The walking stick/hiking staff thread

Awww. That's so thoughtful. Just curious, where are you? I actually found a good stick a couple of months ago while trimming trees and clearing brush. I debarked it and drilled a hole then put a lanyard through it. I am letting it sit and cure for a while. It's pretty decent but to be honest I am not sure I will use it. I think it might be too heavy. I'm used to the lightweight telescopic poles.

 

I'm over here in Bama... I had one made for you and I think we had discussed it years back, but must have forgotten about it. I usually debark and let them sit for a year to "season". That way, it's sure not to split once I finish it.

 

I really need a good set of poles and a good hiking stick. I picked up an expensive pair of poles for $5 from another forum that break down like tent poles but they are so flimsy that if I put any weight on them they would snap. I've always wanted to make a 2 or 3 piece hiking staff (around 7ft) that screwed together so it could fit in my pack, but was still strong enough to hold all or most of my weight....

 

I don't want to derail the thread, but I am researching this stuff right now as I am in the prototyping stage of a hollow handle break down hiking staff. I am making them out of aluminum, and I wanted a break down model so I could transport it easily.

This is obviously a 3 piece model, with an OAL of about 60". I will post a pic or two and am interested in hearing any constructive criticisms. Feel free to ask questions, there are a number of details on this staff.

The primary handle area is about 10" long and has one of my steel plated aluminum buttcaps. The turned down are is for cord wrapping, as illustrated in the second photo.

 

oh heck yes.

(i see you got your metal lathe )


constructive crit:

without actually holding one.....its hard......BUT.....Hold your arm straight out in front of you, with the pole in your hand. Mark with o rings or tape where you hand grips the pole. Thats where i would knurl for a hand grip (but i would also leave the hand-grip near the top). I would also lathe in grooves for O rings , spaced 1/2" apart on the main grip area. The O rings work wonders in pissing rain and snow for grip, and are user replaceable for dirt cheap.

for the cord wrap storage.....consider several lathed out areas, one for paracord or bankline, one for braided fishing line, one for jute/wax fire starter cord etc etc .....

very interested.

(and don;t worry about de-railing.......this thread is all about staffs and sticks!

 

You coming to BLADE this year? If so, let me know. I will be there and we could meet up.

 

Good insight Bushman, thank you. I did the knurling there to aid in grip while removing the buttcap. The cord wrapped area is where my hand falls for grip. There will be a hand strap to help keep your hand hanging in that area, so I'm not too worried about slipping.

I don't want to do too much more machining as it starts to add up and there is already a lot of tapping and knurling going on. All good thoughts, please feel free to keep it coming.

Sam

And thank you for the compliments!

 

@Sam Wilson would there be a way to have one of the sections hollow to serve as a blowgun?
The practical aspects probably make it unlikely, but would be a pretty cool feature.

 

The middle section is about 24" long, and is the only section that isn't plugged. I suppose it could serve as a makeshift blowgun, but probably not a very good one.

I wanted to keep the design focused on simplicity. I'm going to offer some accessories for these, but it will be pretty straightforward and geared toward use.

I'm still interested in hearing ideas about these. Glad to get some back and forth.

Sam

 

@Sam Wilson
Love it! Looks like just what I'm looking for.
Pm sent

 

@Sam Wilson just a thought, what do you plan to use as the foot/tip of the staff?
Idea - rubber pool que bumper cheap, durable, and replaceable. Also possibly a screw on spike for times like these - winter ice.

 

The plan right now is to use heavy duty crutch tips. The ones I have are tough, reinforced with a steel washer, and cheap. I want to make them easy to replace for the end user and simple. I don't want to create a dependancy on me for complex replacement parts. Pain in the nex for everyone and no real profit. Good points, thank you.

Sam

 

I have had a number of inquiries about these, so I will put this information here for any who are interested.

Depending on the interest level, I will be making these myself either in small batches or as-ordered.

Introductory price will be $275, which will include the staff, 3/8" thick firesteel and lanyard. There will be some options available as well. A fishing gig, steel-plated buttcap, and maybe a couple of other things such as a rifle rest and camera mount.

Finish is going to be blasted aluminum with green cord wrap, I'll probably offer black and orange wrap as well. I will be doing a video to discuss the options and design concept behind the staff in the next week or two, and I will post it here.
In the meantime, feel free to ask or comment away.

Thank you,
Sam

 

I've had a bunch of projects/knives I have been working on pull me in several directions, but the SAFE Staff is almost done. Thought I would post a pic of the optional fishing gig after it's adapted for the staff.



Sam

 

Digging the gig!

I can use that as a Hurry Up tool to get slow pedestrians moving!

 

Some nighttime product testing. I'm sure I look like a nut with this thing in town, but I wanted to take it for a spin before blasting and wrapping it.

 

That is just too cool!

 

That would come in handy here, Here froggy froggy