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Ski Staff: Bamboo Pole With Wrist Loop, Wooden Snow Disk and Lead-Set Spike (Boy Mechanic, 1915)
The Boy Mechanic Book 2 · Public domain
Woody

Created by

Woody

13. November 2026NO
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Ski Staff: Bamboo Pole With Wrist Loop, Wooden Snow Disk and Lead-Set Spike (Boy Mechanic, 1915)

A homemade ski staff from The Boy Mechanic, Book 2 (1915): a 4-1/2 ft bamboo pole with a leather wrist loop at the top, a 5 in pine disk 6 in above the tip to stop it sinking in deep snow, and a wire spike set in lead in a hardwood plug for icy ground.
Beginner
About 3 hours

Instructions

1

His sizes in centimetres

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2

Read The Boy Mechanic, Book 2

"A ski staff will greatly assist progress over level stretches and is an aid to the ski runner in preserving his balance."
3

Cut the staff and loop

Cut a bamboo pole 1-1/4 or 1-1/2 in in diameter and 4-1/2 ft long. Shave an old strap thinner, cut it about 1/2 in wide, and fix it as a narrow wrist loop at the top.

Materials for this step:

Bamboo PolesBamboo Poles1 piece
Harness LeatherHarness Leather1 piece
Copper RivetsCopper Rivets1 piece

Tools needed:

Hand SawHand Saw
Leather KnifeLeather Knife
Hand DrillHand Drill
HammerHammer
Tape MeasureTape Measure
4

Make and fix the snow disk

Cut a disk of well-seasoned white pine or spruce, 1/2 in thick and 5 in in diameter, and coat it with shellac. Bore its centre to pass up the staff about 6 in. Fix it with two pieces of heavy wire: wire A goes through the staff below wire B and at right angles to it, so B must be bent over A. Staple both wires to the disk.

Materials for this step:

Pine BoardPine Board1 piece
Shellac VarnishShellac Varnish1 piece
Iron WireIron Wire1 piece
Wire StapleWire Staple4 pieces

Tools needed:

Coping SawCoping Saw
Brace and BitBrace and Bit
Hand DrillHand Drill
Flat-Nose PliersFlat-Nose Pliers
HammerHammer
Wide Paint BrushWide Paint Brush
5

Set the spike

Plug the lower end with hard wood and bore part way into its centre for a wire spike. Cut slight recesses in the sides of the hole to anchor lead, and pour melted lead round the spike. Sharpen the point, then wind the bamboo with waxed twine or fine wire so it does not split.

Materials for this step:

Hardwood BoardHardwood Board1 piece
Iron WireIron Wire1 piece
Lead IngotLead Ingot1 piece
Jute TwineJute Twine1 piece
BeeswaxBeeswax1 piece

Tools needed:

Hand DrillHand Drill
ChiselsChisels
Metal LadleMetal Ladle
Propane TorchPropane Torch
Files (Hand File)Files (Hand File)
Flat-Nose PliersFlat-Nose Pliers
6

Troubleshooting

Ski staff troubleshooting.

Flow

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7

History and honest limits

From "How to Make a Ski Staff", in **The Boy Mechanic, Book 2**, Popular Mechanics, 1915 (Project Gutenberg 44585; checked on the archive.org scan boymechanicbook200chic2, p. 51). No contributor is named. He gives no wire gauge or spike length. The tools and metric figures are ours.

Materials

11

Tools Required

13

This blueprint makes

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Ski Staff

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