Hazel knobsticks.

[polemat]

First of all.... oooh Errrrr. Gets that out the way.
It's a bit of advice from stick makers that I'm after. I carve a bit and would like to try my hand at a nice figured one piece stick, I've seen hazel carved in this way and was wondering. Is this just a shank cut from a horizontal limb with a slice of the limb left attatched? (It looking a bit like a croquet mallet) or is this carved from the knob of a knobstick, and if so where does the knob bit come from, a root, some kind of growth?
Thanks all, Mat.

 

[Richie'66]

Knobsticks are made by either using the shoot and roots or by a 'v' cut down. One of the arms/shoots it cut down and shaped the other is left long for the stick.

Actually , quite difficult to explain , but I asked this of the professional stick maker 'the stick man' and he said I was quite correct in my thoughts.

If all knobsticks were made with the root ball then there would be far fewer trees.

I've made a few knobsticks in the past but none of them are 'just so' if you know what I mean so hence you have to make another. A bit addictive it is.

 

[polemat]

Thanks Richie, sort of what I'd guessed at, I've got a few lengths cut and drying with some ideas for carved heads. Was just wondering if there was some sort of knob like growth out there in the woods that I'd missed.
Cheers.