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Trying my hand
I thought it best to start a separate thread for this. I’ve started on my second piece of briar. After finding the crack in the first one I did as Edward suggested and mixed briar dust and epoxy to fill the crack. I imagine the mixture of the two is much more durable than concrete. I’ll use it for practice and honing skills. Nevertheless, I started another one. I have my stem fitted and I have it cut down to almost sanding point. Still arguing with myself about how steep of an angle I am going to put on the bottom. Big thing....no cracks! It is smokeable at this point but there’s still a lot of work to do. If anyone has done this before and has suggestions or advice...I’m all ears. 
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Do you know ahead of time what shape you are aiming for, or are you just going to start in on it and see what it turns out to be when it is done (that's more my style, lol)? Anyway, good luck, can't wait to see how it turns out. Oh, and I have read that the transition between the stem and the bowl is the most difficult part of pipe shaping, fwiw.
I read that as well. I think I am going to keep it rather simple for this one and probably go for a poker; however, I tend to be the same way and just start in on things lol.
I'm also excited to see what you end up with rusty thread bookmarked
Still have a lot of refining to do but it’s getting there. Will probably try to rusticate it since there isn’t a great deal of pronounced grain showing yet. It might after finer sanding.
Starting to look pipey.
Starting to get some nice grain to show with finer sanding. Getting down to 300 grit to see what pops out.
Starting to show a little
Once you hit it w/ some stain or other finish, that grain will really pop. Nice job, Rusty.
Thanks Peter. I wiped it down with some alcohol and it’s showing quite a bit.
I’ve sanded all I can sand and finally hit it with a first coat of stain.
I’m not sure if this is what people call “flame grain” or what but it’s interesting.
Not sure if that's flame grain, but you've got some birdseye going on in front.
Well she’s far from perfect, but I learned a lot. Basically with the issues I’m having with my hands I needed to prove to myself that I could still use them. I didn’t use any power tools of any kind except for to drill the holes. For me that’s the win.
She’s kinda like the last girl in the bar at 2am….she ain’t perty but she smokes and gets the job done.
Having some Sutliff 1849 through it now…and it’s pretty damn good.
Like I said, I learned a lot. Next one I’ll be using power tools lol.
How much does she weigh?
She’s a little heavy at 2.4oz but she’s a sitter not a clincher lol
68 grams, that's not bad.
Nice work. Sometimes that last girl in the bar is the best performer
It's all the experience that does it.
Don't let the wife know what you spend on guns, ammo or cigars.
I want to try this one of these days. I’ve eyeballed a few starter kits. I wish I had time to do some mentoring with a local pipe maker. Nice work. Do you have another one planned?
I’ve been working on another one made of morta…
Update on this Rusty?
Rusty these are nice, what Steve said, any updates.
Not much to update. My hands started bothering me quite a bit during the process and I never picked it back up. I guess I should do that. I had actually forgotten about it.
Hope you're feeling better...
Thanks, they have gotten a lot better. Still a little stiff every now and then but I’m able to use them a lot better.
In other words, carving a pipe not only will try one's patience, but it is also trying for your hands.
It was for me because I was being stubborn and not using any power tools besides a drill. All the cutting I did with a coping saw and sanding by hand.
Ain't it a beach? I used to paint, hammer, saw, finish sheetrock, lift heavy iron all day, then be able to shoot pool or play darts.
Now?
2 days work and I can hardly wipe my...um...glasses.
"If you do not read the newspapers you're uninformed. If you do read the newspapers, you're misinformed." -- Mark Twain
For now I’m still able to do the larger more manual labor duties. It’s the smaller more tedious things that get me.
I use one of these on the jewelers bench; much quieter, precise, and durable than a Dremel.
Edit: oh yeah, the link:
https://www.homedepot.com/p/Proxxon-Model-Building-and-Engraving-Set-with-6-Steel-Collets-38515/203459886
Nice! I’ll have to pick one of these up.