Our

KNOW-HOW

Explanation of

the job of walking sticks maker

Présentation du métier de cannier-monteur

To briefly summarize the profession of walking sticks maker, it consists to transform a wooden tile into a utensil helping the man in these movements or in his clothing ornament.

To practice this profession it is necessary to have knowledge in diversification of spheres such as the use of wood lathes and other materials intended for the cabinetmaker. It is also necessary to be able to use the mechanical lathe and the equipment used by the detacher. It is also suitable for roughing, sanding and refining a knob or handle such as a sculptor.

The transformation of materials very different from each other requires the concentration of our senses. The touch and the view are very important in the creation especially during the straightening of the barrels and the differentiation of the exotic woods. It is the hearing that tells us during the curving of the wood if the fibers are ready to be exploited. The smell becomes useful for the recognition of certain materials and, also, during sanding should not heat and will not have the same scent according to their temperature levels.

Only the taste to date is not awakened during manufacturing. 

Several steps are necessary in the elaboration of a cane and are very different depending on the materials used and the desired final choice.

This is why it is difficult to explain every detail of it because there are so many possibilities. From a simple wooden tile, after manipulation, addition of elements and adjustment, it can become a rod to system, ceremonial, dandy or other.

An Artisanal

Manufacture

While today the Maison Fayet® offers resolutely modern and contemporary canes, the manufacturing techniques have not changed much.

Thus, the Fayet walking sticks are made in the factory workshops according to ancestral know-how passed down from generation to generation.

As proof, The workshop where the bending of the wood was taking place was always equipped with pulleys and belts as were most of the workshops in the area and many of the machines are original (case of the varnish drying device) or come from workshops of former manufacturers.

Our company is listed in the inventory of Rare Art Crafts, within the framework of the Unesco Convention for the Safeguarding of the Intangible Cultural Heritage.

Manufacturing

a long and artisanal process

Several steps are necessary in the elaboration of a cane and are very different depending on the materials used and the desired final choice. This is why it is difficult to explain every detail of it because there are so many possibilities. Starting from a simple wooden tile, after handling, adds elements and adjustment, it is possible to create a simple cane, cane to system, ceremonial or other. On average, 4 to 6 hours of manual work are required to make a bent cane.

Wood selection and drying

After recovering the wood in the form of logs, the very first step is to have cutting wood into boards from local sawmills, then into tiles. The tiles then leave for a long drying period in a ventilated room that differs according to species: a minimum year for ordinary wood up to 6 years for exotic wood. 

The drying step is essential and must be carried out perfectly before Fayet’s Canes are manufactured.

Bending of exotic wooden canes

Once the tiles are well dry, they are selected (obligation of total absence of knots) then heated, this in order to soften them a little.

Then comes the crucial step of curving which requires the presence of 2 people and requires precise know-how: the external face of the tile is fixed on a spring (long steel blade with rod). The spring and the wood maintained come to be wrapped around a roller previously heated and fixed on the axis of a steering wheel machine that drives 2 people per thrust. Once, the end of the tile well curved, it will be held on the spring for another 3 hours. After demoulding, it is dried several days on large hot water pipes.

The work of the tile

The barrel (stick) is then passed in a «bezel» kind of big pencil sharpener, which will give it its cylindrical shape. The inside and outside of the curve are trimmed using a circular grater mounted on a turret (a special grater specific to Maison Fayet®). The barrel is then ploughed to its conical shape and then completely sanded, just like the curve.

Flambage and varnishing of white woods

The cane is then burned with a torch to give it a nuanced shade. It is then straightened on an easel to guarantee a straight shaft before being varnished: 25 rods are immersed in a tray of cellulosic varnish for 30 minutes and then gradually rise up so that the varnish spreads evenly. Finally, the cane will then be put on a rotating machine to dry the varnish.