Aces High Bulletin Board
General Forums => The O' Club => Topic started by: fbWldcat on June 15, 2011, 05:42:41 PM
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Hey, fellas. A few weeks ago, my dad felled my favorite childhood tree. I went to the house and picked out four branches that could be used as walking sticks. I used a knife to shave all the bark off. The end product* is a nice, natural looking walking stick with sanded knobs and top, and nothing else.
Now the asterisk is there because I don't know if I want that to be the end product. This last one I'm building is for a friend of mine. She likes to go hiking and fishing a lot. I want to paint something onto it that will make it a little moreso or something along those lines. So!
1. Should I use a primer if I am going to paint it?
2. Should I put a clear coat over it? Nothing like a gloss, but a flat or maybe satin for a more natural look? I like the natural look, the real question was clear coat or not.
3. If I use clear coat, how many coats of it should I apply? I figure put down the first coat, then sand it, then reapply. Sand and reapply if needed. Does this sound like a good idea?
Your input is much appreciated, thanks in advance. <S>
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:aok For putting your friend before yourself.
Damn classy.
Sounds like you are doing things right with the clear coat & sanding btw.
<S> Coogan
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If you dont seal the wood it will rot!
What you use to seal it is pretty much up to you,there's so many products to do this with it's mind boggling.
If it was me I'd use a good feldspar poly on it as it's marine rated,however old school shellac does have an appeal of it's own.
As far as painting something,seal and sand the wood first,a primer may be required to get the proper color but you need to seal the wood first.Apply a coat of sanding sealer over the entire stick,coat the ends several times as they absorb the sealer the most.
Another thing you can do to add to the walking stick is to add a handle,leather and cording,thin rope make excellent handles.If you choose cording,learn to do a whipfinish and bury the ends in the wraps. Have fun and you might want to google walking sticks for some other ideas.
:salute
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Btw, everything is done by hand, no power-tools used. So Coogn, thank you. <S>
Morph, I have a spray paint clear coat that is rated for indoor/outdoor use, that is water resistant and supposedly durable. Would this suffice?
And I did think about using small rope for a handle, whip finishing is no problem for me, I tie my own flies sometimes. <S>
If you don't think the spray will work, I'll definitely use some feldspar poly.
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If its going to be anything but a display item, use the feldspar. I have seen many different ways to do this, one of my favorites given to me by my wife has my name burned into the wood prior to the finishing. I found out later that my step dad made it for her. It also has a leather flat lace wrap for handle.
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The type of wood may make a difference too, is it a hard or soft wood? You may want to let it dry a bit more before painting and sealing it to prevent mold issues or rotting from the inside.
+1 on the kudos for making her a walking stick. Nothing beats a home made gift.
If your not going to paint the whole thing, consider taking a torch to it lightly to darken it and really bring out the grain first. It takes about five min but really makes it look nice.
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Painting although good...would be a pain in the long run since from what I can gather it will be used on the trails. I would go for a wax/stain type of coating...there are gel types that you apply with a sponge or tac(lint free) rag. painting will require touch ups that will need sanding where as the stain will just require a clean and coat if it gets knocked...also it will not take away from the work (handtooled) that you have looked for by making them in this way.
oh yes...you can...but for better results use a brush or sponge...spraying will mostly just coat the surface and not get worked into the wood as much.
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It is Bradford Pear, Hardwood.
I've let it dry in our garage for the past 3 weeks so it wouldn't crack (direct sun and 95 degree temps sound like a recipe for cracking).
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FB,
I'd use a real sealer,they are available at any good paintshop and/or most good hardware stores. It's made to be absorbed and stablize the wood,after a light sanding you wont even see it. Then do any decorating that you like,flaming,branding,carving,staining and or painting then coat it with a marine grade poly.
If you know how to whipfinish then your miles ahead of most for doing handles,another trick is to use a wire loop to pull the ends under the wraps,thats done when putting the eyes on fishing rods.This works great with leather,as you can hide the ends of the wraps to make a nice looking handle.
Oh and another good touch is a loop,matching the handle of course,great for not dropping the walking stick!
:salute
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Why did your father fell the tree?
/hijack
-Penguin
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if your going to psint it, use AT LEAST 1 coat of Zinsser BIN. it seals whats in in, and whats out keeps out. stuff is expensive, but a qaurt is more then enough.
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Why did your father fell the tree?
/hijack
-Penguin
Ice storms took their toll. Bradfords are notorious for having high yield strength, but low tensile strength. They are very easily destroyed by excess force such as large amounts of ice/snow.
Ironically, after the tree is felled and the wood loses some of its moisture, it becomes more elastic while yield strength is highly unaffected. The end product is a perfect wood for a walking stick.
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interesting wldcat.
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Morph, when you say a "real" sealer, what do you mean? I know what you mean, generally, but I don't know specifically.
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It's usually sold as sanding sealer and is a lacquer based product.
You could make do with some thinned out poly,1/3 thinner 2/3rds poly or even half and half depending on the wood.
If it isnt real dry,less than 10% moisture then the thinned out poly will be just fine but old or dried out wood can benefit from a good sealer.It fills the pours and strengthens the fibers,this preps the wood for a nice finish. Since the wood was cut not long ago it will have a high moister content so I dont think you need to spend the extra to get sealer,just put a couple of coats of thinned out poly and it should be good for years.
I made a nice walking stick for a friend,it was cedar and was full of worm holes and grooves,I stained it brite red then sanded all the stain off except what filled the worm holes.Made a red leather wrap handle and braided leather loop.
He's never used it as he says it would me a shame to mark it up..... :lol
:salute
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Danish Oil :aok
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Germans are well known for their "Volksmarches" and walking sticks.
Many are very old and well decorated with badges.
I would recommend looking for a website that explains the
steps they take to make a walking stick :aok
:cheers: Oz
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Hey, guys. I have a sanding sealer and a spray-on minwax polyurethane that is highly resistant to moisture and UV rays.
I know what I'm gonna paint, but one last question...
Should I put a metal cap on the bottom of the walking stick so that when it hits a rock, it doesn't splay?
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IF it gets good use I think I would just use an oil on it. That way no matter if it was scratch on rocks or the surface worn in any way... it would still be protected.
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^ this
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I don't know what the grain if this wood is like but if it's nice, I wouldn't paint it. Oil is good, or use a sealer. Maybe a nice stain to bring out the grain before sealing. If you use a varnish type product, thin it 50/50 for the first coat so it will soak in well, sand lightly and repeat. I wouldn't use anything from a spray can for something like this - wont last. Good luck with your project - pics when you're finished ? :aok
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I didnt read all the posts so if its been said already im sorry lol But Vegetable Oil works real nice to bring out the natural defects in the wood and also try using Sanding Sealer It isnt very glossy just has a little bit of shine to it. But ive only used it on lumber so it might soak in better and leave less of a shine with more porus wood right off the tree
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What I'm doing right now, I'm putting high quality wood filler into defects made by my own stupidity. I'm going to sand everything down, get the dust off with a tack cloth. I'm then going to apply the sanding sealer twice (sanding in between coats and I will also put about 5 applications on the ends).
I will then apply the paint (just a few things around the top). After all the paint dries, I will then apply the top coat of polyurethane (it is in a spray, yes, but it is the same stuff you find in a can, just in spray form). After that, I will give it a light sanding with 350-450 grit, then I'll polish it up with a terry cloth.
Pictures will definitely be posted of the finished product.
Thanks for all your input, guys, you probably saved my @rse. I wanted to make this thing right. <S>
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BTW, if anyone speaks fluent Italian, could you please PM me?
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This guy can help with Italian :rofl
http://youtu.be/9JhuOicPFZY
:cheers: Oz
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I also have no other string for a grip except for some brown braided nylon catfish line, or some of the same stuff, only green. Would this stuff work? Nylon, iirc, is VERY UV resistant and is very water resistant, which is why they use it for anchors and on boats. Your guys' thoughts?
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Hey, fellas. A few weeks ago, my dad felled my favorite childhood tree. I went to the house and picked out four branches that could be used as walking sticks. I used a knife to shave all the bark off. The end product* is a nice, natural looking walking stick with sanded knobs and top, and nothing else.
Now the asterisk is there because I don't know if I want that to be the end product. This last one I'm building is for a friend of mine. She likes to go hiking and fishing a lot. I want to paint something onto it that will make it a little moreso or something along those lines. So!
1. Should I use a primer if I am going to paint it?
2. Should I put a clear coat over it? Nothing like a gloss, but a flat or maybe satin for a more natural look? I like the natural look, the real question was clear coat or not.
3. If I use clear coat, how many coats of it should I apply? I figure put down the first coat, then sand it, then reapply. Sand and reapply if needed. Does this sound like a good idea?
Your input is much appreciated, thanks in advance. <S>
A couple old timers I used to hike with once in a while both liked a nice thich clear coat on their favorite walking sticks. One was stained the other wasn't, both had some ornamental carving/whitling done to them before the treatments, one of them had these buttons or plate stamps he had put one clear coating over to help secure on, and both they had hand wrapped some leather to the top 10-14 inches or so as a compforitable grip. It always made them shine and they never looked dirty no matter the trail and conditions, but I figure too much will add too much weight to the stick.
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I also have no other string for a grip except for some brown braided nylon catfish line, or some of the same stuff, only green. Would this stuff work? Nylon, iirc, is VERY UV resistant and is very water resistant, which is why they use it for anchors and on boats. Your guys' thoughts?
Use paracord instead. You can find it on ebay and then google "walking stick paracord".
This is just an example ... http://www.instructables.com/id/Double-perfect-Whipped-Paracord-Staff-Hand-grip/
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I've already used catfish braid. It is #32 thickness and it is not only nylon, but it is also tarred, and it is actually a nice, comfy grip. It's working fine for the time being. Of course, being so new to this, I'm giving it to her with the guarantee that anything goes wrong and I will fix it, no prob. Lol
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Finished product:
(http://i883.photobucket.com/albums/ac32/JakeRay_2010/009-1.jpg)
(http://i883.photobucket.com/albums/ac32/JakeRay_2010/007-1.jpg)
(http://i883.photobucket.com/albums/ac32/JakeRay_2010/008-1.jpg)
(http://i883.photobucket.com/albums/ac32/JakeRay_2010/004-1.jpg)
(http://i883.photobucket.com/albums/ac32/JakeRay_2010/002-2.jpg)
Thanks, you guys. I'm very happy with the finished product, and I'm sure she will be, too. <S>
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Very nice FB!
The pear has a nice grain and it's a very unique looking.
Just a comment,you could have hidden the ends of the wraps slightly better but thats a small critique!
:salute
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Very nice FB!
Just a comment,you could have hidden the ends of the wraps slightly better but thats a small critique!
The type of line that it is, I tried cutting it very close but it just unraveled. I had to give it a small bit of tag or it wouldn't have worked.
Thanks for the help!
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FB,
If you use a small loop of thin wire,picture hanging wire works well,you place the loop about 1/3 from the end of the wraps and wrap over the loop of wire. make sure the loop extends past where you plan on ending the handle,then when you finish the wraps,slip the tag end into the loop,make sure you leave enough tag to pull all the way back to where you started the wire loop. Then just pull the tag back and under the wraps,use a fine blade,razor,and cut it between the wraps.
This will make the end disappear and leave it buried under the wraps. You could also use a whipfinish to make the handle and that will bury the tag in much the same manner. I've bent coathanger wire to make an extra large whipfinish tool,but I find I can use my hands just as well.All you need is a 3rd hand,,a vise will do in a pinch... :rofl and with alittle thought you can even make the loop for the handle and the handle wraps all out of 1 continuous piece of cord.
If the cord your useing is too thin you can braid several strands together to make a thicker cord,a dab of super glue can help hold the braides together before you start to wrap it. Leather works real well too,any old belt can be used.The wire loop technique is pretty much the best way to do handles made of leather.
Hope these tips help,you can always rewrap the handle as long as you have enough cord.
:salute
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I used a whip finish and the loop is made out of the same piece of cord as the handle.
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I used a whip finish and the loop is made out of the same piece of cord as the handle.
cool,I guess it's hard to tell with the way it's finished!
I wasnt being critical so I hope you didnt take it that way. I'm sure who ever gets it will appreciate it.
:salute
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I wasn't taking it for being critical at all.
I gave her the walking stick today. She loved it and we're going hiking sometime around the 4th. Thanks for all your help, guys!
(Morph, I honestly wouldn't have thought about the whip finish for the handle if it hadn't been for you. I was sweating about the handle thing).
Thanks again, everyone! <S>
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Glad I could help!
:salute