Forums > Beginner Staff Moves > milling staff out of pure aluminum on lathe, questions
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Posted:
Hola:
I'm new to this and have a relatively unique opportunity and would like any/all advice I could get from you guys. I have a ghetto-style wooden broomstick staff I made in a couple of hours but want something better (and ultimately less flammable). Fortunately, a friend of mine has access to an industrial metal lathe and lengths of core aluminum. My questions are thus:
1. Will a staff of just aluminum be too heavy? The incendium.org recipe calls for hollow piping. If it's any help I'm 6'4" (196cm) and want a long staff because my current stick is WAY too light. I'm thinking of it being between 5'6" and 5'10".
2. Will it throw things off if I taper to the ends? I'm thinking of having 1/3 of the staff being the 'handle' and then tapering slightly (maybe 1/4" to 1/2") from the handle to the ends. Do you ever need to be grabbing near the burny hot end? And if so, will a slight different in width be a detriment? Or should it be the same width throughout?
3. What should I do to the handle? I can probably have alternating rings, knurling (raised edges), or perfectly smooth/milled. My first thought is rings/raised for better grip but then I realize that this thing is going to be passing over my hands several times. Will an embossed/raised grip make mince out of my hands? Is smooth w/ leather wrap better?
4. It's going to be segmented for easy breakdown/transport, but I'm unsure as to which fastening method is best. Is a really deep thread enough (1/2"-1"?), or should I have some sort of snap or fly screw? The problem is I don't really want any knobs or sticky outy things at the joint but am uncertain as to the wisdom of having a staff that may one day unscrew itself during use.
5. Lastly, ornamentation. I can probably do many things, including a buff, polish, or some sort of plating. Is this wise? I'm thinking a shiny staff would actually detract from the effect of the fire, since it would be obvious what the fire was attached to thus ruining the illusion of movement. I can also have various designs etched into the metal quite easily, from grids to swirls, etc. Will having these things on there interfere with grip at all? Will having gently curving incisions running down to the handle just supply a channel for burning liquid to get on my hands? (hmm, interesting thought in itself L:).
6. Lastly lastly, is there anything else that could go wrong that anyone else can think of while I'm in the design mode?
Sorry for the hugeosity of this question. I thank anyone in advance! I need to work on my CAD rendition quickly before this friend doesn't have access to the tools/materials (he's changing jobs) so even quick one off answers are appreciated!
[ 25 June 2002, 10:31: Message edited by: Scaramouche ]
Hola:
I'm new to this and have a relatively unique opportunity and would like any/all advice I could get from you guys. I have a ghetto-style wooden broomstick staff I made in a couple of hours but want something better (and ultimately less flammable). Fortunately, a friend of mine has access to an industrial metal lathe and lengths of core aluminum. My questions are thus:
1. Will a staff of just aluminum be too heavy? The incendium.org recipe calls for hollow piping. If it's any help I'm 6'4" (196cm) and want a long staff because my current stick is WAY too light. I'm thinking of it being between 5'6" and 5'10".
2. Will it throw things off if I taper to the ends? I'm thinking of having 1/3 of the staff being the 'handle' and then tapering slightly (maybe 1/4" to 1/2") from the handle to the ends. Do you ever need to be grabbing near the burny hot end? And if so, will a slight different in width be a detriment? Or should it be the same width throughout?
3. What should I do to the handle? I can probably have alternating rings, knurling (raised edges), or perfectly smooth/milled. My first thought is rings/raised for better grip but then I realize that this thing is going to be passing over my hands several times. Will an embossed/raised grip make mince out of my hands? Is smooth w/ leather wrap better?
4. It's going to be segmented for easy breakdown/transport, but I'm unsure as to which fastening method is best. Is a really deep thread enough (1/2"-1"?), or should I have some sort of snap or fly screw? The problem is I don't really want any knobs or sticky outy things at the joint but am uncertain as to the wisdom of having a staff that may one day unscrew itself during use.
5. Lastly, ornamentation. I can probably do many things, including a buff, polish, or some sort of plating. Is this wise? I'm thinking a shiny staff would actually detract from the effect of the fire, since it would be obvious what the fire was attached to thus ruining the illusion of movement. I can also have various designs etched into the metal quite easily, from grids to swirls, etc. Will having these things on there interfere with grip at all? Will having gently curving incisions running down to the handle just supply a channel for burning liquid to get on my hands? (hmm, interesting thought in itself L:).
6. Lastly lastly, is there anything else that could go wrong that anyone else can think of while I'm in the design mode?
Sorry for the hugeosity of this question. I thank anyone in advance! I need to work on my CAD rendition quickly before this friend doesn't have access to the tools/materials (he's changing jobs) so even quick one off answers are appreciated!
[ 25 June 2002, 10:31: Message edited by: Scaramouche ]
member
108 posts
Location: Essex
108 posts
Location: Essex
Posted:
hey Scaramouche, I don't know how good this advice is as I am a relative beginner but iam gonna give it anyway
I think that any sort of design etched into metal at the grip is highly likely to do mincing stuff to your hands. I use tenis racket grip on my staff, but if u wanted that whole upmarket/flashy vibe I guess a nice soft leather grip would be fab as well.
I think metal etching on other parts of the staff would look fantastic though, and I don't think you should have problems in terms of flamable liquide running down the grooves so long as they were relatively wide ie so as not to get a capillary effect. You would probably also have to have excessive amounts of fuel (you should spinn off or shake off excess fuel or let it drip off) + wicking with poor absorbitive capacity.
good luck with the designing, it sounds like you are gonna end up with a fantastic piece of exiptment. U can make me one to if u want
hey Scaramouche, I don't know how good this advice is as I am a relative beginner but iam gonna give it anyway
I think that any sort of design etched into metal at the grip is highly likely to do mincing stuff to your hands. I use tenis racket grip on my staff, but if u wanted that whole upmarket/flashy vibe I guess a nice soft leather grip would be fab as well.
I think metal etching on other parts of the staff would look fantastic though, and I don't think you should have problems in terms of flamable liquide running down the grooves so long as they were relatively wide ie so as not to get a capillary effect. You would probably also have to have excessive amounts of fuel (you should spinn off or shake off excess fuel or let it drip off) + wicking with poor absorbitive capacity.
good luck with the designing, it sounds like you are gonna end up with a fantastic piece of exiptment. U can make me one to if u want
I don't like living below the tropic of Capricorn..... and now I seem to be in England...... how did I get here???
BRONZE Member
Corporate Circus Arts Entertainer
3,989 posts
Location: Auckland, New Zealand
Corporate Circus Arts Entertainer
3,989 posts
Location: Auckland, New Zealand
Posted:
1. Will a staff of just aluminum be too heavy? The incendium.org recipe calls for hollow piping. If it's any help I'm 6'4" (196cm) and want a long staff because my current stick is WAY too light. I'm thinking of it being between 5'6" and 5'10".
......That depends on how heavy you like your staffs. Try it and see......
2. Will it throw things off if I taper to the ends? I'm thinking of having 1/3 of the staff being the 'handle' and then tapering slightly (maybe 1/4" to 1/2") from the handle to the ends. Do you ever need to be grabbing near the burny hot end? And if so, will a slight different in width be a detriment? Or should it be the same width throughout?
.......Just a personal opinion, it's always preferably to have the staff heavier at the ends than at the middle, as this makes it spin easier and flow a lot better. Also, being tapered, you may find the staff behaves differently when doing fingerspins and bodywraps depending on where on the taper you are. I would advise against it, but that's my just my opinion.........
3. What should I do to the handle? I can probably have alternating rings, knurling (raised edges), or perfectly smooth/milled. My first thought is rings/raised for better grip but then I realize that this thing is going to be passing over my hands several times. Will an embossed/raised grip make mince out of my hands? Is smooth w/ leather wrap better?
<<>>
4. It's going to be segmented for easy breakdown/transport, but I'm unsure as to which fastening method is best. Is a really deep thread enough (1/2"-1"?), or should I have some sort of snap or fly screw? The problem is I don't really want any knobs or sticky outy things at the joint but am uncertain as to the wisdom of having a staff that may one day unscrew itself during use.
........I think you need to worry more about the stress at the joint or screw when you drop it mid-burn. A thread without support at the join will easily bend. It might be easier to design some better way to attach the wick and leave the central staff itself as a single piece (In my opinion).............
5. Lastly, ornamentation. I can probably do many things, including a buff, polish, or some sort of plating. Is this wise? I'm thinking a shiny staff would actually detract from the effect of the fire, since it would be obvious what the fire was attached to thus ruining the illusion of movement. I can also have various designs etched into the metal quite easily, from grids to swirls, etc. Will having these things on there interfere with grip at all? Will having gently curving incisions running down to the handle just supply a channel for burning liquid to get on my hands? (hmm, interesting thought in itself L:).
....Depnds depends depends, how deep are they? What fuel are you using? etc tec etc. Also, if you are spinnig it, the fuel won't run down the staff to the grip in the middle, it will be pushed away from the middle. Once again, I'd leave it simple to start with or try and make a couple and see what you prefer........
6. Lastly lastly, is there anything else that could go wrong that anyone else can think of while I'm in the design mode?
......That's a pretty big vague question, my answer to that is EVERYTHING could go wrong, but as to what,who knows.
If this is your first time making a staff, I'd make some simpler one first even out of wood or basic aluminium piping to see how youb want this "special" one to be. It might dissappointing to waste a lot of time and effort on something you don't truly like.......
Cheers *and let us know how it goes*
1. Will a staff of just aluminum be too heavy? The incendium.org recipe calls for hollow piping. If it's any help I'm 6'4" (196cm) and want a long staff because my current stick is WAY too light. I'm thinking of it being between 5'6" and 5'10".
......That depends on how heavy you like your staffs. Try it and see......
2. Will it throw things off if I taper to the ends? I'm thinking of having 1/3 of the staff being the 'handle' and then tapering slightly (maybe 1/4" to 1/2") from the handle to the ends. Do you ever need to be grabbing near the burny hot end? And if so, will a slight different in width be a detriment? Or should it be the same width throughout?
.......Just a personal opinion, it's always preferably to have the staff heavier at the ends than at the middle, as this makes it spin easier and flow a lot better. Also, being tapered, you may find the staff behaves differently when doing fingerspins and bodywraps depending on where on the taper you are. I would advise against it, but that's my just my opinion.........
3. What should I do to the handle? I can probably have alternating rings, knurling (raised edges), or perfectly smooth/milled. My first thought is rings/raised for better grip but then I realize that this thing is going to be passing over my hands several times. Will an embossed/raised grip make mince out of my hands? Is smooth w/ leather wrap better?
<<
4. It's going to be segmented for easy breakdown/transport, but I'm unsure as to which fastening method is best. Is a really deep thread enough (1/2"-1"?), or should I have some sort of snap or fly screw? The problem is I don't really want any knobs or sticky outy things at the joint but am uncertain as to the wisdom of having a staff that may one day unscrew itself during use.
........I think you need to worry more about the stress at the joint or screw when you drop it mid-burn. A thread without support at the join will easily bend. It might be easier to design some better way to attach the wick and leave the central staff itself as a single piece (In my opinion).............
5. Lastly, ornamentation. I can probably do many things, including a buff, polish, or some sort of plating. Is this wise? I'm thinking a shiny staff would actually detract from the effect of the fire, since it would be obvious what the fire was attached to thus ruining the illusion of movement. I can also have various designs etched into the metal quite easily, from grids to swirls, etc. Will having these things on there interfere with grip at all? Will having gently curving incisions running down to the handle just supply a channel for burning liquid to get on my hands? (hmm, interesting thought in itself L:).
....Depnds depends depends, how deep are they? What fuel are you using? etc tec etc. Also, if you are spinnig it, the fuel won't run down the staff to the grip in the middle, it will be pushed away from the middle. Once again, I'd leave it simple to start with or try and make a couple and see what you prefer........
6. Lastly lastly, is there anything else that could go wrong that anyone else can think of while I'm in the design mode?
......That's a pretty big vague question, my answer to that is EVERYTHING could go wrong, but as to what,who knows.
If this is your first time making a staff, I'd make some simpler one first even out of wood or basic aluminium piping to see how youb want this "special" one to be. It might dissappointing to waste a lot of time and effort on something you don't truly like.......
Cheers *and let us know how it goes*
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member
73 posts
Location: Bentley Alberta Canada
73 posts
Location: Bentley Alberta Canada
Posted:
Just A Thought.... IF YOU HIT YOURSELF, ITS GONNA HURT LIKE HELL!!! just thought i'd add my opnion. i use a peice of hockey stick about a meter long with eyehooks for wicks, g sticks, etc. i also have the ends of the stick wrapped with hockey tape to minimise bruising.
Just A Thought.... IF YOU HIT YOURSELF, ITS GONNA HURT LIKE HELL!!! just thought i'd add my opnion. i use a peice of hockey stick about a meter long with eyehooks for wicks, g sticks, etc. i also have the ends of the stick wrapped with hockey tape to minimise bruising.
~A Soft Rubber Bodybuilding Smurf~
member
28 posts
Location: Central or Northern CA, depending on season
28 posts
Location: Central or Northern CA, depending on season
Posted:
Ok, top to bottom:
1: I'm from a martial arts background: I like 'em heavy. It'll hurt more, but it'll also be smoother and more conductive to slow speeds. If it helps any, people (including myself) have used sollid oak staffs for centuries, and they're far heavier than aluminum. Go for it.
2: By tapering the ends, you'll make it squirlier (i.e., easyer to change direction). It won't be as smooth, but you have more options when it comes to sudden changes in direction.
3: Personaly, I would jump at the chance of a texture grip, just because I can't have one right now. But I wouldn't really recomend it, since you'll want to wrap it anyhow (ever notice how your hands sweat?)
4: Dropping will be bad for any closure. I've thought about that too. I've seen martial arts practice staffs made to break down with a nice, deep screw in the center, but I think that even those may well take some damage if dropped. I would just leave it in one piece.
5: Ornament away as much as you please. I think it would be cool. A metal staff will allways glint, it's a fact of life. Most people tell me they like it. As for grooves, I think it's great. And if you have fuel running down your staff at ANY time, you need to shake off a LOT more. The ONLY time I've ever seen anyone light anything on fire was when they didn't shake off. He light the bits of fuel where we were dipping on fire, meaning the gas can was right in the middle of things. Nobody got hurt, but ALWAYS shake off.
6: as mentioned above ANYTHING could go wrong, but I'd be more careful about making it too short than too long. You can always cut off, but glueing on is a bitch.
Hope this helps.
Anselm
Ok, top to bottom:
1: I'm from a martial arts background: I like 'em heavy. It'll hurt more, but it'll also be smoother and more conductive to slow speeds. If it helps any, people (including myself) have used sollid oak staffs for centuries, and they're far heavier than aluminum. Go for it.
2: By tapering the ends, you'll make it squirlier (i.e., easyer to change direction). It won't be as smooth, but you have more options when it comes to sudden changes in direction.
3: Personaly, I would jump at the chance of a texture grip, just because I can't have one right now. But I wouldn't really recomend it, since you'll want to wrap it anyhow (ever notice how your hands sweat?)
4: Dropping will be bad for any closure. I've thought about that too. I've seen martial arts practice staffs made to break down with a nice, deep screw in the center, but I think that even those may well take some damage if dropped. I would just leave it in one piece.
5: Ornament away as much as you please. I think it would be cool. A metal staff will allways glint, it's a fact of life. Most people tell me they like it. As for grooves, I think it's great. And if you have fuel running down your staff at ANY time, you need to shake off a LOT more. The ONLY time I've ever seen anyone light anything on fire was when they didn't shake off. He light the bits of fuel where we were dipping on fire, meaning the gas can was right in the middle of things. Nobody got hurt, but ALWAYS shake off.
6: as mentioned above ANYTHING could go wrong, but I'd be more careful about making it too short than too long. You can always cut off, but glueing on is a bitch.
Hope this helps.
Anselm
member
55 posts
Location: canastota, ny usa
55 posts
Location: canastota, ny usa
Posted:
i would leave the staff in one piece, it seems like the simpler the construction, the better...(decorate the shit out of it but keep the structure basic)
screw the wicking right into the staff and then if youre worried about transportation you can always put ziplock bags over the wicks and set it in your trunk ("boot" if youre outside the US...)
definitely put some sort of grip tape or leather over the handle...i also suggest putting a thin strip of reflective white tape in the center of balance so when you start doing throws you can see it while its in the air and know where to grab...
dont worry about if the metal is too shiny either, once you light it up the metal will turn grey-ish black-ish from the flames...
hope this helps
i would leave the staff in one piece, it seems like the simpler the construction, the better...(decorate the shit out of it but keep the structure basic)
screw the wicking right into the staff and then if youre worried about transportation you can always put ziplock bags over the wicks and set it in your trunk ("boot" if youre outside the US...)
definitely put some sort of grip tape or leather over the handle...i also suggest putting a thin strip of reflective white tape in the center of balance so when you start doing throws you can see it while its in the air and know where to grab...
dont worry about if the metal is too shiny either, once you light it up the metal will turn grey-ish black-ish from the flames...
hope this helps
excuse me, santa, have you seen half a bike?
northern monkey
235 posts
235 posts
Posted:
all of my staves are one piece, i'm not sure i agree with hand-made 3-pieces because of the safety element, i dont fancy having to explain three foot of flaming rod shooting into the path of a small child...
as for engraving that would be gorgeous, my wooden fire clubs are engraved and are stunning. Dont engrave the mid-section but the ends would be fab
tennis grips are great, although often a problem with palm spins and body wraps. On all our hand made staves, we use leather wrapped really tightly which after a couple of days of bending is soft and touchy feeley!!
sounds like a fantastic idea, i know i'd love one!
vic xx
all of my staves are one piece, i'm not sure i agree with hand-made 3-pieces because of the safety element, i dont fancy having to explain three foot of flaming rod shooting into the path of a small child...
as for engraving that would be gorgeous, my wooden fire clubs are engraved and are stunning. Dont engrave the mid-section but the ends would be fab
tennis grips are great, although often a problem with palm spins and body wraps. On all our hand made staves, we use leather wrapped really tightly which after a couple of days of bending is soft and touchy feeley!!
sounds like a fantastic idea, i know i'd love one!
vic xx
ex-hop-aholic, now inconsistent lurker...
BRONZE Member
Carpal \'Tunnel
3,750 posts
Location: Europe,Scotland,Both
Carpal \'Tunnel
3,750 posts
Location: Europe,Scotland,Both
Posted:
yeah, engraved patterns would be lush, and might make a substitute grip if shallow enough. hummm
(goes off fantasizing about a staff covered in Culture-style fractal etching, hummmmmmmmm)
N
yeah, engraved patterns would be lush, and might make a substitute grip if shallow enough. hummm
(goes off fantasizing about a staff covered in Culture-style fractal etching, hummmmmmmmm)
N
This is a post by tom, all spelling is deleberate
-><- Kallisti
addict
522 posts
Location: Sheffield
522 posts
Location: Sheffield
Posted:
Hi guys,
as i have said a couple of times before, I use solid aluminium staffs with folded wicks. They are not invincible but I love em.
Have a look www.nesbitcircus.co.uk
or it may be .com
Enjoy
Hi guys,
as i have said a couple of times before, I use solid aluminium staffs with folded wicks. They are not invincible but I love em.
Have a look www.nesbitcircus.co.uk
or it may be .com
Enjoy
poo-bah
1,015 posts
Location: Austin TX USA
1,015 posts
Location: Austin TX USA
Posted:
- Cosmetic engraving probably won't be noticed by anyone but you, but that's OK if it makes it special to you. I'd be surprised if it really caught the light much, and any engraving near the wicks is just going to get covered with soot anyhow.
- I like the idea of a shallow diamond-file pattern cut into the grip area. You can always wrap some kind of tape over it if you don't like it.
- I've seen a take-apart staff made of wood with chunky steel hardware for the joints. Seems to be pretty sturdy--uses a screw that's at least 1 inch long and 3/8" diameter. Something like this would probably work for you; you could wrap tape over the joint if you were worried about it working loose.
- If your taper simply necks down to a narrower diameter over a short length, you'll be weakening the staff by creating a stress riser. It should spin faster (not necessarily a good thing!). If you've got a long, gradual taper, you'll preserve more strength, though if the taper reaches the wick area, it'll be harder to attach the wicks, since they'll wrap on at an angle.
I'd pre-drill holes for attaching the wicking rolls. The way I construct staffs is to run the screw all the way through the shaft and attach a screw-post on the far side of the wicking.
- Cosmetic engraving probably won't be noticed by anyone but you, but that's OK if it makes it special to you. I'd be surprised if it really caught the light much, and any engraving near the wicks is just going to get covered with soot anyhow.
- I like the idea of a shallow diamond-file pattern cut into the grip area. You can always wrap some kind of tape over it if you don't like it.
- I've seen a take-apart staff made of wood with chunky steel hardware for the joints. Seems to be pretty sturdy--uses a screw that's at least 1 inch long and 3/8" diameter. Something like this would probably work for you; you could wrap tape over the joint if you were worried about it working loose.
- If your taper simply necks down to a narrower diameter over a short length, you'll be weakening the staff by creating a stress riser. It should spin faster (not necessarily a good thing!). If you've got a long, gradual taper, you'll preserve more strength, though if the taper reaches the wick area, it'll be harder to attach the wicks, since they'll wrap on at an angle.
I'd pre-drill holes for attaching the wicking rolls. The way I construct staffs is to run the screw all the way through the shaft and attach a screw-post on the far side of the wicking.
Laugh while you can, monkey-boy
member
3 posts
3 posts
Posted:
Wow, many replies.
Taper : This doesn't seem like such a good idea. I thought it would work out because it would make less drag on the ends but if it has an impact on strength or durability I probably won't go for it. I toyed with reversing the direction of taper, making it thinnish in the middle and then widening slightly out to the ends (ending in a straight line, for whoever was concerned about the wick being angled) but figured I'd end up with a club that would be much better at crushing my skull that anything else. I'll probably go for a marginal bevel around the handle, but that might be more expensive to hack out bits of extraneous aluminum just to create a little bevel.
Handle : Seems some back and forth on this one. Tried an aluminum staff on the weekend with a spongy handle and liked it not at all, finger rolls/1-handed work seemed too sticky. I really like the feeling of bare wood, maybe I'll just make a wooden inlay L:) I think I'll put a roughened grip on it and see how it works. If I don't like it I can always put something on it.
Joint : I basically have to have a segmented staff since I feel so conspicuous carrying one around. Plus this one is going to be quite large (eg, wider than comfortable boot size, 5'6"-5'10") which I'm hoping to do a lot of cross border travel with. That and I've already drawn up a design for a special carrying bag L:) I think I'll go with the opinion of my lathing expert on this one, he's quite knowledgeable from building BattleBots for competition. I'm guessing he'll suggest a very deep thread with maybe a couple of shear pins to hold things in place.
Decoration : I was being facetious with the burning liquids comment, I just thought it would look really neat in a horribly dangerous way in real life. I think I'll keep it simple : just hold a stylus against the core while it's spinning to get a series of winding lines indicative of smoke/fire, denser near the handle. I think it'd look cool if I put some black paint into the lines/engravings so it would look like the black soot at the wick end was sending out tendrils to the handle.
Wick Mounting : I agree with most of the methods proposed here, I think I'll end up just permanently boring 2 screw holes in each end. Don't know if it's worth it to thread them. I've been using wire on my current staff because I can adjust how tight the wick is for absorption/burn length (still trying to find that sweet spot) quite easily, which would be less easy with screws.
Anyway, time to start on my specification/drawing. I'll post interim results here to get people's opinion. Thanks lots for all the good info so far!
Wow, many replies.
Taper : This doesn't seem like such a good idea. I thought it would work out because it would make less drag on the ends but if it has an impact on strength or durability I probably won't go for it. I toyed with reversing the direction of taper, making it thinnish in the middle and then widening slightly out to the ends (ending in a straight line, for whoever was concerned about the wick being angled) but figured I'd end up with a club that would be much better at crushing my skull that anything else. I'll probably go for a marginal bevel around the handle, but that might be more expensive to hack out bits of extraneous aluminum just to create a little bevel.
Handle : Seems some back and forth on this one. Tried an aluminum staff on the weekend with a spongy handle and liked it not at all, finger rolls/1-handed work seemed too sticky. I really like the feeling of bare wood, maybe I'll just make a wooden inlay L:) I think I'll put a roughened grip on it and see how it works. If I don't like it I can always put something on it.
Joint : I basically have to have a segmented staff since I feel so conspicuous carrying one around. Plus this one is going to be quite large (eg, wider than comfortable boot size, 5'6"-5'10") which I'm hoping to do a lot of cross border travel with. That and I've already drawn up a design for a special carrying bag L:) I think I'll go with the opinion of my lathing expert on this one, he's quite knowledgeable from building BattleBots for competition. I'm guessing he'll suggest a very deep thread with maybe a couple of shear pins to hold things in place.
Decoration : I was being facetious with the burning liquids comment, I just thought it would look really neat in a horribly dangerous way in real life. I think I'll keep it simple : just hold a stylus against the core while it's spinning to get a series of winding lines indicative of smoke/fire, denser near the handle. I think it'd look cool if I put some black paint into the lines/engravings so it would look like the black soot at the wick end was sending out tendrils to the handle.
Wick Mounting : I agree with most of the methods proposed here, I think I'll end up just permanently boring 2 screw holes in each end. Don't know if it's worth it to thread them. I've been using wire on my current staff because I can adjust how tight the wick is for absorption/burn length (still trying to find that sweet spot) quite easily, which would be less easy with screws.
Anyway, time to start on my specification/drawing. I'll post interim results here to get people's opinion. Thanks lots for all the good info so far!
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