Let's talk about mouthpieces
Вставка
- Опубліковано 12 чер 2024
- What's in a mouthpiece? I mean, come on, it's just a piece of molded plastic that you hold in your teeth. It can't be THAT complicated. In this video I discuss multiple aspects of the mouthpiece to help you understand what goes into a good one, what you should look for when you are buying a pipe, and how to appreciate the craftsmanship. So sit back, fire up your favorite briar, and enjoy this new video.
If you have an questions inspired by or not covered by the video, ask them in the comments below. I'll try to answer them as promptly as possible.
Thanks for watching!
For more videos, consider checking out my channel.
For pipes, check out my website: www.jalanpipes.com
For photos of my current work, check out my instagram: / jalanpipes - Навчання та стиль
Don't know why I just now found this. As I never got to attend any seminars at the shows, I really appreciate your channel and having a pipe maker open up and show his methods. Great stuff Sir!
Welcome aboard! Glad to know you're enjoying the videos
J., I'm so happy I watch this video. A world of information. My cat Briar Blues recommended it, And once again, he was right on target. Marvelous Your presentation was absolutely marvelous.
Jimmy Tabaccy many thanks. 🙏
Jeff, that was the absolute best explanation of stems ever! We appear to agree on this completely!
That means a lot coming from you, Mike. Thanks!
Jeff, thanks for the video and your take on mouth pieces. Very informative and a little more to think about when I make a pipe. Thanks again, and keep making informative videos for us novice pipe makers. God Bless.
Fantastic! Very concise explanation of all sorts of mouthpiece options. I like that you point out personal preferences, both yours and others.
Smokebacca Glad you liked it! Yes, if you prefer an ultra tiny draft hole in a super thick mouthpiece made out of twine, who am I to argue?
Thank you so much for your education video! Very smart, very clever,very sharp and exactly! And open!!! You do NOT make a secrets from your skills! It's amazing and i appreciate it very much!
Thank you again!
I repair and restore pipes a little bit and got a couple of your opinions by myself. You are absolutely right!!!
Cheers from Israel!
shvalbik so happy to be of help. Good luck with the restorations! Pipe lovers everywhere appreciate what you restorers do for them.
Thanks for posting these. I am really enjoying them and learning a ton from your expertise.
Jeff, excellent video and thank you for mentioning how people take for granted doing a stem replacement. I do repairs for a shop in upstate NY and we practically lose money on those jobs if done correctly. I'd like to see your take on the styles and creation of the stem button.
Nice video Jeff. Thanks for taking the time to provide some pipe edjamaction and send it our way.
Awesome video! Thanks Jeff!!!!!
Thank you for all you do. This is EXTREMELY helpful
glad to hear it
@J. Alan Pipes I love all your videos, my friend, but I have to admit that I'm an elderly pipe smoking gentleman that now ONLY smokes "charcoal filtered" pipes (even though I DON"T inhale). For some reason it seems that using "filters" hasn't caught on yet here in the U.S. like it has in Europe... which really is a shame since, IMHO, it makes for a COOLER, DRIER SMOKE with less chance of tongue bite. Either Vauen 9mm filters (which fit my Danish and German pipes) or Vauen 6mm filters (which fit my Savinelli pipes - replacing their more expensive, less efficient balsa ones) are definitely my "charcoal filters" of choice. Anyhow... PLEASE keep up the good work!... Your pipes are GORGEOUS WORKS OF ART... (and offering 9mm filtered models also could only serve to expand your market)! ;-)
I have made a few 9mm filter pipes, but most of my customers don't use them. It is mostly common in Germany, as I understand it.
@@jalanpipes Also filtered pipes are abundant in Denmark, it would seem... as, among the many 9mm filtered estate pipes that I've "resurrected" for my own personal use and collection, several old "gems" are from Denmark. BTW, I very much enjoyed your UA-cam interviews with Rick Newcombe... I enjoy his books, so I certainly find your interviews fascinating! Please keep up the good work... and I wish you continued success with your gorgeous pipes, my friend!
Love your video! so well explained, all the information you share! Many thanks!
You are so welcome!
Excellent presentation. Thanks.
Glad it was helpful!
Great video, I’ve always thought the mouthpiece is the most important aspect to a great pipe!
Great video! I have a fairly extensive collection of pipes ranging from good quality factory pipes to very high-end artisan pipes. Jeff’s J. Alan mouthpieces are exceptional. Comfortable, functional, and beautiful. Impossibly thin. Perfectly drilled. The button is carefully formed with no sharp edges. The tenon is always the proper length. Finally, the slot is funneled deeply and evenly to distribute smoke well. I have a handful of pipes from other well-known artisans that have handmade mouthpieces of equal quality, but none better than Jeff’s.
Craig, thanks for chiming in and sharing your experience with my work. There are a lot of excellent pipemakers out there! We’re in the golden age at the moment. :)
One of the great things about Missouri Meerschaum Corncobs is the basic plastic bit is both soft and comfortable in your teeth, and more importantly they have the best internal shaping of just about any pipe you will ever own.
Fact is an Injection Molded stem can be precisely shaped with an airway that is nearly impossible to create by stock removal, and whoever fabricated the injection molds for Missouri Meerschaum stems all those decades ago did just about a perfect job designing the internals.
Cobs perform really well! Enjoy!
Excellent Content, Presentation, through and concise!
Thank you, Sir!
glad you liked it!
Beautiful!
Thanks!
Would be interested in a video on the different types of wood used for pipes and why some are not used.
Great video Jeff! I would love to see af video of you showing how you resharpen and maintain your tools. Happy puffing 💨💨💨
Kasper Bunk great idea!
Love it! Thanks Jeff!🍭🐓👶
Great video, I agree with almost all of your observations. What is the best way to sand the interior of a stem? This is one are that I struggle with. I have been making pipe on and off for 16 years but have only been making handcut stems for some of my pipes for the last few years. Keep the vids coming!
I do not sand the interior, besides in the "fan" shape toward the button. This is achieved with needle files.
Great Content! Stay Well and be safe! 👍
Good video J,
I pay attention to pipe stems very often especially if I can hold a pipe before buying.
Strangely material is not a major specific for myself, although I do really like Ebonite, and Acrylic.
Ofcourse I agree saddle bits are superior, I prefer medium width to wide, and medium to thin thickness, with a not so large button.
Although as a clencher I also use soft bits, but only really to prevent stem chattering and marking.
That was a fantastic video, I love watching topics like that. Have to agree ebonite over acrylic all the way lol, tho I take exception to bakelite, I am a huge fan of it. Happy smokes!👍💨💨
Very nice video thank you for teaching
Happy to help!
amazing mouthpiece class! Congrats!!
Thanks a lot!
Love your videos and this is another good one. The only prev I have is that that more sulfur used in mixing rubber the harder the rubber. Think of the tire bead. Its very hard and stiff and has a lot of sulfur. The inner liner (butyl rubber) is very soft and has no where near the amount of sulfur. Just a little info.
I only know this because I work in the mixing department of a major tire manufacturer and see rubber everyday. Thanks again for another great video
Yes, exactly. This is why molded mouthpieces (more sulfur) are harder than ones handcut from extruded rod (less sulfur.) Thanks for sharing from your experience!
Jeff, Mike from Briar Blues sent me here, because of this fantastic and very informative video. I had no idea about all the intricacies about the stems or mouthpieces most of us take for granted. Thanks for this. For deep cleaning of these mouthpieces, is a pipe cleaner like EA Carey superior to mouthwash, isopropyl alcohol or a high alcohol spirit? Cheers look forward to more of your videos.👍🏻👍🏻
Hey! I greatly enjoy your videos, including this one! I am relatively new to pipes and smoking them, so please excuse me if this is stupid, but I was wondering about your opinion on full wooden stem/mouth pieces? I’m currently, and only so far, been using an all wood church warden pipe...I like the esthetic and I don’t experience any problems smoking, to my limited experience, though I do have a little difficulty getting pipe cleaners through it. Thanks for the informative and interesting videos..keep up the great work!
Rob glad you like the vids. Like I said in the video, it’s really about personal preference. Now, the long church warden you were referencing has a particular look, and sometimes we will make compromises to accomplish that. While I would not do it in my work, if you are happy with the results, both how it looks and how it feels, and that is all that matters.
I have found that plain drugstore glycerin will keep ebonite from oxidizing. After cleaning my pipe I rub a little drop on the stem/bit.
Glad to hear you found something that works for you.
Very professional video.. it's better that you give us pictures of materials that you introduce..
Hi J. Alan. Great video on mouthpiece material and manufacturing a mouthpiece. Would you please address the many questions about the best diameter opening in the shank and the mouthpiece to get the best smoking experience out of your pipe.. I've gotten opinions about getting my pipes opened up to 3mm, 4mm, or 4.5mm. What's your recommendation?
You'll see a lot of discussion about this. 4mm is the modern standard. It's open enough without being too wide. 3mm is too narrow for most applications in my opinion, and 4.5mm is too wide for most as well. Each has its devotees, but 4mm is the best middle ground.
These are super interesting. Thank you for your videos. Just out of curiosity if someone wanted a really well made a d good smoking pipe that could last a lifetime but that just wasn't willing/able to drop the $1800 a lot of your pipes go for what would you recamend?
There are a lot of talented pipemakers out there with a wide variety of prices. I'd say that $250-300 is about rock bottom for a good handmade pipe, though not every handmade pipe is good. If you want to try out a solid factory made pipe that won't break the bank, have a look at Briarworks. They're well made and hand finished by a great team of talented pipe makers in Tennessee.
fantastic hope all is well god bless
I just got in two Old Dominion corn cobs. The Chesapeake and Virginia Planter. This brand uses the traditional bamboo stem mouthpiece. So far I'm loving the small straw feel and natural taste of the stems. They are immediately better than all of my acrylic stemmed pipes. I know it's not your style but it would be cool to hear your input on these stems. Also, as far as custom mouthpieces are concerned, it would be cool to have a quality briar with a pretty/flashy acrylic stem ending in a bamboo stem mouthpiece for say the last inch. This way you're showing off a beautiful stem, free of teeth marks, and all the while you're clamping down on a comfortable bamboo bit. I want to say that I've seen a picture of a pipe like this before, but I can't remember. Either way, thanks for the video. I share your complaint about acrylic stems. I'm always complaining about how uncomfortable they are. Also, those rubber bits just make them worse and make them taste nasty. Toilet Humor Alert! I don't want to smoke a pipe with a rubber in my mouth. People may look at me funny. ;P
I’ve not used bamboo mouthpieces, but I regularly use bamboo for shank extensions.
Thank you very much for this video, it was clear and thorough, but I have a question: how do you manage to make the draft hole in the shank line up with that in the mouthpiece when dealing with a bent pipe? I have tried making some pipes for myself, and for the bent ones I always had to drill the draf hole at a steep angle to reach the chamber, with the (inevitable) consequence of leaving the hole on the side of the mortise, rather than in the centre.
Forgive me for my clumsy english and thank you again.
Giacomo C. This is a good question. There are a few ways to handle this, and they can be used in combination with each other. One is to use a shallower mortise than normal, another is a wider diameter mortise. There are more ways to handle this, and maybe this is a good topic for a future video
@@jalanpipes Thank you very much for the reply and that would be great!
Great video, you sound like you were an engineer in an earlier life. Mouth piece and briar must work well together to get a great smoke. Now, how about a little video on the best way to maintain an ebonite stem.
Hola J. Alan. Estoy incursionando en la creación de mis propias pipas. Todos tus videos me resultan muy útiles. Aquí en la Argentina resulta muy difícil conseguir ebonita pero se consiguen tubos de Delrin negro. Alguna vez usaste ese material para las boquillas? Gracias por tus consejos en todo. Jorge
Unfortunately delrin is not a suitable material. Try using acrylic materials like lucite.
Very nice video 👍 - i definitely prefer black ebonite mouthpieces and cut them also out of one piece, turning also the tenon, but i really like application rings mostly from exotic wood, and sometimes horn or Camelbone. I slightly disagree in the design, as i drill the shank 4mm, the mouthpiece 3mm from the tenon side and 1.5 mm from the button side, to reduce the airflow. I learned this years ago from Rainer Barbi - but i”m not a Pro and just making pipes just for fun and for myself, however I’m buying my ebonite directly from NYH or SEM 😁
Mike C the design is okay. The way you drill it is normal for most European pipemakers I know. My preference is to widen this to 4.1mm and to keep this volume of air consistent through the whole mouthpiece.
Do you smooth out the drilling in the pipe and mouth piece? If so, how do you do it? Because I would think that the tools leave some marks that could create turbulence,
Brendan Lie Tjauw Are use various grades of needle files. The smoothest ones leave a very nice finish. It’s not polished inside, but honestly I feel like that would be taking things too far. I’m more concerned about larger scratches and cavities then I am about itty bitty ones
Awesome video Jeff. I was aware of you as a pipe maker but Mike (Briar Blues) reminded me of your UA-cam channel. I'd love to hear your thoughts on pipe filters. Most of my pipes are non-filtered. I have one filtered pipe but I'm afraid to try it on the chance that I will prefer it and have to sell all my pipes and buy new ones. Excluding Mike, there seem to be a lot of YTPC folks that prefer filtered.
MidWestPipeSmoker I’ve never used a filtered pipe. Not much interest in doing so. I suppose it has an advantage if you are inhaling the smoke (and I hope you’re not), but if you aren’t inhaling I can only imagine it making everything worse. I should really try one so I can have an opinion based on experience and not conjecture.
@@jalanpipes I love all your videos, my friend, but I have to admit that I'm an elderly pipe smoking gentleman that now ONLY smokes "charcoal filtered" pipes (even though I DON"T inhale). For some reason it seems that using "filters" hasn't caught on yet here in the U.S. like it has in Europe... which really is a shame since, IMHO, it makes for a COOLER, DRIER SMOKE with less chance of tongue bite. Either Vauen 9mm filters (which fit my Danish and German pipes) or Vauen 6mm filters (which fit my Savinelli pipes - replacing their more expensive, less efficient balsa ones) are definitely my "charcoal filters" of choice. Anyhow... PLEASE keep up the good work!... Your pipes are GORGEOUS WORKS OF ART... (and offering 9mm filtered models also could only serve to expand your market)!
👍
thanks
Nice vlog..pipe on! From jakarta
Thanks!
Agree to all your preference. Recently I used delrin as stem. I find it's softer than acrylics, and I like the feel of it between my teeth. What is your opinion about using delrin as stem. Many thanks.
I've known a few others who have used it. For comfort and strength it can't be beat. But it also can't be polished to a high gloss, which for me is a dealbreaker
@@jalanpipes many thanks. It is hard to be polished, many micro scratch reveals everytime.
@@efatamachiningworkshop1845 Yes, it's a lovely material to work with and has many advantages. But it just doesn't look nice. :(
@@efatamachiningworkshop1845 You asked my exact question. As a fresh pipe making hobbyist I create some full delrin stems with integral tenons because it is inexpensive, has a great mouth feel and its durable. Might as well cut my chops there as opposed to on expensive ebonite. I have found that going from files to 80 grit through to 12000 grit micro mesh [without skipping grits and sanding 400 and up as dry then wet] then finishing with the beal buffing and polishing system works best to achieve a great [not perfect] finish.
@@jalanpipes Thanks for you comments this. Your work is inspiring and yours are the only videos of someone sitting and talking I will actually sit and engage with. Great stuff. Its not often people of you talent will take the time to help the rest of us out. You are an exemplar of what the pipe community is all about.
Really enjoyed this. I am confused tho. I some instances you called ebonite and vulcanite the same thing. And then referred to them as different. Can you shed the light on this please?
Another question I have is you say the airway holes should be the same in the tenon and and shank. But i've seen you using a tapered bit for this. SOrry it's a lot of info and i have a hard time following.
What size is your airhole trough the mouthpiece?
3.8mm?
Mate Živković 4.1mm
@@jalanpipes Didn t you said that your mouthpiece is 4mm thick at button ( I agree with thinner is better ) ?
I wish you would tell us this beautiful pipe need filter or not؟
No filter. I don't make filter pipes
Bro you got a really good head of hair.
Thanks. It took a lot of practice
I think you should put up more pictures of the things youre talking about
I'll try to do so on future videos.
*watched
Who makes the curved and flat mouth piece
Delrin?
Nah
*Mike at
I can fit a bed in the corner over there for my internship. Whatcha think? I can be very loud if there’s intruders.
But that's where my bikes go. :)
The volume of the microphone 🎤 it's low.
thanks
You had me until you chose ebonite over acrylic! Lol
Can't win 'em all. lol!
If, like me, you found that the background music of the video makes it too difficult to hear or that it ruins the video for you, may I suggest muting it and watching the subtitles; that worked for me. Of course there are some words that you have to guess at "every night" means ebonite, and oh you can probably figure it out.