Hand carved Spalding style Indian clubs
Last month (August 2015), we had some strong wind. The branch of a yellowwood tree (Podocarpus latifolius) snapped and fell to the ground. Here is a picture of the yellowwood tree with the broken branch, and the branch lying on the ground.
When I saw the yellowwood branch lying on the ground, I went home to collect my bow saw. I cut two logs, and brought them home.
**************************************
I removed the bark, and weighed them. One log weighs 24 kg, the other weighs 26 kg.
I cut a test block, and dried it in the microwave oven. I measured the weight, and calculated the density. The density was 0.60. Literature figures range from 460 - 610 kg/m3.
I cut a test block, and dried it in the microwave oven. I measured the weight, and calculated the density. The density was 0.60. Literature figures range from 460 - 610 kg/m3.
**************************************
I used my spreadsheet to calculate the target weight of a Spalding style club about 580 mm long. It predicts 2.5 kg, but from past experience I expect each club will weigh close to 3 kg. This is because of the margin of wood I leave for any errors in cutting. I like small buttons (because I have small hands) so the design deviates slightly from Spalding's.
**************************************
I prepared the logs to make square section billets. I marked the clubs and started removing wood with my bow saw and chisel. I noticed brown lines appear. I used a plane to remove the chisel marks. The brown lines were stress cracks. The cracks were caused by the branch flexing backwards and forwards in the high winds! This could be disastrous, because the cracks run right through the handle area .
I was able to relocate the handle away from the stress cracks. I offset the handle so that it runs diagonally through the sapwood. The cracks are still there, but now they are in the body of the club, and not the handle, which is safer.
After rough shaping (left) and trimming to template (right). The clubs now weigh 4.7 and 4.8 kg.
**************************************
Update 11 October 2015. October is the windiest month of the year - good for windsurfers and kiteboarders! I stored my clubs in a warm, shady but windy spot. As the moisture content in the clubs dropped below the fibre saturation point, fine cracks appeared. They radiated outwards from the offset centres.
**************************************
14 October 2015. While I was waiting for the clubs to dry, I made a small video.
**************************************
6 November 2015. The clubs weigh 3.2 kg each. I filled the cracks with epoxy paste.
9 November 2015. I sprayed the clubs with a coat of clear lacquer. The clubs have pronounced chatoyancy (tiger's eye effect). When you look at the club in the direction of the end grain, the colour is a deep orange brown. As you tilt the club, the colour changes to a much lighter yellow. The wood shimmers as you turn the club!