My son's project for me....

[rickcharles606]

and a few more.....

[G3rry]

Very nice!

[Argonaut]

Looking fantastic!

[rickcharles606]

I'm considering using 1000 grit sandpaper before hitting it with carnuba, so he's going to do that tonight and the wax tomorrow night. Who here thinks we should stain it one more time???

[Argonaut]

I'd hit it with the 1000 grit first, stain it, then buff and wax.

[Kentos]

I'd hit it with the 1000 grit first, stain it, then buff and wax.

Words from a very wise man. I would say 1000 is a minimum if you want that deep clear look. I think sanding is as hard or harder than shaping the pipe IMO.

[rickcharles606]

I'd agree that the sanding is by far the most labor intensive portion of carving your own pipe. Also, any mistakes you make with the file and heavy grit sandpaper will definitely come back to haunt you when doing the finish sanding if you don't take care of them with the medium grit paper.

[rickcharles606]

So he sanded a bit more on the pipe, we applied another very light coat of stain and let it dry. Buffed it a bit with fine polishing compound on the wheel, and then began applying the carnuba. It shined up so very nicely and the grain looked great, but after setting for a little while it looked satin instead of a high gloss. Will the briar soak up some of the carnuba and how many coats of carnuba should one add to a new pipe like this?

I took the opportunity to clean up my other pipes too, and they came out incredibly nice looking...I'll post pics later tonight. I used the same carnuba on them and they look high gloss and didn't fade to satin. Which makes me wonder if it's the new briar or what?

[Argonaut]

Are you using a puck of carnuba and a buffing wheel, or a paste form of carnuba?

[rickcharles606]

Are you using a puck of carnuba and a buffing wheel, or a paste form of carnuba?

I'm using a 6" bar of carnuba on a buffing wheel that I use for polishing knives and their handles, also gun stocks. Which by the way, I'm going to try a bit of carnuba on ;-)

[Argonaut]

The only time I had one change color, I determined I had applied too much wax. If I remember, I wound up taking a cotton cloth (t-shirt) and hand rubbed it back to a shine. Someone told me the cotton was a little more abrasive and would remove the excess carnuba, it worked like a charm. Maybe that'll help.

[JM]

Very talented boy you have there, very thoughtful gift.

[mdunn]

Cool!

Need to do one of these myself!

[rickcharles606]

I was going to post pics a few days ago, but we lost power in a storm on Friday and the lights just came back on today. More importantly, the AC came back on, lol. I've been smoking this pipe now for three days or so and I LOVE it because it smokes really nicely and it's not heavy...and of course because my son made this for me. He's already planning the second pipe ;-)

Here are the pics of the finished product...I think it needs more carnuba. It's interesting that the grain on one side of the pipe is really nice looking, but on the other side it's rather boring, lol. Regardless...it's the prize of my collection now.

[oc_in_fw]

Looking good.

[rickcharles606]

As you can see we shortened the stem, which I like quite a bit because it makes it much easier to clench. I think I will buy another stem for it though and see if I can find a lighter acrylic stem. Blake my son, wants me to design him a logo...he wants something to do with his initials BC, but not in caps. He wants to keep making pipes and put his logo on them. Gotta love his entreprenuerial spirit. I told him I'd help him get it started, so we'll see ;-)

[Argonaut]

Great job!

[Kentos]

Great Job!

My 2 cents.

He needs to learn to drill and bore his own briar to really maximize the earning potential, as well as to be as creative as he could be. Buying the kits are the first step of course, but with his enthusiasm I could see a great hobby for him, and a big investment for you

[du52]

That...is....awesome...

[rickcharles606]

Great Job!

My 2 cents.

He needs to learn to drill and bore his own briar to really maximize the earning potential, as well as to be as creative as he could be. Buying the kits are the first step of course, but with his enthusiasm I could see a great hobby for him, and a big investment for you

While I agree with you, I'm going to buy several pre-drilled kits and let him "practice" or at least hone his skills a bit before turning him loose on the drill press, lol. He's 15, but a mature 15 at that. I'm going to buy one undrilled blank and he and I will do it together, because I'd like to have a nice freehand. I'm not really concerned about the investment, because it's the time we spend together that matters to me.