NAP reproduction stem

  While I'm away at the Las Vegas Pipe Show this weekend, I thought it would be a treat for everyone to see some of Fletch Hiner's amazing stem work in acrylic and ebonite and read his comments on his approach to recreating the famous NAP Patent stem.  In a few weeks I'll be sharing a bit of DIY tutoring he gave me recently, which has altered the way I restore my Petes.  In the meantime, enjoy! The Anchor is Fletch's stamp on work he's done.    XL307 Early Republic w/ Amber Acrylic P-Lip. I wanted to begin with this Early Republic XL307 because the amber-colored acrylic shows off so well what Fletch can do. He said a BC stem would be the way to go with the XL307, and as you can see, he's right.   I'll say this again later, but the bulge right there before the bend in the stem isn't decorative, but functional, giving adequate space for the graduated bore smoke channel.  There's a reason the stem shouldn't be bent too close to the button or too close to the tenon, which we'll talk about next time. Fletch also turns and taps his own aluminum condensers. He told me he's cataloged a number of these with different diameters and thread pitches from throughout K&P's history! The flat of the surface in front of the clenching shelf makes Fletch's P-Lip stems the absolute most comfortable I have ever smoked.  Better than the Comfort P-Lip.  Better than the SH Strand (although I like the rounded tip of the Strand a bit better, maybe because its ebonite).  You won't be surprised to learn that Fletch cuts his clenching shelf to 4.7mm--which is approximately what all the finest Hand Made vulcanite stems once were. Here is another part of Fletch's genius as an artisan: the incredibly sharp, well-defined angles of the button itself. The shelves are absolutely vertical, the tongue tuck is precise, the air hole exact. The bend in the smoke vent on the button, which must descend forward and down to the stem's main smoke channel, demands that the pipeman exert a bit of finesse to push the pipe cleaner on through, just as on the best of the old-time buttons. And of course, the pipe cleaner passes right on through the condenser at the other end without hanging up, unlike so many recent contemporary condensers still do.   1898 Patent w/ Vulcanite P-Lip. From the same shape group as the 1899 seen below (and a No Prize if you're the first to correctly identify the shape), this is one of  Fletch's less frequently seen A mounts.   Bog Oak P-Lip w/ 1930s Catalin Egg Yolk Swirl Rod. Another example of submerged technology, the bog oak must've been something in its day.  If you haven't read up on these, circle back to Post #419 and educate yourself.   20s De Luxe w/ Ebonite Cumberland P-Lip. This is a small bowl, but how perfectly the ebonite cumberland meshes with the bowl.  …