De Barking

[SimonLawton]

Hi, I just wondered why it is that our American friends seem to prefer to de bark their walking stick shafts?
take care all,
Simon

[JJireh]

Broad and general statement I don't usually debark mine unless it had a nice case of boring grubs, then I like to show off the patterns.
My suspicion: Some people appreciate the grain of the wood more than the bark of the wood or the wood they are using was larger than would be useful for a stick and they had to remove bark and wood (i.e. Snake sticks) or it was just practical since they are one piece sticks and rather than creating a dividing point they just cleared the whole thing.

[Waitpinga Whittler]

Also, I've noticed a much higher frequency of carving on the shaft in Nth. America than in UK/Europe. The shafts in UK tend to be thinner which gives one a smaller 'canvas' on which to work. When you cut bark you are much more likely to have it peel off over time in my experience, so a lot of people (I include myself in this), choose to take the bark off right at the start so as not to have this happen months or years down the track. There are always exceptions of course but its been a general trend in my opinion.

[SimonLawton]

Well WW one of your Staffs has inspired me to have a go, so have collected some thicker longer shanks.
I know were supposed to season our shafts for a year or more, but can you whittle/carve green wood??
WW I so wish I could send you some Shafts!
take care
Simon
ps am moving house on the 17th of December, so doubt I will have much time for anything till Spring! (

[Waitpinga Whittler]

One can carve green wood. In fact its usually easier to do so than when the wood is seasoned but one risks the stick splitting as it dries out. It is a very frustrating thing to have a carving one has spent hours on, ruined by splitting wood. Also, carving green wood can have 'sap' issues. These vary with species but some woods, especially conifers, have such sticky sap that the whole experience is one to avoid if at all possible!

[sludgeguy]

I debark mine part way to expose the darker inner bark to make the carved in areas pop because the lighter color in the carvings. I also mainly carve staffs more than cane type.

My 2 cents,
Doug

[chipmunk]

i use a big round body file cutter or a fuzzy ball to get the bark off when dry u can use a draw knife too

[Stan Curtis]

I debark some and leave the bark on others. It depends upon what effect I'm trying for.

[Marvin Little]

Simon, many of the wood species in my area have a heavy rough outer bark, sort of like oak, so I scrape off the rough outer bark and sand the inner bark. The only time that I debark a stick is when the bark is loose or damaged. I clamp the stick in my vice with a scrap of carpet to pad it and literally scrape off the outer bark with a heavy knife. Cutting it off will often damage the inner bark that I want to keep. This works for me.

Marvin

[jdbcarving]

I use mostly Diamond Willow and you want the bark off of that for the beauty. I don't get a chance to cut to many shafts in the woods, neighbors around me get upset if you want to walk in the woods. when I go up northern Michigan I don't go on posted land, so easier and safer to just buy some.
Jim B