Moxies in Briar

If you’ve been to my web site lately, www.ming-kahuna.com, you will have seen the first Moxie offered for sale.  Yes, it’s not inexpensive, but ivory, whether elephant or mammoth, is never cheap.  The fact is that you’ll see quite a bit of that with Moxie, but you’ll also see tampers like the two above.  The top piece is one that I will be keeping.  It’s carved from briar and shown partially sanded.  It’s a variation of the Whisper shape.  While the tamp surface size is fine, currently at .44 inches, I had to shorten the Whisper shape significantly to retain the tamp end size even though it is 3.21 inches long.   When I make one to sell it will be a good size larger so that I can hit properly on all of the proportions.  I laid this one out as a cross-grain, but future pieces may have the grain running lengthwise.  It’s no matter as this one will be staying with me for testing.  I have tested many tamps with briar tamp surfaces over the years, but I feel obligated to have an all briar tamp in testing.

The tamp below it, to be named “Arcanum” Moxie, is the first Arcanum shaped tamp that I’ve done in years.  If you recall the Arcanum you will see the shape in this rough carved piece of briar.  It’s a nice size at 3.37 inches long.  The tamp surface is currently a diameter of roughly .51 inches and will trim down a bit to a more desirable diameter during sanding.  The tamp is as light as a feather and I’m going to do absolutely nothing to make it any heavier.  I’ll take the material as I found it and do nothing to alter it other than shaping, sanding and finishing (with carnuba wax).  Over the years I may have become associated with synthetics, but when it comes to Moxie you can call me “Mr. Natural.”

Part of my reason for showing you these two tampers is to make it clear that not all Moxies will be $500 plus.  Some will be, and a good bit more than that, but others will be at the other end of the price spectrum.  And while these are two recognizably Ming shapes, you can look for much that will be new with Moxie other than the materials used.  But for now have a look and rest assured that I can do almost anything in natural materials that I can with synthetics, so if you have a tamper in acrylic that you would like to own in briar, for example, just let me know and I’ll be glad to make that happen if possible.

We’re having some fun now!

I’m so excited…

As the first few Moxies near completion (Mako Moxie is already spoken for) I’m really beginning to feel the excitement of a new brand.  Of course Ming-Kahuna is special as it is my “first born”, but Moxie holds such huge potential that it’s very difficult not to give it my undivided attention.  But before I write a bit more about Moxie, it is worth repeating why I see the need to separate my work into separate brands.

The bottom line is that by looking at a body of work as a separate brand it allows me to break free from past approaches and think freshly and freely without the “limitations” that defined past work.  It allows me to work without fear of inconsistency  with the past while redefining what makes up the present.  While these concerns may seem irrelevant to my customers and collectors, they are very real to me.  They tend to cause me to limit my outlook and think within the box.  When a new direction is the goal, that is the kiss of death.

Of course, creative concerns aside, a separate brand must have very distinct aspects that separate it from one’s other work.  I think that if you look at Ming-Kahuna, KazeTamp, and now Moxie, you will see three very separately identifiable entities.  First there is Ming-Kahuna where it is about art that works. The key is a synthesis of form and function.  It has been around for going on nine years, so it is identifiable as a starting point.  Then there is KazeTamp, a brand dedicated to two incredible materials where, in the event of a battle between form and function, form may win out, if only just a bit.  Finally we have Moxie, a brand dedicated to the primary use of natural materials and inspirations.  But again, the key here is that while there is a common core shared by each brand, they are each distinct enough to be treated separately, and I would argue, must be treated separately.  The strengths of each brand will be allowed to flow between brands while the emphasis will remain upon creating a unique statement with each.

Okay, that said, the first two Moxies to be offered for general sale will go up on the site some time over the next three days, sooner more likely than later.  They are both carved from the best mammoth that I have ever seen.  In fact, the stuff is incredible.  The grain on both is stunning.  The shape is a cross between Ming-Kahuna’s Arashi and KazeTamp’s Torune-do.  At 4.34” and 4.59”, which may vary a bit on the finished tamp, you will rarely see this much mammoth on any tamper.  Those of you who know ivory will know the value of the material alone.  As such, the prices of these two ivory pieces should not be too surprising.  Right now the anticipated prices of each will be in the $500 to $650 range.  Understand that the price for mammoth is not set by material value alone. Having to sand down to 2000 grit before buffing plays a part in that as well as a whole host of other factors.

Worry not if $650 for a tamper is outside of your comfort zone.  Future Moxies will be offered at many, many pricepoints, from an “intro” level all the way on up.  Hopefully there will be something for almost everyone.

Favorites?

Making something as unusual as pipe tampers I get asked a lot of questions.  Beyond the usual “how do you make them?”, from folks who are more familiar with my work I am often asked which is my favorite shape.  And while it would seem an easy question to answer, the task is far more daunting than one might expect.  Since I began making tampers, almost nine years ago to the day, I have created hundreds of shapes, and many of them have gone on to be what I call a re-occurring basis for interpretation, or an “RBI”.  These RBI are given names and become what someone else might call a model.  I avoid the term “model” as I see each piece to be far too much of an individual statement to be lumped as such, but, model names do offer a frame of reference and are just downright fun.

 

That said, and the sheer numbers involved aside, the task is no less difficult in choosing a favorite.  Choosing a favorite is tantamount to choosing a favorite child.  Each shape is special in its own way as I have watched them form over time, the evolution sometimes slow and deliberate, other times rapid and dynamic.  The difficulty is further compounded by the fact that there is the tendency to be smitten by the most recent of creations, those shapes that are new to the lineup.  And while I believe that my choices that I will finally get to in a moment will stand the test of time, two of the four that I will point to are indeed rather new shapes for me. I will list four favorites rather than one.  Sorry for the copout.

 

First, I’ll start with something old.  That shape is the Whisper.  It appears to be a simple shape, and it is rather easy to make, but to do it properly and to get the flow and balance that define it makes it one of the single most difficult shapes that I do.  I love shapes like this where a distinct panel morphs into a more organic shape over the length of the piece.  And, I like the entire concept behind the Whisper, an elegant flowing shape, defined by simplicity, understated, where a whisper says more than a shout.  Whispers generally sit on my site for only a few brief moments before being snatched up.

 

Next is the Katsu, a shape well less than a year old.  There are actually two distinct variations, one the “standard” shape, and the second is the “windswept”, with two sub-varieties defined by a full bottom or a narrow bottom.  That makes for four versions that you might see.  The shape overall is a three groove scalloped spiral morphing to paneled spiral.  At top the scalloped spiral heads downward at a shallow pitch and then about 40% down the spiral pitches steeply downwards becoming much more paneled as it goes ending at the tamps end.  This tamper is what I call a “formula piece”.  The steps that I take to carve it each time are the exact same, but with each one I allow the progress of the individual piece to define where it will go.  For example, if the top part offers a lot of material to work with after the spirals have headed down the tamp, it will probably end up the windswept variety.  At each step I allow the piece to take its own course choosing the best path, one that has become apparent by the progress up to that point.

 

Invariably the result is a shape that makes me very happy with a very distinct Asian feeling.  And while creating such a tamp is a pure joy, each one is actually incredibly difficult to control so as to assure that it is individual enough while still retaining the true essence of the shape.  Once they lose their “Katsu-ness” they become Pariahs, which is my name for tampers that are uncategorized spiral freehands. The Katsu shape may be the one that I’m most proud of.

 

Next is an older shape that is maybe the one shape that best defines what I do: the Predator.  Okay, I’m not saying that I am a predator, and no lawyer jokes, please!  What I am saying is that the Predator shape, and the closely related Proteus and Incubus, are probably my most advanced designs.  They put one’s grasp right over the central axis of the piece maximizing the ergonomic aspect.  It may not seem like it would make a big difference, but to me it does.  Besides, the ergonomics the shape is really cool.  The shape reminds me of the two vultures in the old poster from the Sixties.  There are two vultures sitting on the limb of a barren tree overlooking a barren valley.  The caption is “Yeah tho I walk through the valley of death, I fear no evil as I am the meanest son-of-a-bitch in the valley.”  I see the Predator shape as a bird of prey sitting on a limb watching, waiting, belly swelled with hunger, ready to spring into action, a quick silent death.

 

Yeah, right Art, are you sure you didn’t try some of those mushrooms in college?!  Okay, that’s what I see when I make a Predator, what can I say?  I love the shape and it has given rise to several variations and numerous other named shapes in the Ming and Kaze lineup.  The ones done in mammoth, which would now be part of Moxie, are really something.  FYI, my carry tamper is a Predator in Caneel, the one shape in the one material that I see my work best reflected.  It’s no wonder that when I give a pipe maker a tamper it’s a Predator in Caneel.

 

Finally, we have the Arashi.  This tamper’s origins are found in the KazeTamp Torune-do.  While some shapes have crossed over from Ming-Kahuna to KazeTamp, the Arashi is the first shape in which a strictly KazeTamp shape made the opposite transition to Ming-Kahuna.  While the Torune-do is a more broadly splayed piece, the Arashi (a Japanese word for “storm”) is a tighter more vertically expressed piece. A cross-section of the Torune-do is more oval while the Arashi is more round.  The shape originally came to me from the old Hammer horror films made most famous by Christopher Lee’s Dracula.  Hammer films were very atmospheric films that all had a similar feel to them.  Part of this is because they all seemed to use similar sets and props.  Part of the castle set that was used in several movies were pillars that were this odd rounded spiral shape, almost a corkscrew.  Once you spot them in a Hammer film you will always notice them: they are quite distinct.  Once I began making tampers I kept looking at those pillars seeing a tamper, but I could never quite grasp how to make it come about.  Then with the Torune-do the technique was found, and with the Arashi the shape was expresses in tamper art.  And while I do see storms in each and every Arashi that I carve, those Hammer film pillars aren’t far away.

 

Carving the Arashi is a joy.  The technique used is simple and the tampers are a blast to create.  Like the Katsu there is a formula that I follow, with variances added at will, by changing depth and pitch and a whole host of other little aspects that can make a huge difference in the end result.  The Arashi shape has caught on in a big way.  Although I have made a lot of them (remember, they are fun to make) a lot of them have sold, so look for Arashis to be  a permanent part of Ming-Kahuna.

 

So, what of the other dozens and dozens of shapes?  I feel as if I have slighted them as I could have written about each of them with the same passion.  There’s been Monoliths, Merlins, Darts, Pocket Models, Pariahs, Blutos, Aeons, Shoguns, Bushidos, Pods, Quills. Pugs, Imperiums, Helixes, Incisors, Toros, Shikons, Stings, Wings, Vectors, Raptors, Skeeters, Stasis’, Stilettos, Stratas, Talons, Goblins, Legions, Hammerheads, Warlords, Katanas, Genesis, Matrix, TopHats, Cone-lickers, Profiles, Proteus, Nauticas, Arcanums, Bishops, Blades, Clippers, Doodles, Dreamscapes, Drips, Emperors, Ninjas, Necrons, Incubus, Empires, Excelsiors, Probes, Tags, Kiss’, Spikes, Imps, Jakes, Kroms, Madmen, Amigos, Whirligigs, Tribunes, Fujitas, Gothams, Unos, Vipers, Asps, Kaddidlehoppers, and those are only the ones that immediately come to mind.  Each of them are distinctly separate identifiable shapes that I’ve created over the past nine years.  At any one time, like a new mistress (not that I’ve ever had one) each has been special for its newness, and now equally special for having been part of my repertoire for so very long.  I can tell you exactly what I was thinking when I plucked each of these shapes from my mind, each one an experience that shows a bit of who I am and what my reality is made of.  Yes, there may be favorites, but in the end they are all my favorites.   

My back is back

Well, my back is back.  Earlier this week I noticed that there was a backwards trend in my recovery, so yesterday afternoon I went back to bed to give it a rest.  Lo and behold, when I woke up this morning I was doing backflips of joy as the pain was gone.  Okay, it isn’t 100% gone, and I don’t mean to back-peddle, but it’s gone to the point that it will soon be a memory that I’ll look back upon with only a wince or two.

So, now I can get back into the shop and get back to work, chipping away at the backlog of backorders. Hopefully with the heightened activity there will be no backlash.

It’s good to be back.

Tough as nails.

When a “used” Ming does come up for sale you will sometimes see a notation that the tamper was never used.  Other times you will hear someone say (or write) that they never take their Mings away from home.  More common is the comment that they are too pretty to put in a bowl.  Those are incredible compliments, but they leave me with very, very mixed feelings.

Please understand that I am not one to tell someone what they should do with their property.  How each of us finds pleasure in ownership is our own business whether it is through use, or just owning and looking at something.  Some guys smoke all of their pipes, others just some of them, and yet others collect pipes without ever smoking a one of them (yes, there are such collectors).  How I look at this is very much influenced by the fact that I am the one who makes the tamper.  Let me explain further.

When I sat down nearly nine years ago to create my first tampers the entire idea was form and function.  Form dealt largely with the aesthetics.  Function dealt with creating a useable and durable pipe tool.  The idea was to create a tamper that maximized both sides of the equation with a dead minimum of compromise, and much of the compromise being made in favor of function.  As luck would have it, the form aspect of the tamper is most obvious and due to its high visibility often overshadows its equal partner, function.  So, with form so visible folks seem to either underestimate, or misunderstand, the function/durability aspect of my work.  Allow me to explain a little further.

In the earliest days of Ming-Kahuna I decided that it was imperative to create a pipe tool that would stand the test of time in terms of durability.  I engineered the construction of the pieces with failsafes and double failsafes to protect them from structural failures.  Much of it might seem like overkill, like wearing suspenders and a belt, but the number of pieces that I am aware of that have had issues, over thousands of tampers, can be counted on the fingers of one hand, a hand missing three fingers at that!  This was no accident and only came from years of development, product testing, and the very careful selection of only the most appropriate and durable materials.  Many materials that I would have liked to work with I rejected as I had doubts as to their durability.  Many have been product tested with some making the grade, and others not.  But the bottom line here is that any Ming/Kaze that you acquire has gone through rigorous evaluation and careful development to guarantee that it will be incredibly durable, standing the test of time to be around for generations to come.  Early on a Ming motto, along with “art that works” was “Creating tomorrow’s heirlooms today”.

Here’s the bottom line.  The fact that my work is aesthetically pleasing does not even begin to equal the notion that it is also somehow fragile or prone to excessive wear and tear.  I wish you could know how well engineered and durable that these materials are.  The stories that I can tell you about the abuses my tampers have seen and come through relatively unscathed are amazing.  When you start out with appropriate materials and engineer their use in an appropriate manner, you can have both form and function as equal partners.  Aesthetic desirability does not preclude a durable functional pipe tool, and a functional pipe tool need not be anything less than a fine artistic statement in tamper art.

So please, as you look at my work understand that they are designed, and have been proven through use, to be tough and durable in just about any environment, and need not be relegated to limited use.  And while it’s true that anything wears in time from use, to bring a tamper back to new condition is a very simple matter.  If you don’t want to buff it yourself you can ship it back to me and for the price of return postage I’ll make the tamper look like new again.  That has been the policy of Ming-Kahuna (and now KazeTamp) from day one, and will continue to be the policy in the future.

So again, while I would never be so bold so as to tell someone how to use their property, please don’t be afraid to use your Ming or Kaze tamper as it was intended and designed to be used.  Of course, if limiting the use continues to be how my work is enjoyed, and that’s just fine as the goal here is enjoyment, however that is accomplished, I would certainly suggest one of my Tag aluminum/brass tampers.   Tags will be right at home in the most harsh habitable environments on the planet. 

  

Our prayers…

 G

Please keep the good people of Enterprise, Alabama in your prayers.  My heart goes out to the families and friends of the students killed at Enterprise High School.

And, Americus and Newton, here in Georgia… 

Tornado season has begun.  Be sure to keep an eye to the sky.  Buy a weather radio with an audible alarm, it may well save your life.  If your community does not have a tornado warning siren system bring the matter to the attention of your community leaders.

And to the six from my native state of Ohio who were killed when their bus fell from an Atlanta overpass here in my home state of Georgia.  So sad, and so young.

A bad week… 

Ouch!

Every two years, almost like clockwork, my back goes out.  This has been happening since I was sixteen and the doc said that it’s just going to happen.  Please, no remedies or medical advice, it’s the way that things are and will be. It’s happened when I was young and older, thin and fat, active and sedentary.   Seriously, the doc said that it is that way with some folks.  That mine happens like clockwork isn’t all that unusual.  The problem this time is that my back didn’t go out entirely.

Sometimes when it happens I wake up in the morning and I’m basically paralyzed.  When that’s the case it’s over within a day or two and I’m back to normal. I’m stuck in bed, the best thing for it, as I have no choice.  Other times, like this attack, my back goes out less than completely.  It’s enough to prevent me from many normal activities, but not enough to land me in bed.  With this type of attack, which are the exception, the problem lingers.  I am now at the one week point which is too long.  I try not to take pain medicine so that I won’t overdo it with the pain dulled too much, but I have been overdoing it. 

So, today I will do nothing but tend to my back and get this thing over with.  As you might have imagined I am behind in my efforts with Ming-Kahuna, so if you are waiting for something please understand my situation.  Your patience is very much appreciated, and, I’m happy to say is the rule with my customers, the best folks around.