Making a cane

[Quandaryangels]

I'm interested in making a cane and would appreciate any ideas on how to do this.



QA.

[Mr Peter Harrow, Esq]

I am running a workshop on gadget sticks at The Asylum, and bringing a selection of my more outré gadget sticks.

Do you just want to make a cane or something a bit fancier?

You can purchase components like wooden shafts, collars, ferrules from suppliers like the Stickman, googling that helps. A proper cane shaft should taper, so a dowel or similar is not appropriate. The Stickman sells elm and ash blank shafts fully lathed and tapered, you can paint, stain or varnish them as you require.

Collars are the circular ring at the top of the shaft, they stop the wood splitting on the shaft where it joins the handle. You can get brass, nickel and copper collars of different designs.

The ferrule is the tip of the cane, most are brass and you can buy then in various sizes, you can also buy a rubber ferrule for non slip, and an alpine ferrule, a steel spike.

Handles are trickier you can buy a compass ball, regency or duck head brass cane head from a number of suppliers, I used Craft Supplies in the past. However for a nice solid head look for canal tiller pins, there are a lot of these which brass animal figures (there is also a nice John Bull) the tiller pins are very easy to fit, they have a huge spike perfect for mounting on a shaft.

[von Corax]

There're already several threads on this topic in the main Tactile board. Assuming the search engine is actually working, it should be fairly easy to track them down.

[TVC15]

You can start out, inexpensively, by acquiring a used cue stick (like I did  ). Wrappings of different material is a personal decision. Other pieces that come in very handy can be obtained from dissected brass lamps or candlesticks. Do a search and you should have plenty information to digest.

[Quandaryangels]

I am running a workshop on gadget sticks at The Asylum, and bringing a selection of my more outré gadget sticks.

This sounds great, but two questions. One, just to clarify its the asylum in b'ham, and two, when?

[Mr Peter Harrow, Esq]

The Asylum is the British National Steampunk Convention in Lincoln on the 9th-11th September, with over 1,100 steampunks in attendance.

[Quandaryangels]

well I now feel inept.   

[Mr Peter Harrow, Esq]

Don't be inept, be in Lincoln.

Ept is dreadful this time of the year.

[Herbert West]

One thing I've had trouble with my walking stick is what to use for a tip. Everything I've tried skids terribly and makes a loud 'clunk' when it hits the floor. Suggestions would be welcome.

[Maets]

You can buy rubber cane tips at most hardware stores.  Also available are rubber chair tips that are a little different in size.

[TVC15]

Going with Maets notion of browsing the harware store. I used a screw-in style door stop for mine. The rubbberized tip can be replaced. Herr Doktor has made some walking sticks that are wonderful. He may be of help as well.

[Herbert West]

Thanks guys. I went with a thick felt glide pad epoxied into place. We'll see how durable it is.

Hopefully it'll do for the weekend. Next time I'll wait until before the convention to ask these sorts of things.

[Professor Bevel]

Rubber feet of any slender dimension are getting hard to find.  I do mean to experiment with scrap leather laminated together with slow-cure epoxy under as much vice pressure as I can make my big vice stand, making a sort of leather micarta.  Plugs cut out and turned down to cane-tip shapes seem like a promising start as wear will  progressively expose the leather fibres giving grip without the black marking tendency of rubber.  If anyone beats me to doing this experiment, do shout.

[Mr Peter Harrow, Esq]

The technical term you are looking for is 'ferrule' if you search for that it give you what you want.

The Stickman in the UK does a nice Alpine Ferrule set, a steel spike for walking on moors/hills and a rubber over ferrule which fits on itfor urban use. The best of both worlds. Indeed try The Stickman (North Yorkshire) site he should have a number of suitable products.

[Herbert West]

The felt tip turned out to be surprisingly durable. Walked with it all weekend and with only a few frazzled fibers to show for it.

Another option for cane making is to mod old poolsticks. They're generally made out of good solid wood, are already the proper shape, and some have my favorite feature, you can unscrew them into smaller lengths.