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Thread: Smoking pipes

  1. #1
    Senior Member payne's Avatar
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    Default Smoking pipes

    I crafted a bunch of stuff. You guys might be interested:

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    Just starting to work on my wooden pipe. I do not know which wood I picked: it was just laying on the ground and I cannot identify wood visually.

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    Polished version, finished shortly after tree planting.

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    When cherry picking, I sculpted this small guy. It's mostly natural work, though.
    I'd say it is a Black Magician, but it's totally up to you.

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    Before finishing my smoking pipe, I had to be creative. While I was trying to get inspired for a design of the wooden pipe to be made, I figure I could probably use dandelions.
    Go figure, it works perfectly great! No after-taste, no leaves burnt. Second step to make this natural pipe just below.

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    Just remove the yellow stuff, and dig all the way down to the stem's hole. Try to leave as many leafs as possible, as they will act like a bowl. Lick your finger and clean the bottom part of the stem, else it will taste bad.

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    A bunch of natural hooks I crafted. The left-most one is mostly just art.

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    Just wanted to share those beauties with you guys as well. When I was tree planting, I was lucky enough to find a solitary spot that was the most-perfectly placed of the whole camp: at about 1 meter from the shore line of a lake, with a beautiful hill in front, and the sunset right there as well.
    I watched the sunset every night for a month and a half at that spot. I can tell you I took many pictures.

    Here's a little bonus-sunset:
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    Anyways, related to the wooden pipe, I carved it with my little knife. For the hole, I intended on using a coal by blowing on it, but I ended up using a drill that someone had on the camp. How could I have done that hole without the drill? Any better techniques?
    Also, I never varnished the pipe. Could it be harmful to my health to smoke from it in that state? I have been using it for a few months now.
    Last edited by payne; 12-04-2012 at 02:39 AM.


  2. #2
    Senior Member BENESSE's Avatar
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    Good job on the pipe and hooks, beautiful photos!
    (actually, the hooks are really neat looking, you can make a necklace out of it)

  3. #3
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    Beautiful work Payne. Never thought of the dandelion pipe, creative. Back when I was younger, when we got in a pinch and needed something to smoke out of (for tobacco of course) some tinfoil could be used to fashion a device as well as boring through an apple or pear. Screens could then be stolen from the nearest faucet....

    Wow, I'm glad i'm older now....

  4. #4
    Senior Member gryffynklm's Avatar
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    Nice pics. I like the hooks, Have you had any success using them?

    I enjoy an accaisional pipe but can do with out it if I don't have it with me.

    PSA We all know the hazards of excessive smoking!! Its a serious problem.
    No need to start just because you can make a bushcraft pipe. Ive seen the health problems that can result from smoking tobacco with friends and family. Dont make it a habit or a hobby.

    There are several Youtube videos on Making bushcraft pipes. I have seen several and will include one at the end.
    First a caution..... when working with plants be sure that you aren't using a wood from a poisionous plant. Sumac comes to mind for pipe making. Sumac has both safe and poisionous veriaties. Know what you have before putting it in your mouth.

    Sumac branches have a pithy core that can be easily removed with a wire like a coat hanger. When the pith has been removed the resulting tube becomes the stem of the pipe. The bowl is drilled on the side using a bow drill.

    Choose a dead dry branch about 1.5" in diameter. Cut a flat about three inches from the end. Cut a dimple like you would on a hearth board for fire making but no gruve to the side. Choose a drill stick for the size bowl you want. Drill to the pith on the pipe stick. You can use a bit of sand to help the cutting.

    If you have a coat hanger or stiff wire that has been cut with a wire cutter it leaves a chistle shape on the wire. Work the wire twisting in and out to remove the pith. Keep a watch for the wire in the bowl. The pith may burn through the end by the bowl. If it does you can plug it with a plug whittled with your knife.

    If you do not have a wire. You can carefully split the pipe stick in half starting at the bowl end. I would also make the bowl closer to the end of the stick and start the split in the rim of the bowl. When the stick is split remove the pith.

    Find a suitable cordage like thin long tree roots. Remove the outer layer of the root and split the root in half. Whip the pipe stem like you would do to a rope to keep it from unraveling. I found this video a while ago and use it to make pipe stems for my clay pipe bowls.

    There are other methods for making a bush craft pipe.

    With no way to drill the stem i would carve the pipe as you have just a shorter stem. I would make a tapered hole for a reed pipe stem or a small sumac branch split and whipped with cordage. At the bottom of the taper hole I would use my screwdriver blade on my leather man I usually carry. Cut the stem to a taper and snug fit it into the bowl. It may not work perfect but if you really have to have that tobacco .....

    Karl

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    You have inspired me to carve my own. I love a good pipe!

  6. #6
    Senior Member Sparky93's Avatar
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    I enjoy an occasional pipe smoking, but normally only on special occasions. I have my grandpa's briar pipe that I use.
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    Senior Member hunter63's Avatar
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    Nice job, thats creative........Thanks for posting.
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    Super Moderator crashdive123's Avatar
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    Nice job. In some locations a pipe like that might cause you to have to do some 'splainin.....not that I think it should.
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  9. #9
    Senior Member payne's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by crashdive123 View Post
    Nice job. In some locations a pipe like that might cause you to have to do some 'splainin.....not that I think it should.
    It's small and stealthy for a reason.

    Quote Originally Posted by gryffynklm View Post
    Nice pics. I like the hooks, Have you had any success using them?

    I only tried the bigger one that is now a necklace (with the green cordage), and the small one with a feather and fishing line on it (to make it look like a bug).
    I stopped using the now-necklace design because it is most probably too weak to catch a fish (notice how the part where the line would be attached is very thin).
    The smaller one definitely could work with a lot of patience. I tried using it at 2 different places. In a flowing river on Vancouver Island where there was supposedly lots of salmon (my friend with a fishing rod didn't catch anything neither). The second time was while tree planting, from the lake's shore. I actually did get 2 fishes to bite the "hook", but because of the way it works, it's really hard to get it stuck in their mouth properly (and it has to fit the fish's size). I hadn't even put any living bait on it, only that small piece of feather.
    The more conventional designs of hooks seem worthless to me: it's just so hard to attach a living bait on that. The fish can easily steal it without touching the hook.
    A big advantage of the diamong-design (the "successful" one) is its shape: even though wood floats (just like a bug!), pulling the line actually submerges the hook under water slightly, and then the shape keeps doing its wonders because it starts moving perpendicularly to the direction of the force you are exercising in a very random and natural way. I am personally very surprised at how good that design is.

    Quote Originally Posted by mountainmark View Post
    Beautiful work Payne. Never thought of the dandelion pipe, creative. Back when I was younger, when we got in a pinch and needed something to smoke out of (for tobacco of course) some tinfoil could be used to fashion a device as well as boring through an apple or pear. Screens could then be stolen from the nearest faucet....
    I tried the apple design once: it works well, and then you get some munchies. Just don't eat the spot where the smoke went through.
    However, I do not like it much because I heard burnt sugars creates a toxic gas (to be confirmed).

    The dandelion design works with any hollow-stemmed flower.
    Here is my friend trying out the design with another flower:
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    Quote Originally Posted by BENESSE View Post
    Good job on the pipe and hooks, beautiful photos!
    (actually, the hooks are really neat looking, you can make a necklace out of it)
    I did make a necklace with one, as you can see in the picture.
    I do not wear it though because I feel like it could perforate my skin whenever I'd fall on it, haha.
    The wood of the hooks with that design came from a beach on Vancouver Island: there was some beautiful drift-wood laying everywhere, I just couldn't resist its call.

    ---

    Anyone knows how hard it would have been to "dig" a straight hole in my pipe by blowing on a coal?
    Last edited by payne; 12-04-2012 at 07:48 PM.

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    Senior Member gcckoka's Avatar
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    Hello , can anyone suggest me which wood should I use for making a pipe?

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    Senior Member kyratshooter's Avatar
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    If you didn't bring jerky what did I just eat?

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    Senior Member gcckoka's Avatar
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    I know where are a few briar bushes in my woods but I dont think I can find piece of wood that thick...
    Last edited by gcckoka; 10-01-2015 at 12:06 PM.

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    reclinite automaton canid's Avatar
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    Any non-toxic (or not especially toxic) hardwood can work pretty well. The denser ones tend to last longer though this can be adjusted by modifying how hot you smoke.

    I've had acceptable results from whatever broad-leaved hardwoods I've had ready to hand. My current one is fruitless mulberry and my previous couple were walnut. Heartwood is preferable to sapwood
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    Resident Wildman Wildthang's Avatar
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    You can actually make a pretty decent pipe from a corn cob! The soft core makes it very easy to work with!

  15. #15
    Senior Member gcckoka's Avatar
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    here is my first pipe, what do you think about it? I left the ruff edges because I like things to look like that , it looks like it was crafted by hand.

    IMG_1356.jpg
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    Alaska, The Madness! 1stimestar's Avatar
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    Aw, wonder what ever happened to Payne.
    Why do I live in Alaska? Because I can.

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    Senior Member kyratshooter's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by 1stimestar View Post
    Aw, wonder what ever happened to Payne.
    I also wonder about Payne.

    I guess it is the Parent/grandparent in me.

    I hope he is OK.

    We tried every way in the world to talk some sense into that boy and he still rode a raft down the Yukon River, and lived to send pictures back!
    If you didn't bring jerky what did I just eat?

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