A walking stick is no mere twig - this stick, lovingly crafted, can accompany you on your every journey. Making your own walking stick, therefore, can be a wonderfully educational and calming experience. They can not be chosen lightly: as important a piece of equipment as it is, a walking stick's creation requires a great deal of time, patience, and dedication.
Instructions
1. Find a strong stick of durable, hard wood - mesquite, maple, cherry, for example. While you should discard any sticks that have obvious cases of rot, past infestations may provide some interesting patterns and character to your stick. Test your stick's strength and durability by pressing the stick down with your body's weight - it should only bend slightly, at best.
2. Consider the dimensions of the stick, and how it suits your purposes. Walking sticks may reach from your hand to the ground, but hiking sticks should reach to about shoulder level - when your hand rests on top, your arm should be slightly bent. It should be as thick as required to hold your weight, and to withstand the stresses of a serious hike - about 1 or 1.5 inches in diameter. At the same time, don't choose a stick so hefty that carrying it will tire you out.
3. Dry your stick (if it hasn't dried naturally already): place your stick in a well-ventilated area, and seal the ends with waterproofing. Drying can take significant time - freshly-cut wood might need to dry over six to twelve months. Don't rush it with kilns or other artificial heat sources: impatience can cause undue stress on the wood, resulting in cracks or breaks.
4. Remove the bark with a heavy-duty box cutter - some people perform this step before drying, to cut down on infestation risks. Start with the outer layer of bark - remove anything that comes off easily - and work your way down strip-by-strip to the hard layer below. In the end, you should able to scrape your cutter along the wood, without catching on any wood fibers. Bark that is hard to remove can be eased off with a gentle application of fire, or steam.
5. Sand, starting with 100 grit sandpaper. Sand the knots first, until they are flush with the wood, before moving on to the body of the stick. Always sand with the grain, of course. When this first sanding is complete, repeat with a round of 200 grit, followed by a round of 400 grit. Afterwards, check your stick for any imperfections, particularly at the knots or end grains. Wipe down your stick with a tack rag, to remove excess sawdust, and hang your stick to dry.
6. Oil your stick. Soak a lint-free, cotton rag in either tung or boiled linseed oil, and oil your stick liberally from top to bottom. Let dry. Twice over, give it another light sand with 400 grit before wiping it down with tack cloth. Oil your stick to a finish one final time, and let dry. Finally, coat your finish with paste wax, and buff it to a fine shine with a cotton cloth.
7. Add the finishing touches. You can add rubber tips or stoppers, to protect the base. Add handles and grips, remembering to plan ahead for how you will grip the stick while hiking.
Tags: your stick, down with, round grit, sand with, walking stick, with grit
