Walking Stick #060: Fancy Manzanita Burl, Ebony & Purpleheart

Hey Meilie
This is a wonderful cane fantastic work as all your canes are.

-- Jim from Heirloom Woodshop Southern Oregon

Hi Meillie,
Beautifull as always and you knew what your clients need,

Rosewood.

-- http://picasaweb.google.com/deniirawan66

Another tailormade and beautifully finished cane.
Sharad

-- patanjali

Another very nice walking stick.I really like the natural shaping.

-- Scott NM,http://www.shangrilawoodworks.com

Sounds perfect for your customer and absolutely gorgeous. Beautiful work as always.

-- John @ Myrtle Beach

Fantastic work. Is the shaft a natural stick or is it lumbar that’s been shaped to look like a natural shaft?

Thank you for all your comments.

The shaft is made from lumber stock of approximately 2×4 and cut and shaped to form. I don’t currently have a source for Purpleheart limbs. If I visit South America, maybe I can find one!

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

Another Beauty, Meilie!

This handle must have presented some new challenges as it is different than anything I’ve seen you do. Do you take an impression of the customers hand in order to get the correct “fit”?

Lew

Hi Miilie, I love the artisticness of the mind. That is neet how you can craft a cane for a specific need.

-- Greg, Southern Oregon, www.oregonburls.com

Simply gorgeous…

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

Lew: Good questions.

I’m finding that each client has such specific needs that each is an individual challenge. I’ve been able to work with some people from afar by having them send me photos of them using their current cane or support, as this shows their hand grip and posture. I also have them send me a drawn outline of their hand so I can see how their hand is shaped, as we may all have 5 fingers, (4 fingers, 1 thumb), but the shapes and sizes can vary quite a bit, especially if one has arthritis. Fortunately I have been able to see some clients in person so I am interviewing and studying their needs. For this particular walking stick I had the client come for a fitting and confirm that the angle, shape and height were proper.

My current project involves a woman who has arthritis in two places on her hand plus carpel tunnel syndrome in the wrist. She can’t open her hand flat without pain and her grip is compromised. She has a history of a back operation that has not gone well. Her husband mentioned that “When she walks, she takes an extra step.” Well, that immediately alerted me that her back is too weak when she’s taking a step and she loses her internal support, so she’s falling, then catches herself in mid-step. She confirmed this and so I have to make a cane that 1) Her hand can grip without pain; 2) Her wrist won’t be weighed upon while she leans on the cane; 3) Her arm can lean on for extra support since her back can not support her in mid-step.

This one is going to be tricky, as I am working with wood, not metal and the stress points of her weight have to be considered in an extended handle. More to come!

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

Very nice Meilie, I have carpral tunnal and know how much it hurts using a regular cane, this looks like it would help a lot. Good thinking. m

-- Mike. mwurm13@yahoo.com

Wow Meilie This is really nice I would be proud to show this off .

Outstanding work!!

-- Rj's Woodworks,San Jose & Weed Ca,

Beautiful Craftsmanship!!! Great job.

-- Dennis Zongker

The odd shape of this handle made it impossible for me to clamp it in my custom made clamp that was made for the 5ft. drill press, so I had to clamp this in a table based clamp and stand on a step stool, using a heavy duty drill I towered over the piece to drill freehand down into the end grain to make the hole for the dowel. The Gaboon Ebony piece and the Purpleheart are hard to begin with and the end grain it is almost impossible to drill into. And since the Purpleheart shaft is taller than the drill press will hold, I couldn’t use it. Needless to say the 3/4” forstner bit heated up quickly, so I had 60-90 seconds of drilling, then had to clean the bit and allow to cool. This process took me about 2 hours to complete.

The client came to pick this up and since I make my canes and walking sticks longer than needed, they can be cut to length. She refused to let me cut anything off! She was quite pleased and all of the niches I created for her fingers and palm seem to work quite well.

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

WOW the wood grain is so beautiful

-- Wood and Glass they kick (well you know) Have a great day - Dug