Dave_In_Philly
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- Aug 18, 2011
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So I am one who wholeheartedly recommends Mike Myers at Walker to anyone needing stem work done. My only criticism would be his backlog. I sent two pipes in to be fitted with new vulcanite stems and it took about eight weeks, not including shipping time.
Based on Mr. Cartaphilus' glowing recommendation of Floyd Norwood I decided to have a new stem made for an old Peterson 80s that currently has a very poorly made replacement stem. I put the pipe in the mail as I left the office last Tuesday evening, and it was on my doorstep yesterday (I presume it would have been here Tuesday had it not been for the holiday.) The stem is shaped perfectly. The panels are square, and the taper is spot on, and the button is just right.
At first there was an obvious problem with the draw, but I ran a pipe cleaner through and dislodged a few chunks of Lucite that seem to have hung on. The draw is still tighter than I expected, but not so tight that I anticipate a problem smoking it.
I opted for a Lucite stem as the pipe is a bit of a beater, and I didn't want to be bothered keeping the vulcanite is good order. I didn't specify a color, and just assumed that it would be black. I was wrong. Its a bluish-gray swirl that isn't particularly unattractive, but just isn't something I would have chosen for myself.
Also, I don't know who actually made the stem, but I corresponded with Ken, not Floyd.
If the pipe smokes as well as I expect it will, I will be sending more pipes to Norwood, but I'll be careful to specify the color of the stem I want.
Based on Mr. Cartaphilus' glowing recommendation of Floyd Norwood I decided to have a new stem made for an old Peterson 80s that currently has a very poorly made replacement stem. I put the pipe in the mail as I left the office last Tuesday evening, and it was on my doorstep yesterday (I presume it would have been here Tuesday had it not been for the holiday.) The stem is shaped perfectly. The panels are square, and the taper is spot on, and the button is just right.
At first there was an obvious problem with the draw, but I ran a pipe cleaner through and dislodged a few chunks of Lucite that seem to have hung on. The draw is still tighter than I expected, but not so tight that I anticipate a problem smoking it.
I opted for a Lucite stem as the pipe is a bit of a beater, and I didn't want to be bothered keeping the vulcanite is good order. I didn't specify a color, and just assumed that it would be black. I was wrong. Its a bluish-gray swirl that isn't particularly unattractive, but just isn't something I would have chosen for myself.
Also, I don't know who actually made the stem, but I corresponded with Ken, not Floyd.
If the pipe smokes as well as I expect it will, I will be sending more pipes to Norwood, but I'll be careful to specify the color of the stem I want.