Forums > Technical Discussion > Adding more wicking to a staff

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Chaos Childemember
4 posts
Location: Santa Cruz


Posted:
I've been playing with my homemade fire staff for a while, and I've noticed that I have really short burn times.When I made it, the guy who sold me the wicking (at Renegade) said I would probably want more than that.Guess he was right.Anyone know a good way to add wicking to an existing torch without taking the whole staff apart?ThanksCC

..~~''~~..~~''~~..~~''~~..P|-|342 7|-|4 K177Y


CharlesBRONZE Member
Corporate Circus Arts Entertainer
3,989 posts
Location: Auckland, New Zealand


Posted:
One option, thats not that great, is to bind more of it onto the wick with florist wire or twisty ties (with the paper taken off).If you run them through the existing wick and the new wick at each end and several time through the middle, it'll hold really well for a long time, even if some break.PLEASE NOTE Wire heats up and can burn easily. If you put a small pen into the loops and twist it around until the wire is bound tightly to the wick, then it will be unlikely to touch you.This is done so that side-on, the wire is sunken into the wick and doesn't protrude at all.It's a handy quick fix, but you do need to be careful to notice when the wire is about to rust or break, so you don't spike yourself in the eye (or anywhere else for that matter).I strongly recommend taking the screws out of the staff and putting it all in properly, much less ongoing care needed and it won't loosen as quickly, making the wick last longer. grin grin grin grin ------------------Charles (INFERNO)newdolbel@hotmail.comhttps://juggling.co.nz

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HitokageSILVER Member
member
70 posts
Location: New York, NY, USA


Posted:
Oi! Do these sound too flimsy to anyone else? I think they would be an ok fix for personal use, just make sure you don't have an audience or anything. Man...I'd be too frightened to use them.------------------"Burning--the process of breaking things down into a simpler form." -Hitokage---FireStorm---(jimidawg@snet.net)

Live as if you were to die tomorrow, learn as if you were to live forever -Mahatma Ghandi

Burning--the process of breaking things down into a simpler form. -Hitokage-


Knagimember
397 posts
Location: Brunswick, Ohio


Posted:
I stacked extra wicking on. So there's 3 sets of wicks at each end of the staff 2 of the sets are screwed in. The inside sets are wired on from the outside with 12 gauge wire. I use 12 gauge wire for everything.I found that the easyest way to screw in new wicks is drill 3 holes in the staff for every one screw.

We are all in the cosmic movie. That means the day you die you watch your whole life repeating for eternity. So you'd better have some good things happen in there and have a fitting climax. --Jim MorrisonIt's going to come from a direction you didn't predict at a moment of chaos which you didn't see coming. -- NYC


CharlesBRONZE Member
Corporate Circus Arts Entertainer
3,989 posts
Location: Auckland, New Zealand


Posted:
Hikotage, a dozen or so thin wires are much stronger when woven through a meterial than one big wire stuck through a hole in the same material.Multiple wires support themselves over a spread area of the wick, but also have the advantage of not heating up as much as number 8 or similar wire. Also, they won't rip a huge gauge in your arm of face if for any reason they shift position.Of course, the best solotion is to use longer screws and do all the wick at once. Although i have used the florist wire/twisty ties on several performance situations when there was no ther option. It's the number of wires that make the difference.Knagi, I'd be very careful with your number 8, I personally know of 4 people who have seriously hurt themselves when the wire has poked throught he wick a tiny bit. Here in NZ, people use the stuff for everything too, even when it isn't the most suitable material...------------------Charles (INFERNO)newdolbel@hotmail.comhttps://juggling.co.nz

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DurbsBRONZE Member
Classically British
5,689 posts
Location: Epsom, Surrey, England


Posted:
Now I know this was a while ago but I've just got a new set of pure flame poi (I lost the other ones) and I've got some extra wicking I want to attach. I tried sewing it on with some Kevlar thread that had frayed off the end but I think it burned through (This or I can't sew...) I don't want to use screws as you're more likely to hit yourself with poi than staff (?) - any ideas?

Burner of Toast
Spinner of poi
Slacker of enormous magnitude


adamricepoo-bah
1,015 posts
Location: Austin TX USA


Posted:
Chaos child--I'd start new. It's a PITA, but it's better to invest the time upfront than have to constantly be fiddling with it and worrying about the safety in the future. Take the old staff apart and wrap fresh kevlar on.

The bands on my staff are made of 36" x 3" kevlar, and that seems to be a lot. The staff is pretty heavy (especially when soaked), and it gives a long burn time (haven't timed how long, to be honest, but it feels long). How long is the wicking you're using now?

Knagi--I think CC was talking about putting more thickness on an existing wick, not more bands of wicking along the shaft. Also, it's a little worrying that you drill three holes for every one screw. A staff that looks like swiss cheese just can't be that strong. I suppose as long as the potential failures aren't dangerous it's not that big a deal.

Laugh while you can, monkey-boy



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