Topic: Pipe 8: NOV06 -NFS
All background images in these photos are from the Winter 2007 Edition of Pipes & Tobacco Magazine. The article titled "Briar Cutters" featuring the Romeo's of Italy. "Mimmo"Romeo states in the article that the outside of the burl is the MOST desireable. Pipe 9 includes the absolute, spot on, dead-center of the burl, which is safe to assume is the LEAST desireable part of the burl. For this reason PIPE 9 is mine and not yours.
I do feel that I did reconcile the dead center of the burl with the heel of the pipe, wrapping around to each side. I actually like it and like I said before it is rock solid. It is by definition the oldest part of this burl.
Mimmo also says that once the wood is processed/milled/cured it is not possible to dertermine the origin of the wood, neither i it as important as many people suggest. What is important is in fact the service Mimmo to the pipemaking community. The people with the sawing the blocks, in my humble opinion have a huge impact on the final product. For instance, if I put out a straight grain or other gorgeous pipe, it is because the folks with the saws made it possible.
The pictures below hopefully demonstrate the center of the burl as it presents itself in my pipe:
... to use an acrylic stem for once. I hadn't because" the pipo tenon turner wasn't working on acrylic for me because it was slightly bent and it was breaking and chonpping and making a bloody mess. Solution: I straigntened it out a bit and that help, but more importantly I use it in a different drill. An OLD drill of my dads. Its from back when they made them with aluminum casing. This drill has a higher RPM and worked much beter. Excellent actually. 
Here (left) are some early 19th century Clay pipes from Heathers collection. Impressive and for me, inspiring. Months ago I had thought of mimicking the shapes of clays. Reading Corneels article whelp to reinforce that desire. Seeing Heather's collection has opened my eyes as well, and reminded me of when I was a teen snorkeling by the coast by my house in Beverly, Mass. I found a stem from a clay pipe. I assumed it was from the 1700's when half-way between my house and the beach stood the Woodbury Tavern. I was hooked and did a bit research myself and remember learning that tavern pipes were community property, and after they were smoke, the stem would be broken off for the next person. I have since/recently learned that the tavern pipes were pretty much the "estate pipe" of today. Taverns were effectively the secondary market for clay pipes.