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Question! I'm making a pipe for a guy in Germany who says his 9mm filters are exactly 9mm. I bought the same pack and they are 7.8mm on average. Should I go with an 8.5mm bit or 3/8s which is slightly bigger than 9mm? TIA!!!

On the chance that what SEEMS to be the same brand is actually different in Europe vs. US, I'd take what he says at face value (after double checking with him). The last thing you want is an otherwise spot-on commission to become a problem for him to smoke/deal with.

They vary from brand to brand. One 9mm filter will fit snug, another won't even go in. It's really freaking annoying, and one of many reasons I don't do 9mm filter pipe orders.

I posted this answer on the facebook post but I'll say it again here as some don't use facebook and it may be helpful in the future.

Firstly, don't do 9mm filters, they are a pain in the arse and spoil a good pipe as you have to change the design to suit and it all ends up looking fat.

If you want to do them though, get the customer to send you a pack of their favourite brand of filters, that way there is no argument and you can get a perfect fit.

Thanks y'all. I guess I'll find out when he gets it. I drilled 8.5 mm most of the way with a 5/16 at the bottom divot to grab the filter. I'm considering having him pay me when he gets it to avoid confrontation.

You mean you actually ship pipes without payment? [shockedface]

Also, I dunno if it's just me or not, but does anyone else find that the buyers who want 9mm pipes are also often the buyers who are the most trouble? Like, the guy who wants to buy a pipe for a factory pipe price but then will sit and examine it under a magnifier for any little imperfection, convinced he should get $900 of work for $150.

TreverT wrote: ↑Fri Mar 04, 2022 8:59 pm Also, I dunno if it's just me or not, but does anyone else find that the buyers who want 9mm pipes are also often the buyers who are the most trouble? Like, the guy who wants to buy a pipe for a factory pipe price but then will sit and examine it under a magnifier for any little imperfection, convinced he should get $900 of work for $150.

There is a very strong correlation.

I'm going to disagree with you guys here, it's mostly a matter of market.

As in: when a US customer asks me for a 9mm pipe, I'm on the lookout for trouble. However when a Dutch customer asks for a 9mm I won't even think twice about it.
And that makes sense: Outside of Germany and the Netherlands, pretty much nobody uses filters, but in those 2 countries there's actually more people using them than not.

As for the original question: a 8.5mm should fit pretty much any brand nicely and allow them to be removed once wet & swollen. The trick isn't so much in the diameter as it is in length. If you want to prevent a filter from jiggling about in the chamber, make sure it's nice and snug lengthwise. This also means drilling your mortise with a bit sized for the tenon (probably 11mm or thereabout) and then drilling it slightly deeper with a 8.5 bit so you can leave the hole in the stem slightly shallow to allow for extraction of the filter.

The easiest solution for everyone is to set the GOLP (Giant Orbiting Laser Platform) to vaporize the entirety of Germany and Holland, and individually zap any outlier/escapees elsewhere in the world who insist on giant filter pipes.

Right? Right.

A few people might get testy about it---think it's an overreaction---but something else will come along to grab their attention in a few days.