Product review by Craig Gemeiner
Copyright 2007
Managers of Purpleheart Armoury Christian and Natasha Darce decided several years ago to design a cane for their catalogue of wooden weapons. After some consultations on cane configurations between the Darce’s and myself Christian eventually came up with the Vigny walking stick/ la canne.
The Vigny walking stick is approximately 1meter or 39 inches in length and 20mm or 3/4 inch thick with an average weight of 1.0 lb. The shaft is available in either rattan or hickory with a hardwood knob attached to one end. The rattan model is light and very fast in the hand which suits a person of slender build. The heavier hickory model is more solid and suits an individual with strong wrists and arms. Purpleheart’s walking sticks are not show pieces- you won’t find burned patterns , lacquered coating or laser etching, instead, and more importantly in my opinion, Christian’s sticks are designed for serious training and sparring.
For solo work, controlled partner drilling, along with intense impact training on striking targets, it’s recommended to use the heavy distal end with the knob of the cane as the point of percussion- just as Vigny intended. For contact sparring there’s no need to reach for a lighter stick, simply flip the rattan model over and you have in your hand an assaut/sparring cane ready to go.
The Vigny stick currently sells for US $25 which can be shipped internationally. The canes are cost effective so buying large quantities for formal club training along with replacement costs won’t break the budget. Purpleheart accepts paypal and most credit cards and their customer service is second to none. Upon request Christian can provide a thicker and heavier model for those requiring a walking stick for actual carry on the street. While in Japan I had the opportunity to handle these heavier Purpleheart models, I was impressed with their durability – as were the Japanese customers.
In closing I’d like to mention that I don’t get any payment for endorsing the Purpleheart walking sticks. Those of you who know me are aware that I won’t recommend a substandard product. Put simply Christian Darce has provided a great service for la canne Vigny practitioners by making available quality training canes at an affordable price.
