Hot time in da city
The three epoxied blocks were done curing yesterday afternoon. By the time I got to them I was tired from moving dirt -- get away from it for a few weeks and you're out of shape all over again.
So after they were done curing, I drilled the draft-hole and shaped the chamber of the first one, another Belge. I have a thing for the Belge shape, I like the flat top coupled with the canted bowl, it's kind of "art deco" and I am a big fan of art deco. The bottom of the tobacco chamber on that one is twenty thousandths of an inch below the draft hole, which kind of pisses me off, but the airflow is great and it passed all my airflow tests with flying colors.
I had time to drill the draft-hole and start shaping the chamber on the second block, a very bent variant of #73 I think it is, which in profile has kind of a scoop/hook shape. Finished shaping the chamber this morning, the chamber shape on this one is perfect as close as I can see, at first it was a little off in terms of pulling air straight down, but after a few minor tweaks it's pulling the air straight down and the draft-hole is dead in the middle of the bowl. It pulls as open as any straight pipe.
Drilling the third draft-hole, I lost the block. The drill was too acute, and the airway nicked the chamber. So it goes, next time I'll get a little different angle on it.
The rest of the day was chewed up by a trip to the city. But I did score a couple bandsaw blades, woo hoo!
Sometimes I wonder why I persist in calling this a "business". It's an addiction, not a business. In a business you make money, I've been doing this for three years and still haven't turned a penny profit. That will end real soon one way or another, no choice in the matter. Either the market will accept my work, or I'll close the doors, one or the other has to happen soon. Anybody who's waiting for a sale, there won't be any more reduced prices, ever; if I have to close up shop, anything unsold will go into my collection as a keepsake.
Enough of that depressing crap. Tomorrow morning I get back to carving, the part of the process that I love the most. There's nothing else quite like carving a block to its final shape, holding the grinder handpiece like a paring knife and going at it. I love it.
So after they were done curing, I drilled the draft-hole and shaped the chamber of the first one, another Belge. I have a thing for the Belge shape, I like the flat top coupled with the canted bowl, it's kind of "art deco" and I am a big fan of art deco. The bottom of the tobacco chamber on that one is twenty thousandths of an inch below the draft hole, which kind of pisses me off, but the airflow is great and it passed all my airflow tests with flying colors.
I had time to drill the draft-hole and start shaping the chamber on the second block, a very bent variant of #73 I think it is, which in profile has kind of a scoop/hook shape. Finished shaping the chamber this morning, the chamber shape on this one is perfect as close as I can see, at first it was a little off in terms of pulling air straight down, but after a few minor tweaks it's pulling the air straight down and the draft-hole is dead in the middle of the bowl. It pulls as open as any straight pipe.
Drilling the third draft-hole, I lost the block. The drill was too acute, and the airway nicked the chamber. So it goes, next time I'll get a little different angle on it.
The rest of the day was chewed up by a trip to the city. But I did score a couple bandsaw blades, woo hoo!
Sometimes I wonder why I persist in calling this a "business". It's an addiction, not a business. In a business you make money, I've been doing this for three years and still haven't turned a penny profit. That will end real soon one way or another, no choice in the matter. Either the market will accept my work, or I'll close the doors, one or the other has to happen soon. Anybody who's waiting for a sale, there won't be any more reduced prices, ever; if I have to close up shop, anything unsold will go into my collection as a keepsake.
Enough of that depressing crap. Tomorrow morning I get back to carving, the part of the process that I love the most. There's nothing else quite like carving a block to its final shape, holding the grinder handpiece like a paring knife and going at it. I love it.
posted by random at 6:19 PM
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