Straightning A Stick

9841 Views 16 Replies 7 Participants Last post by cobalt, Feb 9, 2015

stixman

Discussion Starter · Jan 6, 2014

Do you like to straightn the walking stick or cane before or after it has cured?

I took the crook out of a cane a few weeks ago by strapping it to a 2"X4", worked quite well.

Wasn't perfect, but looked really good.

I don't try to make the stick absolutly straight, takes the character out of the stick.

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Rad

· #2 · Jan 7, 2014

I havn't done much in the straightening department yet -- I usually look for straight ones to begin with. However, I would like to try my hand at some bending, like for a bent handle!

cobalt

· #3 · Jan 8, 2014

Its best to season the shank before straightening it they will always bend if not seasoned .Just use a hot air gun (paint stripper) it works well.you can either use a jig or even straighten it by bending it on your knee depends how bent it is .I find the jig the best way of doing it

cobalt

· #4 · Jan 25, 2014

You must have steam straigtened many time if you can make a crook

Suprried you havnt made any horn crooks you seem to sell most types on your site is there no call for them?

stixman said:
Do you like to straightn the walking stick or cane before or after it has cured?

I took the crook out of a cane a few weeks ago by strapping it to a 2"X4", worked quite well.

Wasn't perfect, but looked really good.

I don't try to make the stick absolutly straight, takes the character out of the stick.

CAS14

· #5 · Feb 8, 2015 (Edited by Moderator)

HELP!

Okay, I am committed (I think), not to an institution, but to a serious attempt to rig up a chamber for heating and steaming wood prior to bending it.

My first attempt was only partly successful, steaming on the kitchen gas stove and incurring the critique of my wife who feared that I was about to burn down the house. I used a Dutch oven to steam the stick for 15 minutes or more, and in fact the stick did bend over my knee. However I should have placed it into a vice or jig to maintain the straightening, because I believe that some of the straightening "rebounded" such that I lost some of the straightening.

So now I want to attempt this in the garage or outdoors.

Heater:

Initially, I considered buying a propane fueled camping stove and a very cheap pan with a lid for boiling water. But then I saw a 1 1/2 quart Crock Pot. Hmmmm. Probably that's too small, but right now I am testing my wife's slow cooker (way too expensive for this) to see if water will boil or at least steam profusely.

Chamber:

A hole could be drilled into the lid, and a fitting screwed in such that standard plumbing flex hose could carry steam to the chamber, which is a 2-foot length of 4-inch metal duct. I can partly seal the ends with just about anything. Perhaps I should affix heat tape along the length of the duct to help maintain temperature, if I can force the heat tape to warm by bypassing the thermostat. I don't know about that.

Straightening:

I have something called a "Jawhorse" which is a really convenient quick release vice on a stand. I think I'll rig that up appropriately for the lengths of stick I most likely will attempt to straighten.

FEEDBACK PLEASE!

(This is what drove my wife nuts.)

http://walkingstickforum.com/uploads/gallery/album_18/gallery_11_18_155344.jpg

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CAS14

· #6 · Feb 8, 2015

Crock Pot - bad idea. After 30 minutes in the slow cooker, the water is very hot but still not steaming adequately. Maybe an electric frying pan with a cover?

cobalt

· #7 · Feb 8, 2015 (Edited by Moderator)

what about a small eletctric boiler. it should do the trick..

I am also looking around for some thing mayby a metal container as log as the stick so it will fix inside the contianer , with mayby a propane gas ring under it , It is the best method of straightening sticks and hopefully i will be able to get a full bend on one for a crook, i already have some jigs ,

For straightening i use the workhouse with the plastic holders in plce and of cuts of wood you can allow for spring back. for a small bend i still use the heat gun place it in the vice with 3 block s of wood so to allow for spring back.other than that use a small jig simple enought to cut on on a bandsaw.

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CAS14

· #8 · Feb 8, 2015

Ah ha! The thought plickens.

Ok, so on my covered back porch I have a gas grill. All I need is a steel container with no flammable parts, maybe a new gasoline can, in which I can boil water, and with an opening to which I can attach a heat-resistant flexible pipe that leads to my steaming chamber!

Anyone have a good reason why this won't work? Cheap! I have a stand just right for the 2 foot long x 4 inch diameter chamber.

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cobalt

· #9 · Feb 8, 2015

that should do the trick, you could just lay the stick over the contianer with the boiling water in and cover the stick with some hesian

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CAS14

· #10 · Feb 8, 2015

A steel gasoline can was expensive! Most of them are plastic now. Maybe I'll look for a large kettle for boiling water and remove all plastic parts. The ongoing saga.

stixman

Discussion Starter · #11 · Feb 8, 2015

I use a hot plate ( electric burner) and a large pot of water.

Place the section of stick with the bend on top of the boiling pan of water.

I cover the stick and the pan with an old coat or blanket and allow the water to steam the stick for a couple of hours, after which I bend stick straight.

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rdemler

· #12 · Feb 9, 2015

You might wanna try a turkey deep fryer..Comes with a nice burner and stand and a big kettle that you'll only need the bottom few inches for water..Around here you can find used ones for around 25.00..

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CAS14

· #13 · Feb 9, 2015

3

No success today (Sunday) assembling a steamer pipe on the back porch grill. So, same song second verse, steaming in the Dutch oven. But this time outside, and out of view of eyes that might panic. This is a stick with a natural 90 degree handle but too crooked for a cane for an old warrior. If I ruin it, no big loss. Shown are the grill and the "Jawhorse" clamp. The wood is balsa which ought to protect the pads as well as conform somewhat to the stick.

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CAS14

· #14 · Feb 9, 2015 (Edited by Moderator)

Mixed results. After two hours of steaming, the stick was very hot. I'm old but I do work out at a gym. I could hear a pop or two but I don't think I straightened it much over my knee.

I placed it in the "Jawhorse" and clamped down hard (foot pressure on the foor lever). Lots of popping and crackling sounds. Now a lot of small cracks appeared which might not look bad if filled with epoxy. I will leave this overnight as I have run dinner late.

About to sear some yellowfin tuna on that grill.

Later edit: after another 30 minutes or so, I mixed some structural epoxy (long curing time) and applied to those cracks, so that it would sink in overnight. The high temperature today was in the high 70's (F), and the low tonight is expected to be around 36. Hopefully the epoxy will sink into those cracks deeply, before it thickens.

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MJC4

· #15 · Feb 9, 2015 (Edited by Moderator)

CAS I have a fish fryer. It has a 10.5 qt aluminum pot and a propane burner. I boil the water in the pot, place the portion of the stick I want to straighten over the pot and cover the whole shebang with an aluminum foil tent. 1/2 hour or so over the pot so far has done the trick on the couple I have straightened. Clamped them to a 2x4 and left for a day or two. I suppose a severe bend would require longer steam and a jig like Cobalt uses.

The whole fryer set up is around $50 at bass pro shops.

Gloops

· #16 · Feb 9, 2015

Re steamer I was lucky my local village hall wanted to dispose of an electric boiler that was for making Tea at functions,as they were replacing with a larger capacity one, of course I disposed of it for them, straight to my workshop

The lid has a 1/4 inch vent hole, stood a tube on top strapped it to garage door hung the shanks in using hooks tied to shank so I could lift them out, works like a dream,

Brother in law uses a steam wallpaper stripper .

I only straighten green sticks if large bow, easier to store whilst drying then finish straighten.

cobalt

· #17 · Feb 9, 2015

hope the crack whilst bending over the knee was the stick and not the back

should do the trick

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