New guy saying hi

[phmann]

So I have been making pipes off and on for about 6 years but all without any guidance as far as how it should be done. This has resulted in some interesting designs. I started in college because I couldn't afford a pipe of my own and had access to the art building's shop tools.

Myself and Tobacco get along well. Although I tend to prefer cigars, I smoke my pipe here and there and enjoy it quite a bit. There's a great smoke shop here in Rochester that I frequent called Dewey Ave. Smoke shop.

I recently became more serious about it after a couple friends asked me to make them some pipes for specific purposes. I have accumulated some tools and have been hoping to sell a few pipes in order to buy either a drill press or a lathe. Currently I use prefab stems but hope to learn to work with stem materials myself.

I have been reading on here a lot and find much of the information very useful. Thanks to Kurt for a great idea!

I have been steadily working on a few pipes that I am very proud of and have been getting ready to post some pics to get some advice as far as where I could improve. So I wanted to wait until I could get them all buffed and waxed before posted them. Earlier today my package from Tim West came with the compounds and another buffing wheel. I was so excited to be done so I could post the pictures and move on to working on some other pipes. Then, when buffing my best one yet, the buffer sent my best pipe airborne whereupon it suffered a chip in the briar and broke the stem off! After swearing quietly so my wife couldn't hear, I gathered myself and set it aside not really knowing what I was going to do with it now. Then I grabbed my next best pipe waiting o be finished. Wouldn't you know that a careless turn of the stem cracked the shank! WTF! This never happened on any of my other works of crap!

So I say hello to you all, and it might be awhile before I can get some critique. I was really hoping that this hobby might be able to pay for itself because I love it and money is tight. Now I'm not so sure.

[jogilli]

hello.. and welcome.... enjoy your time on the forum

james

[Ocelot55]

Sorry about your accidents. We've all been there at least a couple of times. It kinda comes with the territory.

Welcome to the forum.

[d.huber]

Sorry to hear about your buffing woes. Buffing is the most recent skill among all the innumerable skills necessary to make a pipe that I've had to learn. It's surprisingly intricate to get right and incredibly frustrating when something goes wrong.

My advice: pick up the pipes you broke and practice buffing with them. Look for threads about buffing on the forum, 'cause there are plenty and apply that knowledge on these practice pieces before you buff another pipe you've put tons of work into.

Welcome aboard.

[phmann]

Sorry to hear about your buffing woes. Buffing is the most recent skill among all the innumerable skills necessary to make a pipe that I've had to learn. It's surprisingly intricate to get right and incredibly frustrating when something goes wrong.

My advice: pick up the pipes you broke and practice buffing with them. Look for threads about buffing on the forum, 'cause there are plenty and apply that knowledge on these practice pieces before you buff another pipe you've put tons of work into.

Welcome aboard.

Thanks for the tip!

[Tyler]

Welcome!

It won't always be this bad. I haven't cried in my shop in quite a while.

[d.huber]

Welcome!

It won't always be this bad. I haven't cried in my shop in quite a while.

C'mon now, Tyler. Lying doesn't become you.

[badger685]

Welcome!

It won't always be this bad. I haven't cried in my shop in quite a while.

Hey welcome aboard yo! While my shop tends to be a lounge chair with a trashcan between my knees to catch wood filings (or the bathroom with that trashcan between my knees prior to my shower [just keepin it real and being honest cuz as men we all know some if our best werk is done in the bathroom, amen?]) there is a treasure trove of tips and tricks here. There are also many noobies too without fear to post their works of practice (such as myself very shortly).

As a sidenote I started a thread a few weeks ago about first pipes -- it was both humbling and helpfully encouraging. It is in the Gallery and if I remember right it was called "so what did yer first pipes look like?"

Anyways welcome and happy knuckle scraping