Here’s how it has turned out to date. The stain is a great match for the stem color, I’m iffy if I’ll keep using colored stems, this one trapped me to a color I’m not thrilled with - but it looks pretty darn good in person. The size is really nice, it’s a large pipe that seems to fit my hand well. I’ve smoked a few half bowls and the last one finally tasted good without that break-in burn taste at the end. My biggest lesson on this one is to be decisive, I kept having different ideas that made me rework and hampered completion, mainly about the shank treatment. Another lesson learned is Delrin rods will be my future. This is turned with a Pimo tenon turning tool and drilled for a 9mm filter. It’s a perfectly centered drill but I think I could have done it a lot quicker, the Pimo tool is pretty hard to dial in - I bought a supply of Delrin rods that are waiting for next time. If I use the Pimo tool again I’m going to drill a scrap 2nd piece of briar with a range of diameters in 1/2 mm steps before I drill the pipe and test fit a scrap stem - then the real tenon before I drill the pipe. I unfortunately drilled this pipe before I turned the tenon, so had to painstakingly fit the tenon. Overall I’m pleased and it’s promising to be a good smoker.
