I think it is fun to cut my own wood for canes and walking stick rather than buy them. But I live in the middle of a hardwood forest and finding good wood is not a big problem. I prefer to cut Hickory saplings and let them season for about a year. Wax or seal the cut ends and cut them about 6' longer than you want your finished stick. I used to use a drawknife to remove the bark but I found that a 4' electric grinder with a 25 grit sanding wheel does it a lot faster. I think Treeline carries a good variety of exotic sticks but they get a bit pricy. Almost any straight piece of wood will work, even a replacement broomhandle. I finish them with stain and Spar Urethane. Sometimes I add a copper band at the bottom to prevent spitting, I cut the bands from a piece of 1' copper pipe. There are good books on cane and stick making but they all seem to be published in the UK. All of their supplies are from the UK and the styles are definitely British. Enjoy!
I just discovered that if you click on the 'Wood Carving Illustrated' text on the left side of the screen, you can read past articles. One of them is called 'Cane Corner' and it is about carving walking sticks. You may enjoy it.
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