Lunacity: Rod Handle

Thanks for reading my blog.

One side effect of chronic pain is that some nights you  don't sleep.  "Lunacity" is my term for when you find yourself in that place.  The best thing to do is to get up and create something when you can't sleep.  Not sure if there needs to be a full moon, but it can't hurt!
The other night I was in Lunacity.  I don't usually make things for myself, but I recently broke the handle on one of my fishing rods and the pole was just sitting there lonely.  This was a rather inexpensive item in which the pole and the handle were one unit.  If you break the handle, the pole is also broke.  Unless, you fashion a handle and attach the pole to it.  Of course, you have to cut the pole from the broken handle.

Here is the handle almost ready for painting.  In both pictures, the rectangular piece attached in the groove is to hold a reel.  A screw from the other side holds the piece down so the reel is secure.



















I carved a handle out of a piece of red oak.  Fishing rod handles are generally too short for my hand.  So the one I designed was extra long to fit my hand.  I finished it with polyurethane and a blue Sharpie to get the iridescent purple color.  I've tried to preserve it but have had no luck finding something that doesn't result in a pretty, deep sea blue.  I've tested Polyurethane, its water based cousin Polyacrylic, epoxy, lacquer, enamel top-coat, and shellac.  All ruin the purple.  So, I've left the handle without additional finishing.


Here a reel is attached to the handle.  The pole has also been attached to the handle.














Okay, the reel is upside down.  But it shows the underside of the handle.








A close-up view of the end of the handle.  I carved it to be easy to hold.




Is the handle lucky?  I caught two largemouth bass in a couple of hours of very informal fishing interrupted by rain and stormy weather.


Have you ever been to Lunacity?


Hal's email is hal2009@att.net.
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www.stickstaffcane.blogspot.com

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Nittany Lion: Carving is done. Next step is...

Thanks for checking out my blog.

I know I have several things in progress.  But, today I finished the carving part of the Nittany Lion bust.
At the end, there is always lots more sanding than I plan.  This project was no exception. 

 

















The photos show the bust just needing a lot of sanding.

After sanding and finishing with Natural MinWax Stain, I added the blue and white stripes of Penn State.  The blue is a blue stain and the white is a brilliant white acrylic.

I sanded down to a 600 level.  The surface is very smooth.  If you touch your finger on the display over the lion you can feel that it almost feels like stone! 
But seriously, since oak is so hard, the surface gets very smooth.

What is next"  The bust will be mounted on an oak rod attached to a black marble/slate foundation.  I'll tilt it forward a bit so it gives the impression of looking down at you... as in a tasty morsel?

I will put the finished project on my Etsy shop at:
https:\\www.youwoodlikethis.etsy.com

I plan to have it ready by June 15th for the Maker Faire in Raleigh.