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Bastón

a foldable cane for my abuela

Close-up of the Bastón foldable cane's folding joint, in a Mexican bag

Bastón is Spanish for cane — this project was as personal as it was technical, co-designed by and for my grandmother.

For
My abuela
Team
Solo project
Materials
Turned wood, machined metal

A foldable cane, designed and built by hand. The build combined old and new techniques: a hand-turned wooden shaft on the lathe, a machined metal folding mechanism (designed by me) milled and drilled (by me), and water-jet-cut links.

A 5.8" hole was drilled straight down the center of the hand-turned rod to house the internal folding mechanism — invisible when assembled, essential to how it works. Every joint was tested individually before final assembly: milling the slot, drilling the center bore, lathing both the long and short shaft sections, and shaping the outer wooden shell.

Bastón's Journey

From Sketch to Finished Cane

Rapid prototype & sketches Cardboard rapid prototype and hand sketches for the Bastón folding mechanism
3D prints of mechanism 3D-printed folding mechanism parts for the Bastón cane
Me on the lathe Sebastian Esteva machining a wooden cane piece on a lathe
Selection of parts in the cane Wood, aluminum, and brass parts laid out for the Bastón cane build
Bastón finished cane leaning against a wooden bench outdoors

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