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I know it is used for tenons, but what is to stop one from making the whole stem from it? Any ideas or comments? Any experiences?

The short answer is "nothing." The downside to acetal as a whole stem is that it doesn't buff up to a nice shiney finish. It also has a tendency to not want to stay bent.

So it "don't take a shine" but Acrylic does? I was reading about plastics and the two seem relatively close in density, heat durability and what not, but I guess Acetal "just aint got that thing"...Thanks!

Acetal is designed for a completely different purpose than acrylic. The two might look similar on paper, but they are worlds apart in terms of actual use.

Frankly, an acetal stem looks like shit.

Hi,

I actually tried that on two pipes last year. It's good to work with, bites okay, even takes a shine - but doesn't keep it well. So I guess I'll use my remaining acetal rod stock for tenons and stuff ...

Regards, Jens

With all due respect, I guess the question is this really:

Does it machine the same? Does it buff the same, sand the same? I think we can all agree I'm not going to be selling to international multi billionaire buyers anytime soon , so for practice and pipes made for my own personal pleasure, is this an option until some decent ebonite can be had?

Would it be good to learn some basic shaping technique with?

If you had a cheap source on hand then there is nothing wrong with using acetal for a stem. In all honesty however you would be better served getting some acrylic as the price is also cheap and much better for practise, basically if you can make a good stem from acrylic then making one from ebonite will be a breeze.

Newcarver wrote:With all due respect, I guess the question is this really:

Does it machine the same? Does it buff the same, sand the same? I think we can all agree I'm not going to be selling to international multi billionaire buyers anytime soon , so for practice and pipes made for my own personal pleasure, is this an option until some decent ebonite can be had?

Acetal or Delrin doesn't machine, buff, or sand anything like ebonite or acrylic.

That said, acrylic and ebonite don't machine or sand like each other very much, though buffing is easier with acrylic in my experience.

Newcarver wrote:Would it be good to learn some basic shaping technique with?

Possibly. I'd say that acetal is a fair piece more difficult to work than acrylic or ebonite, so you won't really be learning any techniques that are usable on the other materials, other than just learning what a comfortable stem can be.

If you can't get a hold of ebonite due to cost, take a look at acrylic and polyester. Pen blanks make a great stem material.

How many of you guys are using polyester?

I made one stem out of it, and although it had plenty of material, and was very comfortable, the slot kept slowly collapsing on me. I could heat it and it go back to where it was, but then would slowly collapse again.

Finally, I bit through it.

Rad

Ive been using it for at least 2 years, the vast majority of my pipes feature polyester stems. So far I have had one returned due to a crack early on but this was on about my 3rd handcut stem so I think it was my fault, the customer was very happy with the replacement stem and I never heard of any problems again.

caskwith wrote:Ive been using it for at least 2 years...

He said "using" not "wearing" Chris. I've seen your Saturday Night Fever getup.

e Markle wrote:

caskwith wrote:Ive been using it for at least 2 years...

He said "using" not "wearing" Chris. I've seen your Saturday Night Fever getup.

And we all know you can't your hands off me when I wear it! Next time I am calling the police!

caskwith wrote:

e Markle wrote:

caskwith wrote:Ive been using it for at least 2 years...

He said "using" not "wearing" Chris. I've seen your Saturday Night Fever getup.

And we all know you can't your hands off me when I wear it! Next time I am calling the police!

The fact you didnt call the police the first time is only more encouragement.

Newcarver, You can get very inexpensive vulcanite rod from J.H Lowe. 1/2"x18" for $10. I have been using that for practice and I think it works much better than acrylic and it takes a beautiful shine. Just thought I would throw that out there.