My new bamboo handles

[femurat]

As I said during this discussion, I wished to make some bamboo handles but finding a bamboo plant was very difficult, and after a while I forgot about it.

One day during a visit to a farm I found a small bamboo root so I potted it on my balcony. The plants grew up quickly and I enjoyed them for almost a year! About a month ago some small shoots started to grow from the ground, so I decided to cut two old plants out of three and got these beautiful bamboo handles.



Then I finished an half diamond that was laying around and shoved it into one of the bamboo handles. I choose a piece of bamboo with the groove a little smaller than the pick handle. I had to keep it from the tang with pliers and press hard while the bamboo was kept perpendicular to the working surface.



The pick is very tight, it has no play (for now) and gives a very good feedback. I tried it with success with: iseo R6, multilock 7x7, bricard and other dimple locks I like to pick. I use the twisting technique to lift the pins and this cylindrical handle is perfect for this purpose. And it's super light weight.

I hope to make some more picks soon. I'm going to use a piece with knots for the next handles, so I can find out if it's better to keep the knots or not.

Cheers

[Ortin468]

Lock picks gone green, what next ?

Bamboo grows amazingly fast, you'll have a lifetime supply.

[raimundo]

light weight very strong and made of grass. I think I would find a thick piece of bamboo and try the split bamboo type, a bit along the lines of what ratyoke has done. But im not knocking yours femurat, they are very good, I just always try to go a bit further.

[pin_pusher]

and here i am stuck with crafting clay...i'm so early twentyfirst century

[femurat]

Thanks guys, I'm happy you like my handles

I know your approach Ray, and I admire you for it, but this time it'll be hard to go further. I made a quick draw of the pick section, is this that you have in mind?

I consider bamboo a good material because it's round, it's like the arc concept. If you split it I fear it'll loose its strength, but I'm just speculating. Maybe the epoxy used to fix the handle can keep together the bamboo fibres too...
A downside of splitting bamboo is the risk of ruin its "peel" so be careful when you cut.
A good thing about cutting bamboo and making a sandwich pick is that it's naturally carved, so it's easy to hide the metal handle of the pick inside the bamboo groove.



I made a couple of picks to try the bamboo handles with the knots. At the bottom of the picture you can see the old one.
I think that the knot can be useful to keep the pick in place for a long time. I just pushed hard a tapered bristle in with pliers to make the hole, then I put 2 drops of superglue on the pick and pushed it in till it stopped.
As you can see the knot is exactly where you put your fingers to hold the pick. I made it this way to get a more ergonomic handle but I'm not sure about the result since I haven't tested it yet (immediately after I make a pick my fingers are so tired that I just try if it can work, but I'm unable to feel how well it works).

One more thing to mention is that I made the first pick with a wiper blade insert, and these last 2 with bristles. Since the wiper insert is bigger its handle is bigger and is much more comfortable/ergonomic. If I'll like these handles with knots I'll make another pick using a wiper insert to see how a big bamboo handle with knots feels. Let me test them for a few days and then I'll decide.

Cheers

[datagram]

One I did long ago: http://lockwiki.com/index.php/File:Lock ... handle.jpg

I'm sure they could be made much nicer if one took the time to learn how to dry out and coat bamboo to prevent it from becoming brittle. I was reading a bit on this back when I made my pick, but I never took it too far. Good luck to you, femurat!

dg

[LocksmithArmy]

lets see some vids of em bro... neat idea

[ToolyMcgee]

I think the one without knots looks really slick. Would make for a great dimple pick. Why not fill the bamboo with epoxy and lock it in?

[raimundo]

I believe that bamboo can be fire hardened, but of course this has to be a careful application of the fire.
pungi stakes were fire hardened.

[femurat]

datagram, I saw your pick when we talked about this idea last year. I was a little envy cause you found the bamboo and I didn't, but now that I found it I can't stop trying different handle ideas. Your pick is nice, but a hook doesn't draw advantage from a round handle. It's not a bad choice, it do works, but a dimple pick is the best option if you want one with a round handle. So if you ever want to make another one consider this advice

LocksmithArmy, I've considered the idea of making a video of me picking with my home made tools but I've never published one, so maybe in the future... but don't keep your breath

ToolyMcgee, that slick one IS a great dimple pick I'm playing with it for a week now and it's still solid, it has no play. I don't want to fill it with epoxy because I don't want it becomes heavy. I made other picks with clay and they weight 3 times this bamboo one. I may seem fool but I really like how a light pick works. But yes, sure, if in the future it will get some play I'll put a few drops of epoxy to lock it in.

About the drying and coating ideas that datagram pointed out and also about fire hardening that raimundo suggested: I have to make a little research because I'm not aware of these processes. One or more of these could be a good option, thanks for the suggestions

Cheers

[datagram]

My knowledge of bamboo chemistry is pretty limited, but the basic idea is that while green bamboo is filled with water and sugars. If you leave it out in the sun the water and sugars in it dry up and evaporate, leaving the wood cracked and brittle.

To solve this you heat it up evenly to let the outer sides brown. They harden by losing their moisture, but the sugar and water inside turns to glue (I think), strengthening the core of the bamboo. After that you can coat the bamboo with a variety of waxes and polishes to make it look nice and retain strength.

There's a lot of information on this online, but I never had the time to perfect the technique as it relates to lockpick handles.

dg

[nothumbs]

Bamboo will dry and yellow over time. I've a small forest in my backyard. As noted it grows wild, and I'll also note it is very invasive; also very hard to get rid of once it gets into the ground. Keep your plant in a pot so it doesn't invade your garden.

[femurat]

Thanks for the quick explanation datagram, now I'm reading http://www.bamboocraft.net/forums/forumdisplay.php?f=111. There's a huge amount of info, it's like a picking forum I know I'm sure I'll find all the info needed to perfect my project.

Don't worry nothumbs: since I don't have a garden I put my bamboo on a pot on my balcony. If you want to control the expansion of your small forest avoid vertical barrier: the roots will always go under them. But if you build 30-45 degree barriers in the ground, and you go down about 50 cm, the roots will grow towards the surface and cut them will be an easy task: garden \ bamboo / garden.

Cheers

[femurat]

I'm happy with my bamboo picks but the handles are a bit thin. To get bigger diameter handles I tried another handle style. I choose two pieces of bamboo with different diameter, so that I could fit one into the other. Since the bamboo size is reduced during heath treatment process, I choose to heat treat the smaller one before starting. This way I hope the pick doesn't become loose after some drying of the bamboo that will occur with time. Notice the different colour, dried bamboo becomes brownish.
Then I had to file down a little the already flat side of the smaller piece, to make it perfectly match the flat bristle.

The next step was easy as saying one, two, three... I just had to push very strong to make it fit.







I tested the pick immediately, it's very comfortable and works like a charm! Even if the bristle looks loose it's firm in place and gives a very good feedback. I know the handle is too long, I'll cut it down later.

Next step is to heat treat the external bamboo. I'll keep you updated.

Cheers

[sir lot is here]

very nice - i like your style grand design