The Curse OF The Black Palm....

[zack24]

I learned many new words(none of them repeatable in polite company) in trying to work with Black Palm for the first time. The final result was worth it...but I learned a few lessons along the way.Cutting the end cap was all end grain that is fairly prone to tearout on most woods- this stuff is a nightmare- the secret is to sharpen your tools to a mirror finish...and then sharpen them some more...When you're cutting on the lathe, the only hope is to saturate the surface with CA glue(superglue)and take really light cuts...The stem was much easier because I wasn't dealing with the end grain....Finished it off with a Cumberland stem and a natural finish...

Fitting the cap

Rough shaping complete...

...and a couple of pics of the finished pipe...

 

[anthonyrosenthal74]

8O Wow. Just freaking wow. :clap:

 

[daimyo]

Exceptional!

 

[andystewart]

That's a beautiful pipe Zack. The contrast of the bowl and that cap is to die for.
Andy

 

[pitchfork]

Wow. Never seen it used that way. Looks great. Do you think it will be stable cut like that?

 

[stvalentine]

This is an exeptionally beautiful pipe but I can imagine that palm is a nightmare to work with.

 

[cobguy]

Zack ... do you put these up for sale online?
That piece really makes me "twitch"! :P

 

[pipebaum81]

A true beauty. Nice work.

 

[zack24]

Thanks guys!

Do you think it will be stable cut like that?

It's been sealed on both ends with CA...and I used a flexible epoxy to secure the cap to the briar to allow some flex between the two materials...

 

[pitchfork]

It's been sealed on both ends with CA...and I used a flexible epoxy to secure the cap to the briar to allow some flex between the two materials...

Cool. Has anyone that you've seen cut across the grain like that? It's really striking.

 

[dmcmtk]

Zack, it looks FANTASTIC!!!

 

[zack24]

Has anyone that you've seen cut across the grain like that?

I haven't...it's probably been done. The biggest problem is getting a piece of black palm thick enough to be able to use the end grain across the cap...

 

[cosmicfolklore]

Absolutely stunning!

 

[puffy]

Really Beautiful

 

[danielplainview]

Wow. Great work. That has some very nice grain.

 

[instymp]

A man of many talents, an Artist.

 

[johnnyreb]

Beautiful, indeed!

 

[cortezattic]

Awesome! :clap:

 

[darthcider]

That is definitely an eye catcher, good work.

 

[bluesmk]

Very nice Zak, yes the wood is a bit temperamental to say the least but the rewards.....yes beautiful.

Dan

Gabrieli Pipes ::