Thanks Albert. There's nothing 'trained" about me ;), but I was lucky enough to find some Osage Orange trees on the side of a small mountain (between Huntsville and Decatur Alabama, full of hardwood (oak, hickory, etc.), trees where the Osage was in competition for sunlight and grew longer and straighter than any I had ever seen. I still have an Osage stick that is 7.5 feet long and the same diameter (1.5") at each end, with only a slight bit of bow (maybe 5"), from end to end. I haven't carved on it yet, because I thought it might just make a great bow. 🤔
Hello, I'm a fellow cane maker and I tend to watch a lot of videos about making canes and walking sticks. This cane has got to have the most perfect handle I've ever come across. I'm so impressed by your work that I try to model my own handles like this one. AWESOME !!! P.S. We don't have this type of tree where I'm from and I tend to use red birch or willow as well as 2x4's and old fence boards .
Thank you for your kind words, Shelton. I'm just wondering where you live. Osage can be found in most central states of the US. (If you live in the US..) When I first started making sticks and staves, I went to furniture stores and companies and checked their dumpster for good hard wood (cherry, oak, walnut, etc.) that they've thrown away. They sometimes have damaged tables and other furniture that they can't sell and throw some great wood away. A table leg isn't long enough for a cane or stick, but it can produce great handles for knives and such.
@@RonRay Im from Saskatchewan Canada thats a great idea where to look for some good usable pices of lumber. I'll definitely look it up I have a couple of ideas where to go . thanks for the tip buddy
Thank you Mark... from the land where the "Shillelagh" - or "Sail éille" all began- Ireland. (Is your last name really "Irish!? If so, you are the true spirit of Ireland.)
@@RonRay I'm sorry to say my last name isn't Irish .but I am born and raised in South Dublin not far from the town in wexford called shillelagh where the origin of the stick is said to have been .so glad you are well .I was today just working my stick it's from a budjlea tree sometimes called the butterfly bush I hope it turns out as beautiful as your hedge apple stick .we don't have that here in Ireland unfortunately but I suppose I should be thankful we have blackthorn
Great stick, and thanks for sharing all of the great information about this particular tree the Osage orange . All of the steps it took to complete. Thank you
I read some of the comments. There are so many nice people out there. I enjoyed the video, especially because you didn’t spend all the time talking, and you didn’t put on some esoteric music
That looks to me like a very fine walking stick and self defense weapon, much like the Irish Blackthorn walking sticks!! Shillelaghs are really good weapons for self defense that wyill teach miscreants a thing or two! You do beautiful work! I have an Osage Orange short bow that is backed with Elk and Buffalo sinew that is so stout, I can no longer pull it! It would have been the kind of bow the Native Peoples used for Buffalo hunting as they are very stout and have been known to drive an arrow fully through a running Buffalo, in a horseback hunt! I'd love to have one of these beautiful sticks but doubt I'd be able to afford one! Being on disability is not a way to get rich or even to do much more than HOPE to be able for my wife and me to exist! May the Creator bless you and keep you healthy and safe so that you can continue using your skills and talents for many more years yet! You are only 2 years older than me!
Osage orange was quite common in NW Missouri where I grew up. We referred to it as hedge trees. Hedge trees were originally planted by farmers as wind breaks for livestock and certain crops, specifically grain crops like wheat, oats, barley, and rye. Over the years though, the hedge trees would spread reducing useable acreage. Thinning the hedge row was winter work and resulted in the harvesting of many fence posts. They are about the only use for hedge wood other than firewood. The splitting of firewood had to happen at once after cutting or it would harden and be impossible to split, however the Osage would burn for many hours after hardening. Today, most of the hedge has been removed by bulldozer and piled in small hillocks that is used for small game cover. Due diligence must be paid to the original tree site as any roots not removed will sprout and grow. I saw commercially made selections of Osage Orange canes and walking sticks in truck stops along the interstate between El Paso and Ft. Worth. They weren't cheap by any means, but if you're not a wood carver and have no source of Osage Orange, that may be a solution for you.
George Boyer You know your Osage trees. As a kid in Alabama, we were always told that the fruit (hedge apples), were poison but since then, I have eaten them. They taste close to cucumber and I don't like cucumber, but I ate them as a cancer treatment. There is a chemical compound in the leaves and fruit called "tetrahydroxystilbene" that has been attributed to curing cancer.
@@RonRay If the humble Osage Orange tree can help cure cancer, I'll take back all the names I called them while swinging a double-bit ax trying to make fence posts.
Rusty Lee If you cut it green (yellow ;), it's a little less tough. but yeah, it is the hardest wood in the United States (as I know of). The American Indians had their choice of any and all wood to us for their bows & tools and chose Osage Orange, when it was available in their particular area. I have another Osage Orange cane I made 11 years ago (July, 2007), that I use daily and it's in the same condition as when I made it (or even harder!). Thanks for watching.
I know *_exactly_* what you mean. For years I tried desperately to obtain blackthorn, as you have there, but could not (and still can not), get it. (The only way is to buy a finished stick...) 15 years ago, I even considered planting blackthorn from cuttings (shipped), here in Alabama, but the Department of Agriculture here will not allow it. If shipping didn't cost so dang much, I'd send you a stick of it, but it's too expensive. Thank you for watching.
@@RonRay yes I was thinking Blackthorn , I'm a volunteer at a place called Auckland castle as a carpenter I'll have to have a look in the park area for a suitable peace.
@@joegrande4848 Joe, that's an oscillating multi-tool from Harbor Freight. The one I have is corded, but now they have a good cordless one that is relatively cheap. www.harborfreight.com/merchandising-promotions/clearance/12v-cordless-variable-speed-oscillating-multi-tool-kit-68012.html Thanks for watching.
I see you carry a firearm on you too! I do the same most of the time. Your walking stick turned out very nice. Looks real relaxing working on it. Have a Blessed Day RonRay.
Thanks, brother. Yes, I carry only when I'm awake. (I take it off when I go to sleep... really!) You never know when crazy people will want to 'share' what belongs to us. When I make sticks, I believe that I 'build' more in my head than I do on the stick... Appreciate your visit and knowing there are some good God fearing people still among us. God bless you!
Nice beating-stick! I like to shape mine with just a rasp,then sand them by hand....I make most of my cudgels from ash,and i had no problems with cracks so far...
Great video, shows people just how tough this wood is to work with. I'd like to try working with blackthorn someday . Just to expensive to buy , fortunately we got osage here in the states. You have to work with osage to appreciate it.
Thanks for your comment, Russ. I too have dreamed of working with blackthorn. I even dreamed once of buying twenty or so acres and growing them- importing saplings from England. (but I believe the US government might have something to say about that. :) I have an Osage limb sitting here next to me that I cut over 15 years ago that is 7 1/2 feet long, almost the same diameter at both ends and less than six inches out of true (almost straight). I found an Osage tree growing on the side of a small mountain in the middle of hickory, oak and other hardwoods and it had to compete with them... growing long, straight limbs. I hesitate carving (grinding) on it because I want it to be perfect. The stick in this video split because of the knot, half way down, that I didn't seal properly from one day to the next. The limb that is next to me right now might even make a perfect "BOW"!? I've never made a bow, so I don't know.
@@RonRay I've had problems with splitting as well. I've successfully filled those big cracks with epoxies, they also have different colors pigments you can add to it. I know it takes away from what Your trying to achieve but it does save a stick from being tossed in a fire. I think looks good and people seem to like it too. Works great on filling knot holes.
David, it has been 100°+ F (38°+C) for weeks here! We finally had some storms move through last night which was a relief, but also took out part of a tree in my front yard! 😲 ... Hoping we both get relief from the heat, but don't expect it until autumn. 😓
Great stick. Thanks for posting the video. Just an idea but I screw a small hook ( I found some in a picture hanging kit I received as a house warming gift) into the tip end of the stick so that I can hang it when applying the finish so nothing is making contact with the stick as it dries. Just thought the string might leave a mark. Happy carving!
The "Children of the Middle Waters", known today as the Osage Nation, used this wood for their bows. I have never heard of them (us) using it for war clubs, but after watching this video I strongly suspect it was a popular selection for clubs as well.
Ron Verbeek Sorry about there not being Osage trees in the Netherlands Ron, but you do have Black locust and European hornbeam. Either of those are real hard wood. The heart wood of the Black locust resembles Osage and is really hard, just a little darker than the Osage. (I have even cut a couple, thinking it was Osage..) I have considered making a stick from Black locust myself. Good luck and thanks for watching.
@@RonRay very cool work I'm a whittler I made my Irish fighting stick its save 2 lives already I do carve spoons from branches but wouldn't it be more easy removal of stock with a hatchet ? And what's the pistol you has on hip and why ? Greeting from UK England near London 🐺🐾:-) 👍
@@robertdailing3147 I have worked other green woods many times and you are correct in that it is much easier to work with... but working with Osage is very different. This stuff is nothing like hickory or oak.. even waiting for 10 years (when other woods will have been well past the checking stage), Osage will still crack. The ONLY way this stuff will not split is to follow the rings (like in bow making), and even then, it will twist and bend. This stick had aged in my garage for 8 to 10 years and it still split after making this video (where the knot was, halfway down).
Wow, I never heard of that wood, doesn't look like it grows in Europe at all. I hear it was sometimes used to make wagon wheels? Should be sturdy enough for a cane or walking stick. :)
@@davidhughes8661 No, but you have much better... BLACKTHORN! I once looked into importing and growing blackthorn here, but was informed that wasn't allowed. I would kill for blackthorn. :)
@@RonRay yes we have I could not make the sticks you do with arthritis in my hands and leg joints been using a stick for two years now , hope you are keeping well . Dave north west uk
great work on that cane. I never worked with Osage Orange before but I like the grain on the knob. Also looks durable enough to crack a few heads if need be and not break.
Thanks tons for making this DYI. Great job and beautifully done. Just one thing I wish you would have shared, how to straighten (you call it Osage Orange, most of us here is call Bois de' arc, or Horse Apple) and all I can find it is in like a C curve or crooked as a dog's hind leg. How do you get it straight?
You are correct in that I should have shown that. I have a large PVC pipe (4" diameter, 6' in length), that i connect a portable steam cleaner hose to and steam it for 1 hour for every inch of diameter of the wood. Then, while the wood is hot and moist, I bend it and tie it off until it cools. If you don't want to go through all of that, make a jig that would resemble two rectangles, two feet apart, like this: [] [] They must be anchored down to a table or something solid... The stick goes inside the two rectangles (or squares). Place a small hydraulic jack between the rectangles and beneath the stick... Now, add spacers (wood blocks), on top of the jack until the spacers reach the stick. (Protect the stick with padding if you want to keep it's bark or exterior. Use padding in the jig and on top of the spacer blocks.) Turn the stick until the curve is 'down'. Now, use a heat gun and SLOWLY heat the stick until it is very hot, but don't let it burn or scorch. Apply upward pressure on the stick by raising the jack (while maintaining heat), until you see the curve or bend leaving the stick. Go a little beyond where you want it, because it will spring back afterwards... Then let it stand for a couple of hours. You might have to move the stick and apply this heat/pressure to a couple of places, but as long as you get the wood HOT, it will do the same thing a 'steam'.
Thanks. I just wanted to post a quicky of the sun CME and didn't notice that "Children" part... I thought it said "Safe for kids" :) It doesn't much matter, because I'll probably take it down in a day or two. Good to hear from you, Don. Hope you and your family are doing well.
Доделал лонжеронным лаком. Это защищает древесину и предотвращает ее растрескивание. Спасибо за ваш комментарий. Простите за "перевод" ... Воспользовался Google Translate.
I don't know of any who make sticks/canes from Osage. The wood is so hard to work with... This cane has since split, even with several coats of spar varnish. Thanks for watching.
Thank you for sharing this Absolutely beautiful video excellent performance and beautiful work love it. My dear friend Ron have a beautiful Weekend Warm hugs from my heart and much ԼƠƔЄ from Huggie
I have seen fully dried Osange orange, we call it Bodark (local slang for bois d'arc) here, break chainsaws and take chips out of woodcarving gouges. It is TOUGH STUFF!
You must be from the Ozarks (or there about)... If you're from the "mid-west", then y'all have the larger trees that can be split into staves and make the best bows in the world. :) It's really bad about splitting and cracking, even when it is sealed with varnish. When they "chase the ring" (making bows), that somehow keeps the wood from splitting. The harder the wood, the more problems with splitting. One great thing about this walking stick: if things go south with a would be adversary, it makes a heck of a club!
RonRay Actually I first met Bodark in southwest Louisiana, we kids were sent out on foraging forays for the fruits, which we called hedge apples or horse apples. They were placed in cupboards and corners to chase away bugs. Then Bodark and I were re-introduced when I moved to the Dallas area of north Texas. It is THE weed tree there, followed by hackberry and juniper. It only takes a couple of scrapes on horseback to give a tremendous respect for this tree. I tried making a bow from it once. I spotted a straight watersprout from a leaning tree and took it. I worked on it for over a year, and it broke on my first draw. Cuz I didn't know what I was doing.
anon ymous It's strange that some of the Osage Orange have thorns and others don't...? I used to collect the the hedge apples every fall and freeze them (that's how I got this limb). I then scraped off and ate a couple of tablespoons of the hedge apple every day. The fruit was said to contain a chemical that can prevent or even heal cancer (tetrahydroxystilbene). Strange thing is... I did that for years and through apathy, I stopped. After I quit eating it, I was diagnosed with stage 4 bone cancer of the spine & pelvis. God healed me of the cancer, but I was left with the pain, so I can't round up any more Osage Orange wood or the hedge apples. (I didn't like the taste anyway... they taste like cucumbers and I hate cucumbers!)
I bought a " big walking cane" (shillelagh) for only $60.00! After seeing the work that goes into it I feel like a thief! Next time I'll leave a 20% tip as well! Let's see $60 X 1.2 = $72.00 that's a little better!
Ha ha... I know the feeling. I purchased a couple of true blackthorn knobstick shillelaghs from the UK (about 15 years ago) for under $20.00 each (which you could still do back then) and actually feel bad about it now.
how long do you cure the stick before you work it?? I've made a few out of crepe myrtle sticks and I let them dry or cure for at least 2 to 3 months before I work them
allan harville Allan, with Osage, it takes longer. This stick aged for over five years, but it doesn't require that long. Crepe Myrtle is much softer and (as you say), it cures much faster. I try to wait at least six months from cutting before finishing any stick... better a year. I made the mistake with this stick of removing the cambium layer and not sealing it immediately- it split a little on an old knot. (Hard woods are bad about splitting and checking!)
Thankyou, we have a lot of Osage around here and for the most part they are Nusiance bushes. I would like to harvest some to make a few sticks with. As far as the cracks go in my staffs/canes/sticks go, Sometimes I use them as part of the decorations. I will use super glue or epoxy and force it down in the crack, then, place on top, wire or glass beads, or even glow-in-the-dark paint. (Although all my staffs are useable as staff/canes, I do a lot of "fantasy" wizard staff as well.)
Nowadays, this is mostly how knobs are put on most staves. Note However: The knobs are originally Root bowls, polished down. Traditional blackthorn staves, made in the proper, actual old school way, are individual, whole saplings. It's why they were so strong. You chose a sapling of the right size, limbed it , and dug it up by the roots, You neither cut it down, or chose a limb. I t was a whole, young sapling. Which is why tourist sticks are now so wimpy. Either they are made from really young trees, or simply from a limb( carving on a knob).
Schralenberger You certainly know your root knobs. There is not a more devout follower of the traditional blackthorn root knob sticks of the past than me. If I had the land to grow them, I would go so far as import English blackthorn trees and propagate them here. I could then make sticks like they used to be made, grown, cut and processed in the US by me. The best way to grow and harvest blackthorn (IMO), is to coppice the grown tree and then cut the stick sized sticks from the old stump, using part of the original stump as the ball. The nearest thing we have here in north America to blackthorn is this Osage orange. Osage "saplings" are so rare now that this is about the only way to make a "knob stick" with it. Even in the UK, they make their sticks this way because most of their blackthorn is gone now. I have 50 to 60 sticks that I've made from all different woods, but my favorite is Osage. Thanks for your input.
Its interesting that using such young wood could produce durable weapons especially since a sapling is mostly sapwood. Maybe blackthorn produces lots of heartwood at a young age who knows. I've heard that shoots and limbs could be stronger than turned wood but never understood how. I'd love to learn more about it.
steven garness Congrats on finding one for $8.00! Anymore, Anything under $80 US is a deal if it's a true Irish or English knob-stick or shillelagh from the UK. Even the "knock-offs" are $50 to $60.
Where can I get sticks like you are carving. I live in Western North Carolina and like to carve me a couple shillelaghs for my own use. I would appreciate any information you can provide. Thank you.
Hall Bright This is Osage orange wood. It used to be common in the mid-south and mid-west, but is now declining. It was used as fencing for property lines and animals restriction, but lost favor with the cheaper and more available wire fence. The American Indian used Osage for their bows and the French influence on the Indians changed the name to bois d'arc (bodark), meaning "bow wood". I love it because it's as hard as the English Blackthorn, which is not grown here and is even rare in the UK. If you can find anybody around your area that knows where some "horse apples" or "monkey brains" are, that is the Osage tree. The large greenish yellow fruit (horse apples) is evident in the autumn, when they fall from the trees. If you happen to find some, you will need to let it cure at least six months before making a cane or walking stick out of it... and even then, seal it if you're going to wait overnight from one carving to the next, because it is HARD and will split in just a couple of hours of drying. Goof luck!
Yes, Bow Wood, because it was used by many Native American People to make their bows from! See my post, above for info on my sinew backed horseback Buffalo hunting bow! They are fantastic and VERY strong!
I had cut the stick 8-10 years prior to this, to the best of my recollection: They say the first thing to go when getting old is the "memory", but for some reason, I can't remember the 2nd thing..... ( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)
i came from a cheat engine video where you stated that you were 65 years old and im surprised that someone like you is into game hacking, why is that? genuinely interested
Man yeah! I'm now 72 and still into games and Cheat Engine Tables. :) Thanks for following the lead. But to answer your question, I have been into gaming since computers first came on the scene, back with the Commodore 64 and when I learned that they can be manipulated, I was hooked. ... Still am!
killi mimes I'm a couple of hundred miles from you (Huntsville, Al), and although it is becoming more rare, Osage grows around some of the "older" communities in more rural settings. In the country during the summer, look for medium height trees with the limbs forming arches 🎑 or bows. Mid summer to early fall, there will be the "hedge apples" or horse apples (Osage fruit), that will give it away. There should actually be as much or more where you live as here. Sometimes, you can find pretty good limbs on eBay, which I did once. Good luck!
tim stanley No, but with the replies I'm getting about it, I might just START selling them! :) ... But seriously, when people buy items on the Internet, they are much more subjective (with good reason!), when I make them for just me, I can lower my standards... ;) Thanks for watching!
@@RonRay, I do hope you consider selling a few. Where are you at? Florida? I would love to make a shillelagh walking stick with a decent weight to it, but I don't have access to anything but stringy live oak, no usable pieces, and not enough of the right tools. If the price is good, maybe we could set something up? I would prefer to put the finish on it myself, though.
I have several. Seasoned Osage Orange is like sawing through concrete. (It's literally hard as rock!) This oscillating multitool is the fastest and most efficient way of getting through this stuff. BYW.. They use tools exactly like this to remove casts from people who have had broken bones. It reacts (cuts) hard material, and not as much to soft material (me).
@@RonRay I have some ofthat Osage myself, and I agree its tough material! I guess the fact thati am a woodcarver helps reveal thatI have SHARP saws. I love the shape of your staff; fits the hand well, it looks like!
I will say you worked prettyhard on that stick ...your hand movements are incredibly fast ... you must know Ju Jitsu and stuff ...wish I coulda watched you debark that bitch ...
