First pipe craft attempt

zanthal · Oct 6, 2012

It started out as:

and now it is:

I really should have read that this was Grade F briar ... grade F must be for "F*#$, I bought the wrong pre-bore kit"
But I managed to get this done with a sandpaper dremel tool, some 220 grit sandpaper, polishing compound and a buffing wheel.
I still have to read up on stains, and will probably try and stain this as firey red as I can get it.
Billiard is my least favorite shape, but I think the tobacky will taste extra sweet because I fashioned this myself.

sjpipesmoker · Oct 6, 2012

Nice for only having a dremel and sandpaper! Gotta post pictures after it's all stained!

fshu2 · Oct 6, 2012

very nice. everything looks very smooth and incredibly even for using just a dremel.

tbradsim1 · Oct 6, 2012

damn good first try, alot better than i could have done,if you don"t have special stains kiwi shoe polish will do a good job The old cajun

zanthal · Oct 6, 2012

:

: It did turn out better than I expected.
The most difficult part is definitely the symmetry.
I just got done puffing some Great Hiatus through it. It's got a great wide open draft and is air tight, can thank Tim West and his expertise for that. It's also extremely light, a great clencher
But to my dismay, I puffed like I would any broken in pipe and there's a bit of burnout. Not too bad but it's not a good sign, but I'm wondering if it's going to develop a cake layer before the burnout gets really nasty.
The block is 50+ years old, and the wood is very dry.
Either way it's a learning experience.

gwtwdbss · Oct 6, 2012

Very cool zanthal. I love a billiard shape. I am gonna have to give this a try sometime. Looks like fun!

bcirka · Oct 6, 2012

Really awesome! May I ask where you learned to do that? Did you apprentice someone? Buy a book?

captainprophesy · Oct 6, 2012

Very nice Zanthal... especially if all you had was sandpaper... good lord that must have took some time and patience

Cant wait to see pics after you stain it

photoman13 · Oct 6, 2012

Wow that's awesome! Very good first pipe!

gmwolford · Oct 6, 2012

That looks like a great pipe, super for the first try IMO. I'd like to try it one of these days … Anywho, can't wait to see it stained/finished.

ejames · Oct 6, 2012

Looking good !

sinister · Oct 6, 2012

Nice work! After seeing some of these types of threads, Im tempted to go out and try my hand at carving something up for myself. Problem is, cant narrow down what I shape I would want to do

numbersix · Oct 6, 2012

Nice work Zanthal - can't imagine doing so well with a dremel and sandpaper by hand.

zanthal · Oct 6, 2012

Really awesome! May I ask where you learned to do that? Did you apprentice someone? Buy a book?

It really was just a few hours of painstaking attention to detail. I don't do this sort of thing barely ever and my left hand is still sore right now from it.

smokindawg · Oct 7, 2012

Even cheap briar will make a good smoking pipe. And cheap briar is what I'd be using until I had some experience under my belt. Won't make you cry near as much if you kill a block.
Not bad at all for your first try. I started out making pipes using a dremel and it works well. Keep at it
Your also correct about it being sweet smoking a pipe you made yourself.

loborx · Oct 7, 2012

Nice pipe, zanthal! I'm a fan of the saddle bit style. Enjoy.

First pipe craft attempt

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