Tag Archives: briar wood
How to Make a Tobacco Pipe with Hand Tools, Part 2: Drilling the Briar Block
In my last post, I explained how I prepare a stem to be fitted to a pipe. In this post, I will show how I drill the holes in the block of wood itself. This stage of the pipe-making process … Continue reading
How to Make Refrigerator Magnets from Wood Scraps
Some wood scraps are just too pretty to throw away. For example, the briar wood burl from which I make tobacco pipes has beautiful flame-grain, and some even has eye-catching natural edges. So every time I make a pipe, I … Continue reading
The Tragedy of Dull Saws
This afternoon, I was reading William Goldring’s The Pipe Book: A History and How to (1973), which briefly recounts the history of each historical type of pipe and explains how to make a similar one using a few, simple tools. … Continue reading
Making Another Tobacco Pipe
Not long ago, I carved my first tobacco pipe from a kit that my friend Doug provided. Now mutual colleague of ours is retiring, so we have decided to make him a pipe as a going-away present. Doug, who is … Continue reading
Carving a Tobacco Pipe
I don’t smoke, and don’t plan to take it up, since tools and wood are expensive enough as it is, but a couple months ago a pipe-smoking friend dropped a package on my desk. It contained this: A chunk of … Continue reading
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