Cane is easy to work with once you get the hang of it. Good cane shafts start with being picky when you cut them-try to avoid ones with big flat offset divots above the nodes, the more space between nodes, the better. You want the first part of the culm between the ground and where the branches start. ut them to length, try to avoid having nodes under the fletching area if possible. Then just heat it carefully until it starts to sweat and you can smell it, and gently straighten the bends. Cane almost turns to rubber when heated. I like to straighten all the areas between the nodes first, then straighten the nodes themselves. This keeps you from having to bend the nodes more than once-if you're gonna break it, it'll be at the nodes. Don't overheat, especially the nodes or it will become brittle and pop or fold. It's good to work on a couple shafts at a time or alternate from one end of the shaft to the other so that you don't unstraighten one area that's still warm while straightening another. With a little practice, you can straighten a shaft very quickly. After they are straight and cool, I like to work the nodes down flush with the shaft, then fine-tune the straightness. Be careful bending the nodes after you have smoothed them. Cut the nocks so that the nodes are toward the bow and cock feather.
