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Sword walking stick.

817 Views 7 Replies 6 Participants Last post by  Kelly, 
F
Hi All.
First time on this site, take it easy on me...I love all things wood, so thought this is a good place to be.

A friend of mine has an old "sword stick walking cane", and sadly the wooden sheath of the sword has succumbed to age.
It probably can be glued up and made a reasonable job of.

But I wondered if I could make him a new piece all together...
My question to you is, how would I be able to drill a hole (straight enough) in the shaft, some 500mm in length roughly for the blade of the sword.
The blade is roughly a piece of 1/4 steel going to a point.
Thank you.
Any ideas???
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dww2
Welcome aboard, FDH!
That sort of hole could be drilled on a lathe if it has the right sort of shaft in the headstock, one which is a pipe instead of a solid bar. There are drill bits with very long shanks made for drilling out long items turned on the lathe. Lamps, for example.
The only other way I can think to do it would be to take a long piece of wood, rip it carefully along its length, trace the blade onto each side, and carve it out. Glue the halves back together and finish shaping the stick to the desired size.
Good luck!
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valky307
I think dww2 has the best option with cutting a long shaft of wood in two then carving it out and gluing it back together.
If the blade is straight you could use a router to hollow out the center. A couple
Years ago, an avid hiker commissioned me to make him a stick with a Rapala Witchs tooth inserted at the top.
I used a wooden flag pole (1.25") cut off 7 inches and split it. Then I routed it out and glued it back onto the shaft with a black spacer.
I fixed a bent piece tin inside to keep tension on the blade so it wouldn't slip out. It worked out fine with a Minwax stain and finish. He was happy with it. I just wish I had taken pics before it was gone!:(
Now I want to make another! :rolleyes:
Best of luck to you FDH! It will be a challenge for sure.
Valky

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valky307 said:
I think dww2 has the best option with cutting a long shaft of wood in two then carving it out and gluing it back together.
If the blade is straight you could use a router to hollow out the center. A couple
Years ago, an avid hiker commissioned me to make him a stick with a Rapala Witchs tooth inserted at the top.
I used a wooden flag pole (1.25") cut off 7 inches and split it. Then I routed it out and glued it back onto the shaft with a black spacer.
I fixed a bent piece tin inside to keep tension on the blade so it wouldn't slip out. It worked out fine with a Minwax stain and finish. He was happy with it. I just wish I had taken pics before it was gone!:(
Now I want to make another! :rolleyes:
Best of luck to you FDH! It will be a challenge for sure.
Valky
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F
Thanks for the reply's gents...
Both these ideas I had pushed around in my mind and realistically, I think that the cutting of the wood in two, down the centre, is the best option. My lathe does not allow such lengths to go through the chuck.
I was a bit concerned about the "saw blade thickness" may cause a problem so may have to "replace the saw blade cut with some wood", baring in mind that the walking stick thickness is only around 15mm in dia and the saw blade must be in the region of 3 or 4mm thick
Hmmm, I must think a little more before making the cut...
💡, a bandsaw blade may be thinner...
Thank you all.
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John Smith_inFL
FDH - Photos would get the most accurate replies, if you can.
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CV3
Hello FDH. I did most of them as dww2 described. I made a jig that let me make the same router cut in the center of each half. And glue them back together. They make extra-long drill bit. Elections often use them. I use a ½ inch / or 12.7 mm bit that was 24inch / 609.6mm long to bore a 20-inch hole in a one-inch dowel. Also making a jig to keep the hole centered .Sounds like a fun project.
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Kelly
My son makes knives. My plan is to make a walking stick that doubles as a spear. To pull that off, I planned on doing like I have with several handles for kitchen gidgits and gadgets - spit the wood, router out for the spear, then glue the two pieces back together.

For my application, I planned on using rare earth magnets to hold the sheath in place, similar to what is done with knife holders,

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