Thanks guys! I've actually been enjoying these for a few months (no new acquisitions lately), and I really like them. I have to confess that I fell for some trick photography when I bought the square shanked pipe, because it looked much larger on EBay! That, and I failed to read the description carefully, because I was expecting a different (larger) pipe. I got over it though, and found I really liked it. Live and learn...
Camera is a Nikon D-50, about 4-5 years old. Very easy to use, but I hate the lens (stock zoom lens). It's very hard to focus manually and the auto focus is sketchy at best. Thinking about looking for a new lens...