Wooden Picks?

[WDPaladin]

This may seem a bit funny at first, but how about concrete as a filler for the wooden handles. Yes, it would be pretty heavy, but it does pass vibrations incredibly well, like rock. I got the idea watching something on Discovery about how high end dinner knives' handles are usually filled with concrete. I think it would be interesting trying to handle the stuff in grams versus 40lb. bags.

Maybe just a way-too-heavy pipe dream, but a fun thought nonetheless.

[TorontoTonto]

datagram, your bamboo handled pick is very cool!
My idea was to keep both the knot of the bamboo, because if you cut the knot the fibers are free to move and loose their shape. Am I right? Anyway this couldn't happen for a while.

TorontoTonto, to fix the handle I was thinking about friction. You have to choose a piece of bamboo with the hole of the same size of the metal handle. A little less is better. Then you shove the pick inside it, forcing it till it's tightened. Could this be enough? Otherwise you could try to put a drop of superglue on the pick end before inserting it, this could be an harder fixing technique.

I'm so sad I don' have a piece of bamboo to play with at the moment When I'll find it I immediately start making one!

Cheers

Simple friction sounds like a great idea, even just a little glue to help it stay in. I dont know much about the wear of bamboo but maybe constant use will eventually loosen the pick from it. Overall having not that much filler wont dampen any acoustics generated, so i think thats a good move. If friction doesnt work because of simple wear im thinking two part epoxy might do the trick, that stuff hardens pretty hard and might transmit well also.

[TorontoTonto]

The bamboo is stuffed full of clay, but filling it with glue may be a better solution. I'm going to look into different kinds of finish to put on the pick to make sure it has a bit of longevity, any suggestions?


dg

I dont know if your talking about an actual pick or the pick handle, but ive been throwing around an idea or two. I know moisture and temperature can affect wood quite a bit and i think apart from initial strength its the main concern. I think for sealing either the pick or even the bamboo you could try swede and or leather sealer. It seems to have the exact properties you would need to protect wood apart from varnish and not really leave any noticeable effects. Also like in my post above i thought of using two part epoxy for covering a wooden pick for added strength. Maybe there is even a way to thin the epoxy to maybe not apply it so thick? This same method could be applied to the handle for keep and strength.

[TorontoTonto]

This may seem a bit funny at first, but how about concrete as a filler for the wooden handles. Yes, it would be pretty heavy, but it does pass vibrations incredibly well, like rock. I got the idea watching something on Discovery about how high end dinner knives' handles are usually filled with concrete. I think it would be interesting trying to handle the stuff in grams versus 40lb. bags.

Maybe just a way-too-heavy pipe dream, but a fun thought nonetheless.

I think thats a really good idea. Im not to sure of the acoustics of concrete but if youve seen something that seems to make sense, why not. You also make a good point about the quantities it comes in. Most of it i think is pretty coarse stuff because of the applications its used on, but i think its a pretty simple recipe and wouldnt be a problem to whip up on your own from a cook book of sorts.

Thanks for the contribution.

Also sorry for the triple post everyone, i got excited after each post and didnt bother to read any further on lol.

[raimundo]

bamboo has a cantilever strength (can push sideways to its grain) that is excellent, and there are different kinds of bamboo, perhaps there is a harder variety. commone chopsticks could be used, but I would make them out of the raw material if possible. the fiber bundles can be strengthended with some treatment like wrapping carbon fiber around them and treating with epoxy, but this would necessarily be very thin, and pay attention to keeping the surfaces smooth.

The pick tip if cut from the lengthwise fibers would be the first thing to break down. but if you used the knotwood from the capsule boundaries, this could probably make a usable picktip, with the linear fibers for the pickshaft and handles. there may be other treatments such as fire hardening that would work also. (fire hardening was used on spears, Old school vietnam stuff)

[TorontoTonto]

I remember seeing someone say that they has trouble working with the bamboo because of the stringyness. Maybe the solution would be to fire harden it first then make the pick? After you could then treat it possibly with epoxy and or carbon fiber wrap.

Every time i think of a bamboo pick it always makes me think of pick-fu for some reason, like some old panda ninja would just it. lol

[raimundo]

who you callin a pandaninga?

[TorontoTonto]

possibly myself