pipemakersforum.com

I have done several serches and cannot locate information on Delrin and have a few questions.

1. What is the purpose of installing a delrin insert into a stem ?

2. What is the normal hole size in a stem ?

3. I turn acrylic pens and am wondering if it the same material as a pen blank ?

4. Good place to purchase acrylic blanks for stems ?

5. Good place to purchase briar blocks pre drilled and not drilled.

Thanks for sharing

1. Delrin is a self lubricating material. It makes inserting the tenon and taking it off the pipe very smooth.
2. Around here stems are drilled out with a tapered 5/32" bit almost all the way through. We come back from the other side with a 1/16" bit and use files and modified saws to make a nice flat funnel at the bit end.
3. Acrylic works just fine for pipe stems. Another common material is ebonite.
4. & 5. Pipe makers emporium has a ton of materials to get you started. Another option is to purchase them through a current member on this board, Vermont Freehand. He has tons of pre-drilled kits as well as normal briar.

Oh, and welcome to the forum.

1. Delrin is a material used as a shortcut by pussies who don't want to learn how to turn a proper tenon.

That is all.

Rad

Welcome to the forum.

I've gotten some good pre-drilled briar blocks from Mark Tinsky at http://www.amsmoke.com/.

RadDavis wrote:1. Delrin is a material used as a shortcut by pussies who don't want to learn how to turn a proper tenon.

That is all.

Rad

Rad is old. Pay no attention to his ramblings. He's been cutting stems before electricity

Ocelot55 wrote:2. Around here stems are drilled out with a tapered 5/32" bit almost all the way through. We come back from the other side with a 1/16" bit and use files and modified saws to make a nice flat funnel at the bit end.

what you talking about buckwheat... stems are 4 mm tapered .. with the last half inch 1.5mm ....and for tenons 7mm the new normal .. 11mm is preferred..at least by me.. don't listen to jesse.. he just bought his first set of drill bits yesterday... and who uses standard sizes anyway.. metric is sooooo much better .. don't tell jesse but metric bits drill straighter than standard drill bits... and they never get dull

james

jogilli wrote:

Ocelot55 wrote:2. Around here stems are drilled out with a tapered 5/32" bit almost all the way through. We come back from the other side with a 1/16" bit and use files and modified saws to make a nice flat funnel at the bit end.

what you talking about buckwheat... stems are 4 mm tapered .. with the last half inch 1.5mm ....and for tenons 7mm the new normal .. 11mm is preferred..at least by me.. don't listen to jesse.. he just bought his first set of drill bits yesterday... and who uses standard sizes anyway.. metric is sooooo much better .. don't tell jesse but metric bits drill straighter than standard drill bits... and they never get dull

james

Hmmm........well here in 'Merica we do things the right way. The ONLY way. And in Texas it reaches a whole 'nother level of awesome. The only "mm" I'm familiar with are the chocolate kind. They melt in your mouth not in your hand. That probably explains my expanding waistline. (Also an American trait)

What size of ammo do you put in your 9mm guns in Texas?

Sasquatch wrote:What size of ammo do you put in your 9mm guns in Texas?

Well, Sas, the 9mm has been officially banned by the Texas State Legislature. Nothing smaller than a .45 over here!

Thanks to all for the replies to the questions and a big thanks for the welcome.

I appreciate your patience.

RadDavis wrote:1. Delrin is a material used as a shortcut by pussies who don't want to learn how to turn a proper tenon.

That is all.

Rad

This.

And I'll raise you a 'Delrin is a material used as a shortcut by pussies who don't want to learn how to turn a proper tenon on a wood lathe.'

Wayne is sooooooo proud of himself for figuring out how to turn a tenon on a wood lathe
Delrin is my friend.

Actually I'm just too poor to afford a metal lathe. It's easier to try to convince people that it's the "real" way because that's how I do it. Although, I will admit that I have gotten pretty good at it out of necessity.

wdteipen wrote:Actually I'm just too poor to afford a metal lathe. It's easier to try to convince people that it's the "real" way because that's how I do it. Although, I will admit that I have gotten pretty good at it out of necessity.

Skills are skills man. I've always been impressed.

Ocelot55 wrote:

Sasquatch wrote:What size of ammo do you put in your 9mm guns in Texas?

Well, Sas, the 9mm has been officially banned by the Texas State Legislature. Nothing smaller than a .45 over here!

Jeff Cooper would be proud. God bless him.