Custom CARBLESS VapCap Ti stems

Polarbearboy

Polarbearboy

Tokin' Away Since 1968
MAbud said:
Pics don’t really do justice...but I’ll try

UlbhKkS.jpg


UXVxfMA.jpg
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SDS gets more accomplished by the day. This is, at least to my eyes, his most beautiful creation yet. Rocked and hammered! Usually when he does hammered bands, he goes for less textured midsections. Are there four different colors altogether? We are seeing an artist and entrepreneur emerge. You are so lucky to be an owner! Correct me if I'm wrong when referring to the bands and mid as "Rocked and Hammered" or should it be "Hammered and Rocked"? I like the way it sounds...either way. My Cocobolo Omni comes tomorrow and I want one of SDS's extraordinary creations of beauty for a mid.

Edit: I wrote this before reading SDS's most recent declaration. Did he make his ultimate hit-the above pics-like a supernova before disappearing? Or will he still make pieces, but to his spec, not to our custom specs? And to show my interest: On a snowy blowy afternoon here I spent a good time looking at every pic on this thread and read a good bit. Just beautiful and interesting stuff.
 
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stardustsailor

stardustsailor

Well-Known Member
Accessory Maker
Hey,I'm still here.
Thing is that i do not have so much free-spare time anymore .
Thus completing custom orders is out of the question, for now at least.

I'm in the phase of tuning / adjusting my new lathe.
These mini-lathes they do not ship as "ready for operation".
There are quite a few things that have to be done ,in order for a new mini-lathe to
operate properly.

Soon ,I will make some new stems .
Be patient,please.

Cheers.
 
D

Dutchem

Member
Recently bought the M and added the Titanium tip. Would like to add a stem to it. Seems if I have the Titanium tip with the M I should be able to add one of these stems? Also if I want to go larger all I would need is a XL condenser or even the Omni XL condenser too?
 
Polarbearboy

Polarbearboy

Tokin' Away Since 1968
Squiby said:
Like @nickdanger , I have had my previous SDS stems for a few weeks now. For some reason I was unable to up-load pics to Imgur. Now it suddenly works again. Go figure.

Anyway, here is a pic of my stems.

The beautiful blue one with the bark design is a 62mm niobium stem. It is the first one made by @stardustsailor and was a gift that I will treasure forever. It is stunningly beautiful and I feel blessed to have it. I promise to take good care of it.

The hammered stem is a custom 79mm titanium stem that has been anodized twice to achieve a two-tone effect. It is a coppery pink/blue color. It also has a stylized mouthpiece which has a lovely curve to it. I love it and have been using it constantly.

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Don't hesitate if you're on the fence. @stardustsailor makes beautiful custom stems and is a joy to work with! Thank you!!! You are a true artist!
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Just looking through this thread...again! Both of these are just stunners, masterful. The finish on the hammered one is the most beautiful finish and color I think I've seen. But I wouldn't call it pink at all. I'd call it dark red or bronze. The color, whatever it is, and the whole effect are knock yer socks off exemplary. And I like the shaped mouthpiece. These are museum quality, or high-end international trade. You are a lucky person that owns these beauties.
 
Squiby

Squiby

Well-Known Member
Polarbearboy said:
You are a lucky person that owns these beauties.
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Yes, I know. I am so thrilled and grateful to be the caretaker of a couple of SDSs stunning stems. Over the short time that I've had them, I am appreciating them more and more. I too really love the twice anodized 2 tone hammered stem.

The blue Niobium bark stem is also a real stunner. The color is so saturated it almost glows.

You can't go wrong with a SDS stem.

I can't wait to see what he comes up with next. :nod:
 
Hogni

Hogni

Honi soit qui mal y pense
Save it up!
SDS has a new job and therefore less/no time for customization atm. Just some offerings in the classifieds in the future. Be quick - first come first serve!
But who knows, perhaps he'll start again with customization some time - I hope so at least.
 
stardustsailor

stardustsailor

Well-Known Member
Accessory Maker
Summer said:
@stardustsailor, how ya doing? How's the new job going? I trust you are thoroughly enjoying you're new lathe.

I'm curious as to why you chose to go with such a large carb hole?
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I'm doing ok ,besides the fact that my new job is occupying my free time.
The large carb hole goes with the design and aims to a larger air intake .
A matter of taste,actually.

Summer said:
@stardustsailor, as my above post marks a milestone in my 8 short months of FC participation (1000th post!), you should feel honored :nod:, as it was posted in your thread & addressed you. :clap:

Still much enjoying your, or rather, my stem. :)
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I'm feeling honored in more ways than those you've already mentioned.
;)

Cheers.
 
Summer

Summer

Long Island, NY
stardustsailor said:
The large carb hole goes with the design and aims to a larger air intake .
A matter of taste,actually.
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No, I ask because I got the impression when designing my stem that you thought I was foolish for wanting a 2.8mm carb -- which by the way works great for me.

BTW, I really should have said flattered, not honored. :)

When you have time, tell us about your new baby -- the lathe.
 
stardustsailor

stardustsailor

Well-Known Member
Accessory Maker
Ah ,the lathe ...

Wonderful tool !
But ...

While tuning it ,I did not adjust drive belt properly (too much tension) and
it got quite badly damaged.Lathe still works ,but I'm guessing that the drive belt won't last for long .
Finding a replacement belt is also quite a PIA ,due to the weird asian tooth pitch of the belt.
So I will have to change the drive system ( belt and two pulleys ) into a metric or imperial pitch ,
which are both quite common.

The 3-jaw chuck of the lathe is giving me hard time to grab & turn something true (round and not oval).
I will have to get a collet or a drill type chuck for max precision (and for shoothing my nerves).

other than that ,the machine is awesome.
It opens up new perspectives to the art of stem making.

Still ,I will need more cutting tools for the lathe ,as I 've just a basic "insert " type set.
I will need round inserts ,some micro tools for inner tube work ,a knurling tool and quite a few more parts.

But i'm trying to be patient about it.
Step by step ,I wish to master the art of metal turning and shaping.


Yes, " flattered " is a more appropriate word ,for what I actually feel .

Cheers.
 
nickdanger

nickdanger

Collector of Functional Art
stardustsailor said:
I was thinking exactly the same thing myself !
Next few stems are going to be non-anodised ones.
Anodising is nice ,but the real Titanium art can do just fine without any colors.
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My non-anodized stem is one of my favorites. It's beauty stands on its own. I also have one that is a greenish anodized stem, and it is also gorgeous, but there's something elegant about the texture on the non-anodized stem that just sparkles.
 
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