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Fun little side project
Data Crystal
Pencil Artist
in Zocalo v2.0
The best part about working in a warehouse doing some completely mind-numbing work is, that you get strange ideas every now and then. The last place I worked at was a warehouse for industrial spare parts and equipment, which pretty much came down to lousy pay, tedious and rather heavy work, bad hours and the lot. Worst part was that the days went by damn slowly, since I had virtually no interest for the job.
Luckily, those conditions are a goldmine for bad ideas, and I got one when I passed by some paper machinery installation crowbars, all made of aluminum. I played with one for a while and came to the conclusion that it'd be great for bashing people's heads in (I was very bored, ok?) and as a general excercise baton if I ever got my hands on that punching bag. However, it'd have to be a lot different than your average crowbar. Hell yes.
During that time, I had a schedule where I had access to a low-tech machine workshop for a couple of days, and I jumped at the opportunity. Went out and bought 'meself a rod of 30mm aluminum axel, hit it in a chisel and started working on it.
What eventually came out was this:
[img]http://koti.mbnet.fi/cijk/Stik1.jpg[/img]
CD -provided for size reference.
I didn't have anything fully automated, so I made it pretty much manually all the way. The most work with machines, finishinp up by hand with sandpaper, oil and steel wool. --Which translates roughly as the bugger receiving some dents and scratches along the run, but it wasn't meant for anything overtly glamorous either. :D
[img]http://koti.mbnet.fi/cijk/Stik2.jpg[/img]
Roughly 28mm thick and 650mm long polished, uncoated aluminum with smooth, curved ends. Black nylon cord for the grip embedded along the surface and rising around 0.3mm above the actual aluminum. A near mirror -finish, aside from the aforementiond scratches. --And it looks like a double-handed dildo from hell to boot.
Kudos to Random Chaos for providing me with some pointers as to where I could find a suitable cord for the job at #firstones.
[img]http://koti.mbnet.fi/cijk/Stik3.jpg[/img]
I studied the weave method I came up with a bit more and finally was able to give bugger's main handle a dual-cord grip weave, since it feels rather good in your hand and allows for a LOT better grip, even when it's made with industrial cord. Also, I like the olive green and a little nod towards the number 3 in there, which are my trademarks. ^^
The weave method turned out pretty well, as it interlocks itself firmly on the handle with almost no visible knots or bumps on the outside. The only compromise I had to make was to leave the points where the black cord changes to the olive visible, since I found them impossible to hide with good enough efficiency. All cord attachments and nooks are hidden inside the mechanical construction of the baton. This time the weave is a lot more uniform as well, as I actually paid real attention on how I folded the string.
Weighs in at just a tad under 1 kg and the center of gravity being at rougly 2 inches upward from the uppermost handle. Allows for no-effort quick swings from the upper handle and slower, more-massed hits from the bottom grip.
I've always liked a sleek, industrial look on things like this, and although it might raise some questions about my sanity (again), I don't mind. Me like. :D
Oh, and I managed to jump ship and score myself a lot better job a while back too, this time managing a warehouse for spare parts on electronics. Also, no strange ideas tend to arise from stuff like that. ;)
Luckily, those conditions are a goldmine for bad ideas, and I got one when I passed by some paper machinery installation crowbars, all made of aluminum. I played with one for a while and came to the conclusion that it'd be great for bashing people's heads in (I was very bored, ok?) and as a general excercise baton if I ever got my hands on that punching bag. However, it'd have to be a lot different than your average crowbar. Hell yes.
During that time, I had a schedule where I had access to a low-tech machine workshop for a couple of days, and I jumped at the opportunity. Went out and bought 'meself a rod of 30mm aluminum axel, hit it in a chisel and started working on it.
What eventually came out was this:
[img]http://koti.mbnet.fi/cijk/Stik1.jpg[/img]
CD -provided for size reference.
I didn't have anything fully automated, so I made it pretty much manually all the way. The most work with machines, finishinp up by hand with sandpaper, oil and steel wool. --Which translates roughly as the bugger receiving some dents and scratches along the run, but it wasn't meant for anything overtly glamorous either. :D
[img]http://koti.mbnet.fi/cijk/Stik2.jpg[/img]
Roughly 28mm thick and 650mm long polished, uncoated aluminum with smooth, curved ends. Black nylon cord for the grip embedded along the surface and rising around 0.3mm above the actual aluminum. A near mirror -finish, aside from the aforementiond scratches. --And it looks like a double-handed dildo from hell to boot.
Kudos to Random Chaos for providing me with some pointers as to where I could find a suitable cord for the job at #firstones.
[img]http://koti.mbnet.fi/cijk/Stik3.jpg[/img]
I studied the weave method I came up with a bit more and finally was able to give bugger's main handle a dual-cord grip weave, since it feels rather good in your hand and allows for a LOT better grip, even when it's made with industrial cord. Also, I like the olive green and a little nod towards the number 3 in there, which are my trademarks. ^^
The weave method turned out pretty well, as it interlocks itself firmly on the handle with almost no visible knots or bumps on the outside. The only compromise I had to make was to leave the points where the black cord changes to the olive visible, since I found them impossible to hide with good enough efficiency. All cord attachments and nooks are hidden inside the mechanical construction of the baton. This time the weave is a lot more uniform as well, as I actually paid real attention on how I folded the string.
Weighs in at just a tad under 1 kg and the center of gravity being at rougly 2 inches upward from the uppermost handle. Allows for no-effort quick swings from the upper handle and slower, more-massed hits from the bottom grip.
I've always liked a sleek, industrial look on things like this, and although it might raise some questions about my sanity (again), I don't mind. Me like. :D
Oh, and I managed to jump ship and score myself a lot better job a while back too, this time managing a warehouse for spare parts on electronics. Also, no strange ideas tend to arise from stuff like that. ;)
Comments
Seriously, If I wanted a fighting baton, it would look something like this. Great job! Data Crystal, official weaponsmith of Firstones.com.. :D
Edit: Weaponsmith, not weaponsith.. pretty cool mistake.. ;)
Not sure how practical it is, even a police night stick has a perpendicular piece that protects your hands should another object slide along the pol.
OTOH, baseball bats don't require anything special either. :D
Anyway, nice workmanship.
The difference with this bugger and a police a nightstick is, that the nightsticks are meant for actual combat situations. Mine's meant mainly for stretching, training and workout. I did think about adding some sort of a protective piece for the hands, but I wanted to keep the original design simple, so I didn't. My thought was, that in case I need a grip protector at some point, I can incorporate a steel O-ring, cover it with the grip cord and change the weave so that it also ties the ring in place. That would make it of stronger metal and at the same time able budge a bit thanks to the nylon to lessen the impact.
Baseball bats are good too. Just add nails for added effect, in case the zombies arise. :D
Jake
Oh, and I made it to Kamelot's first gig in Finland. Hell of a show, best live performance I've ever been to. If you have a chance to catch them live, do so. Most definitely not disappointing. :) Also, got me' dirty hands on the Ghost Opera promo-single as seen on the pic. :D
You changed the pictures, now it actually looks like a commercial product.
What is this Kamelot you speak about?
[url]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I438RH1oUJc[/url]
[url]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mWSbtBJ6bxU[/url]
[url]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z8FeFjI3wHs[/url]
And usually I'm with purple, but green suits this one much better. ;)