Walking Stick Making With Bottlebrush Wood

Here in Miami, Florida the Bottle Brush (really a tree) is used in the area as an decorative tree. Its thick curved bark is an attractive enhancement for wood carvers. Also, it good for hiking stick making and staff making. However, you see very little done with it with walking and hiking sticks making people.

One main reason it is not a popular wood for walking stick making is because it's hard to fine good straight section that is not to thick. Also, I takes a while to cure due to the hardness of the wood. But if you do get your hands on a good hiking staff Bottle Brush limb section then you will fined its provides hours of walking stick making enjoyment.

The actual wood is very attractive with a darker heartwood cores which gives great contrast when making hiking sticks. If you plan to completely peel the walking stick give yourself some time because it does not peel well. Once peeled start with 80 grit paper to get all the makes off your walking stick or staff.

Now what should to do with you Bottle Brush walking stick or hiking staff to make it unique? The contrast with the bark makes it a prime candidate to make a walking stick wood spirit. You will need to make sure you have sharp wood carving tools for you hiking staff due to the woods hardness. It does wood carve in most directions well and once finished is a very strudy walking sticks or staff.

Another option is to stain your wood walking stick using a pattern technique or wood burn images into the wood. Or create an decorative rope wrap as handle or around the stick for your hiking staff hand grip area.

if you have any questions concerning making walking sticks with Bottle Brush or other woods please post your question here. Happy holidays and remember to grab a couple Xmas trees before they get picked as trash for walking stick making in January.

It's been a while since the last post. I have been busy redoing an ebook on "How to easily make a unique walking and Hiking stick" and get bragging rights "I did it with my own two hands".

The previous version was hosted by a person who is no longer so I had to redo the whole ebook. It's bigger with tons of more photos and extra information the previous version did not contain. Please note that if you are a present owner of the ebook (previous version) please let me know you want the updated one. I will confirm you previous purchase and send you this updated one at no cost.

What does it contain?

Go to the web site for an update on the guides and bonuses contents. The site was updated late last month and put up live when the guide was finished. The guides how to make a wood walking stick and hiking staffs goes from A to Z. From collecting the wood, finishing, woodburning images to carving windspirits adn more. New additions include more carving projects, using webbing for handles, and tons of more images.

If you have any questions about updates, downloads or suggestions of new topics to add to the guides please let me know.

Summer is just starting and it a great time to go out to collect wood for walking sticks. remmeber to always collect a walking staff longer than you need so you have material for other projects and to correct msitakes.

Have a great spring - Sincerely Mike Klein

P.S. How to carry you walking sticks back on planes: Use your ski bags. Take you ski bag with you and fill it up with walking sticks or staffs to check in as luggage. If you do not have a ski bag to hold your wood for the walking sticks then get one cheap on ebay!

It's the season to be ......

Another holiday season is over and the New Year started. I recently came back from vacation with several great walking sticks staffs limbs to using in the future once the wood is cured.

However, I was not done collecting wood for future walking staffs or sticks. Every year after the holidays I go hunting around our neighborhood for a few more walking sticks making material. My neighbors spent from $50 to $90 for the material and I did not want it to go to waste.

That's right - I grabbed some Xmas trees put out by neighbors. Why let all that great hiking stick making material go to waste? There are so many that I limited myself to only 5. I only want ones that are at least 7 feet tall and very straight. The straight part is usually the easy part because my neighbors were so kind to only by straight trees.

Why 7 feet tall? Because it gives me extra room to get the best out of the wood and even have some left over for other porjects.

The hardest part trying to find are ones with evenly spaced limbs so the finished walking staff will have character. Most of the trees I select are Douglas Firs which have a bunch of limbs (every limb is a knot). Knots are a pain to carve but you can used them in a design is your are creative. However, most trees have some blank knot free areas for carving a wood spirit, wolf or other carving.

What to do about the thickness of the trees.

If you pick up a few Xmas trees you will notice that the trunks are very thick. You will either need use as is or whittle down the trunk size to your desires thickness. Even if you keep the thickness once dried the Firs and pines are very very light wood. Usually I cut off a good size piece at the thick end for other wood projects. I found one great tree and turned it into a coat hanging rack last year instead of a walking stick.

If you have other ideas about what to do with Xmas trees then please post your ideas.

Have a great New Year.

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