A Dublin

[maddis]

Hi all,

Relatively new member to the forum, and first time sharing a pipe. My intention was to make a somewhat chubbier shaped Dublin than what one might consider "typical." Size-wise, it's 5.5" long, 1.97" bowl diameter, 13/16" bore. Let me say up front that the button clearly needs work. This was my first hand-cut stem and I can see that it's going to take some practice (like everything!).

I welcome any and all feedback.

[wisemanpipes]

hey. i think the stummel is very well done in my eyes and like it very much. the block has nice grain but you didnt make it pop, it just kinda there. FWIW i actually like the rounded top, but im sure some people would say it woulkd benefit from sharper lines. to my eye, if you want to make the pipe flow better, i would try and match the taper of the shank to the taper of the stem. yes your button needs some work but then again, im sure alot of people, including myself, need button pratice. anyway, great 1st forum pipe.
-evan

[PhilipMarc]

Though this is the first pipe you have shared with the forum, I assume this is not the first pipe you have made. If it is, you should quit your day job.

The balance of the pipe is very nice. Proportionally I think it came out just as you intended; a "chubby" dublin. I actually think the gently rounded top was a good choice. A chubby pipe with very hard lines and abrupt angles usually looks unnatural to me. You usually don't see a thick-boned woman with chiseled abs, right? Just my opinion.

In the way of improvements, aside from the button which you mentioned, the stain does not look to be quite evenly applied, particularly on the rim of the bowl. Secondly the stem almost looks to have a very slight upward bend, though I think that's just a bit of over-sanding on the bottom of it. A slight forward cant of the bowl may have made it just a bit more graceful, I think.

Overall I think this is a VERY nice pipe. Great job!

[Literaryworkshop]

You nailed it on matching the shape of the bowl with the grain.

I'm very much a beginner, and I'm still mystified about all the different forms of pipes, so I can't add anything in the way of critique.

[maddis]

Thank you for the feedback. It takes time to look and comment and I appreciate that.

Re: staining: Having started to look into this in more detail, I wonder if I'm going about it wrong. I sand to 600, then stain, then tripoli, then stain, then white diamond, then light waxing, then I'm done. I spend an awful lot of time sanding relative to staining, and the stain goes on very lightly. How outside the norm am I? Wait, don't answer that, if the answer is go read through the history of the finishing sub-forum. I promise I will do that...

Re: my first pipe? Hell no! Try #109. The weirdest thing I've attempted is a volcano. I've been pretty much trying to make shapes with pleasing proportions, at least to my eyes. I have a thing called the "ugly context" test. I set the pipe down randomly in the ugliest spot I can find in the workshop, and then try and figure out where it's wonky based on that. Prolly sounds crazy, but it's like a way of making sure I'm not being fooled by a pretty background.