Bamboo Shanks: Difference between revisions

The basis for the following article was written by [[Tyler Lane]] for his [http://www.tylerlanepipes.com/index.php website], and is used by permission.

Bamboo seems to be a material people either love or hate. I fall into the love it category, and before I explain how to use it for a pipe shank I want to explain why I like bamboo so much. Certainly aesthetics are a part of the conversation -- I find bamboo shanked pipes to be very attractive -- but that is not the only reason to use bamboo for a pipe shank. (I have heard comments from those that do not like bamboo that they feel the bamboo shank is often too skinny for the proportions of the pipe it is on. I agree that that can be the case, but it does not have to be.) Bamboo is a VERY lightweight material and it is often surprising how much weight is removed from a pipe by having the briar shank very short, and then a bamboo extension. If you are a fan of clenching a pipe in your teeth, I think you would become a fan of bamboo after you find out how light bamboo pipes can be. Also, bamboo is very absorbant, and as such it results in VERY dry smoking pipes. My driest smoking pipes are my bamboo pipes, hand's down.

I have heard some concerns about bamboo being fragile. While I haven't done any testing of the force required to snap a bamboo shank, I will say that for a short section of bamboo, the force will be a lot! One needn't worry about a bamboo shanked pipe any more than a briar shanked one, in my experience.

The first step is to drilll the bamboo. I do this by hand, with a 5/32" bit chucked into the headstock of my lathe (set at the lowest RPM). Conveniently, bamboo has a capillary that runs through its center to transfer. This capillary serves as a nice drilling guide. I simply start the hole, then bring the tailstock up to the back of the bamboo, and press the bamboo onto the bit using the tailstock. You will need to hold the bamboo as you do this in order to prevent it from spinning.