And last weeks...........

[DMI]

Have fun with these.

If you want to see more pics they'll be going on ebay tonight.

Volcano, Algerian

Canted Dublin, Algerian

Brandy-ish, Spanish

Driver/Canted Brandy, Spanish

[jogilli]

DMI

The ring is definately different.. but I really like the execution on the canted dublin

james

[Sasquatch]

The biggest single general comment on improving these pipes would be to make certain that the line of the bowl doesn't drop below the line of the shank. That is the single "amateur" giveaway shaping "mistake". There are shapes with dropped chins to be sure - an acorn proper, for example. But an ordinary "brandyish" pipe, to steal your term, looks very heavy and sloppily cut if the bowl drops below the line of the shank. Quite the opposite on most "good looking" pipes - Peterson, Castello, Ser Jacopo - the lowest part of a bent pipe is hardly ever the bowl.

http://cigarsandpipes.com/pipes/pipes-n ... liard.html


Tied to this but a seperate "mistake" is that you are spending a great deal of energy on sanding and smoothing out the joint between the stem and shank, but in doing so, you are either flattening out or creating a shallow hollow there which disrupts the lines on most of the pipes. There's a sort of gentle pinching where the stem and shank meet because too much material is being taken off of it to get a good fit.

So on that brandy, if you knock some more material off the stem, and knock the material off underneath the bowl, it suddenly looks sharp and pro.



This happens to take the pipe out of "brandyish" and into billiardish, but the fact is, the back of the bowl is not brandyish - only the front side looks to be.

It's hard to tell the scale, but I'd suggest your button is probably twice as high as I would ordinarily consider acceptable.

You've got a bunch of things mastered - you are getting enviable finishes on the wood and a very good tight joint from stem to shank. So that's 2 things off the "how do I make a professional looking pipe" checklist. There's about 200 more, and I reckon I can hit about 12 on any given pipe.

[Mike Messer]

I agree with Sasquatch on this one, and stress, the bits seem outrageously high on all of them.
1. Fine
2. I think the ring is a little too large in diameter, but otherwise I really like it.
3. (above) I don't much like it.
4. I like the pipe generally, and I especially like the extension-shank detail.

[e Markle]

It's hard to tell the scale, but I'd suggest your button is probably twice as high as I would ordinarily consider acceptable.

Yeah, either these are really small pipes, or you have GINORMOUS buttons.

[DMI]

There are allways exceptions to 'rules', I have made quite a few 'saggy bottomed' pipes and people love them. As an example from the other thread the little rusticated thing has a saggy bottom and to quote the customer:

"Just received both of the new pipes yesterday, and I can't tell
you how very pleased I am with both of them! They're both so light that
they're perfect to smoke while I write (I started breaking them in last
night), and they both hang beautifully! The stubby has such a comfortable
mouthpiece (some just "fit" better with your teeth, you know?) that I
almost forgot I was even smoking it! Needless to say, the draw on both is
perfect--one of the biggest reasons why I LOVE your pipes. Just all-round
great smokers, as always, and absolutely beautiful to look at and hold,
whether in the hand or the mouth. David, my man, if I were a king, you'd
have a Royal Warrant, to be sure! Thank you so much for the wonderful
artistry and craftsmanship that you contribute to our gentle hobby! I wish
you many years more of the obvious pleasure you derive from crafting these
beautiful pipes"

Different people like different pipes, sometimes the more different the better (Walle). Think back to the introduction of Danish Freehands to America, the pipes were so different from the norm that people went mad for them. As with any design element it is often more about where, when and how it is used that makes a difference.

Looking from the other side at a better angle I can't see a pinch but what I do see is that the bottom of the shank has a bit of a curve to it, the joys of not turning pipes on a lathe.


David.

[Sasquatch]

In that case, I will stop wasting your time.

[DMI]

Sorry Sas it was not my intent to p you off, I appreciate all the comments I'm getting.

In the case of this particular pipe it's bad shank work that has caused the problem and it is through your comments and pics that I spotted it.

With three threads running there is a lot of crossover and it's getting confusing for me.

David.

[Abi Natur]

Hi David,
you have been busy i see and i am very glad that you are so creative and productive.
Keep on the good Work!

Abi
ps; now that my sea-cucumber pipe from the PITH is broken in i enjoy her with great pleasure, it smokes like a dream!