Fancy Cane #033: Banksia Pod with Black Walnut

Very interesting effect by using the pod for a handle.I like it.

-- Dustygirl..Hastings,Ontario.. How much wood can 1 gal chuck if 1 gal can't cut wood?

Nice job! I’ve seen these pods in catalogues but have never tried working with them. This truly beautiful.

Thanks for posting it.

-- Martin, Kansas

That’s really cool. I like the effect that the jeweled pod makes. Very nice!

-- As iron sharpens iron, so one man sharpens another. (Proverbs 27:17) †

Not familiar with that Banksia pod, is the color in there naturally or did you color the cavities, or something? Really looks super!

-- mtnwild (Jack), It's not what you see, it's how you see it.

OK, saw your egg post, got’ya. Cool.

-- mtnwild (Jack), It's not what you see, it's how you see it.

I would have never dreamed it would be stable enough for a cane handle. How does it feel in the hand? Looks good, thanks for sharing.

-- My favorite piece is my last one, my best piece is my next one.

Beautiful!!

-- Lew- Time traveler. Purveyor of the world's finest custom rolling pins!

The banksia pod is quite light weight compared to many of the hardwoods that I use. The holes are filled to add strength. The dark holes are filled with epoxy and wood dust. The size of this handle is a bit larger than some of my other handles but it’s very comfortable, as it doesn’t feel hard like metal canes and the size/shape fit the hand better than the store bought canes with narrow dimensions.

Wood turning artist, Cindy Drosda does really extraordinary work using banksia pods: http://www.cindydrozda.com/html/Miniatures_Banksia_Pods.htm

She also has some tips on working with the Banksia pod: http://www.neowta.com/Articles/drozdabanksia.htm

-- "They who dream by day are cognizant of many things which escape those who dream only by night." ~ Edgar Allan Poe

Mellie: this is a beautiful cane and a great tip on filling voids. You stated that you are using wax, but on one of the pictures it was looking like a Lacquer stick. Is that what you are calling a wax stick.

-- I've been blessed with a father who liked to tinker in wood, and a wife who lets me tinker in wood. Southern Delaware karson_morrison@bigfoot.com †

Karson: Yes, the “wax” is a special wax stick purchased from a woodworking supply store. It comes in 1/2”x4” (?) flat rods and are hard lilke glass but they melt. I use a wood burning tool with a flat pointed tip to melt the wax and you can sand it down or leave the melted surface alone and it has a shiney, polished surface. You can also combine colors of the wax and melt them together to create the look you want.

-- "They who dream by day are cognizant of many things which escape those who dream only by night." ~ Edgar Allan Poe

Mellie: I have some Belens Burn-in sticks and they are identified as Shellac. There are many colors and I’ve tried them but never put them to a true test.

I had forgotten that I had them, they would be good for fixing some defects. A few are translucent, most are solid colors.

-- I've been blessed with a father who liked to tinker in wood, and a wife who lets me tinker in wood. Southern Delaware karson_morrison@bigfoot.com †

Karson: I don’t know the brand name and there is no information on the packages to determine the true chemistry of this “wax”, but it is a “burn-in” type of filler and it does have an odor when melting so you do want good ventillation when working with it.

Here’s a link to a forum on filling dents and they mention the burn-in technique: http://www.woodweb.com/knowledge_base/Filling_Dents_with_BurnIn_Sticks.html

-- "They who dream by day are cognizant of many things which escape those who dream only by night." ~ Edgar Allan Poe

Hey meilie
Your always so inovative and make beautiful and unique canes great job.

-- W James Brokenbourgh Custom furniture maker http://artisticwoodstudio.com/

Karson: I don’t know the brand name and there is no information on the packages to determine the true chemistry of this “wax”, but it is a “burn-in” type of filler and it does have an odor when melting so you do want good ventillation when working with it.

Here’s a link to a forum on filling dents and they mention the burn-in technique: http://www.woodweb.com/knowledge_base/Filling_Dents_with_BurnIn_Sticks.html

-- "They who dream by day are cognizant of many things which escape those who dream only by night." ~ Edgar Allan Poe

Meilie, this is outstanding! I was looking at using some Banksia on my nets and found this. I absolutely love that you ventured to try this on a cane. Nice work as always!

-- You don't have a custom made heirloom fly fishing Net?