MM Twain Chamber Diameter and Boring Them Bigger

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aldecaker

Lifer
Feb 13, 2015
4,407
42
While perusing another forum, I noticed someone had the same thought I did. Well, almost. Let me explain.
I have four MM Twain cobs. I fell in love with the first two I bought. Having survived the drought a few years ago that made all MM cob production tiny, I bought two more to squirrel away. I didn't want to get stuck with "mini Twains" if I bought them a few years down the road.
The four Twains, while having a similar outside diameter, have three very different inside diameters. (I can measure them when I get home later, if anyone cares.) My first is the largest, and my favorite. The Number One Port Side Booger Hooker will go into the bowl all the way to the bottom, with wiggle room. The second, Booger Hooker bottoms, but no wiggle room. The third and fourth, Booger Hooker only goes in to the first knuckle.
My first instinct (which is usually catastrophically wrong, BTW), was to bore the smaller ones out to match the size of the bigger ones, which is what the guy on the other forum did. Then I remembered a sad incident where a Great Dane Spool I loved very much burned out all around the thin waist of the bowl, and eventually came apart into two pieces. I started to think, Maybe the people at MM know more about corncob pipes than I do, and there is a perfectly good reason for the different chamber diameters. I am now afraid that boring them out will remove too much of the hard pith, and put the ember too close to the softer, corn-kernelly part of the cob, inviting a burnout. Any thoughts on this?

 

jackswilling

Lifer
Feb 15, 2015
1,777
24
My favorite MM shape. Not sure I would engage in some "beer can" engineering on mine, but there is not a significant downside in the case of a fail. The bowl size may have some relation to the original "core" size of the cod, not the O.D. or, it could be that uniformity and precision are not to be expected. If you do modify please post the method and results.

 

jackswilling

Lifer
Feb 15, 2015
1,777
24
My favorite MM shape. Not sure I would engage in some "beer can" engineering on mine, but there is not a significant downside in the case of a fail. The bowl size may have some relation to the original "core" size of the cod, not the O.D. or, it could be that uniformity and precision are not to be expected. If you do modify please post the method and results.

 

mso489

Lifer
Feb 21, 2013
41,210
60,454
I trust the MM makers to get the bowl about the right size for that year's cob crop. They've been at this for eons and pretty well know the material.

 

jackswilling

Lifer
Feb 15, 2015
1,777
24
^^^ That is what I was thinking and getting at. You made a better/clearer post, so what he ^^^ said.

 

mayfair70

Lifer
Sep 14, 2015
1,968
2
Took me a minute to figure out what a "booger hooker" was. 8O If you decide to drill a bigger hole, just make sure your bit is SHARP SHARP SHARP!! Cob can be soft and it will just tear out big chunks if not cut properly. And yes, pics please. Good luck! :P

 

aldecaker

Lifer
Feb 13, 2015
4,407
42
If I do proceed with this experiment, I will first have to acquire a bit that replicates the conical chamber of the Twain. (That conical drilling is what nudged the Country Gent out of first place and made the Twain my favorite cob.) Since it will be a virgin bit, I imagine it will be plenty sharp. Which means any screwups will be wholly owned by Aldecaker Pipe Mods, Inc. :)

 

mso489

Lifer
Feb 21, 2013
41,210
60,454
If you mostly want a MM with a big chamber, I'd suggest the freehand. It has an acrylic stem, which is a plus, and plenty of bowl for most purposes.

 

aldecaker

Lifer
Feb 13, 2015
4,407
42
I think the freehand may be a bit too much. My love for the Twain stems from my first one having a chamber about the size of a CG (perfect for me), but with the bonus of being conical. I really like the "cannonball" method with rubbed out flakes, and a conical chamber is ideal for the purpose. I thought the second pair of Twains would have larger chambers like the first one I bought.
EDIT: Right on about the freehand stems, by the way. I purchased four of them for use on various cobs, and they're a great stem.

 
Mar 1, 2014
3,647
4,916
http://www.leevalley.com/US/wood/page.aspx?p=69808&cat=1,130,43409
I use "N".
After hearing about the seasonal differences in cobs, and seeing some interesting changes in just the one year that I've been buying them, I plan on picking up at least one cob every year, at least for a while. It should be neat seeing how much variation you get from year to year.

 
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