definitely open to critique (I've got to learn, but maybe be gentle) - I'm aware there's a *LOT* wrong with it:
- A few tiny scratches in the stem I didn't get out, as well as a bit of oxidation that I missed until it was polished - both things I'll live with and do better next time.
- The color got a little bit muddy I think from some wet sanding.
- I did a pretty bad job facing the shank and the stem, and they ended up with a hairline gap that I couldn't manage to get out. I think I probably didn't grind the point off the forstner bit very evenly and it chewed a bit rather than making things nice and flat and clean - and once that got not-square, I really struggled with getting it better. Plus the tenon is just ugly.
- Did the shaping with the stem in, but not all the final sanding, so they don't mate perfectly.
- The button is probably a little huge and is not as clean as it needs to be. I mostly smoke my kit pipes which have the pre-formed vulcanite stems and big round buttons, so to a certain extent that's what feels 'right' to me.
- I also lost a little bit of the grace in that bottom line with some of the later sanding - that little bit of concavity there at the transition wasn't intended in the original shape.
- Bowl might be a bit large for the shank/stem, although I am mostly happy with the shape.
- Maybe a little bit of a kink in the stem bend, although that might also just be the way I shaped the stem - I almost wonder if I'd want to try bending before final shaping in the future.
All that being said, I'm pretty happy with how it turned out, but aspire to be good enough one day to be embarrassed by it. It's my first pipe with a 5/32" airway and first experience with a delrin tenon - and I really like both a lot.
And yes, I know I need to make a billiard for the sake of learning, they just don't sing to me that much :-/
-------------------------------------------------
(Hopefully these images being hosted on Facebook come through)