Dark Castle - Sin 
BDSM Canada & Training

by Aramock Nanuck

     May 2011

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Canes have been the mainstay of corporal punishment since time in memorium. They continue to be used in many former English colonies, much of Asia and other parts of the world both at home and in the schools. So why should not the fetish lifestyle take this instrument so well-loved (and hated) by generations?  Cane set has the same effect on males and females, so there is no sexual discrimination in the punishment. A fair crack of the cane for all.

 

Construction

Canes are made from a variety of materials. Rattan is the most popular due to its unique combination of lightweight and extreme flexibility. They can also be made from Malacca, bamboo and whalebone. Each of them has issues as Malacca is quite knobby and will cause blisters on force impact points. At the same time, bamboo is prone to splintering. Whalebone is extremely hard and appeared in Victorian times as severe punishments for prisoners. Few are found today, made from whalebone and typically only found in antique shops. 

 

Hedgerow-hazel, willow and young ash plants normally are the material of choice for homemade "switches."

 

Lengths can vary from about 60cm (2 feet) to 130cm (4 feet) and have differing purposes. The shorted version are for across the palms of the hands, buttocks or back of the thighs. The longer, thicker ones are sally for the back. The longer the cane, the more difficult it is to control and aim properly and should be rejected (unless the caning is of the judicial type).

 

The weight of a cane is the important thing, and here appearances may be deceptive. The slimmer and lighter the canes are more likely to cut the skin or have harsher effects. Thicker canes better combine the qualities of penetration and "spread" and are less liable to break the skin.

 

The idea of sending one out to select their own punishment device is devious as, in fact, they will tend to t thinner items, not realizing that with thickness, the blow has a higher likelihood of more loss of force. 

Head Cane Set

The cane is the classic implement of school room discipline and possibly the most feared. The sound of the "swish" the cane makes as it slices through the air brings the warning of impending pain on its journey to the recipient's bare bottom. The impact and effects are instantaneous as long red marks appear denoting the violence delivered. The slight handle vibrations reward the disciplinarian with the sensation of a job completed, But the mid sets to task as it readies for the next stroke.  This crooked-handled punishment cane is best as the handle gives the disciplinarian a much better grip and stops the cane from slipping out of their hand.  

 

Care and Maintenance

Keeping the cane in a long thin container half-filled with water maintains the bottom of the cane swishy and flexible. It also increases the force transfer on impact and prevents splintering. Regular use is required and aeration to prevent the cane from becoming waterlogged or discoloured in time.

A strong humiliation factor and increased fear anticipation are to have the recipient of the punishment smooth by using sanding paper. Inform the victim that it is in their interest not to have splinters or fibre deeply embedded in their flesh.  Such injuries invariably will require a doctor to remove them and create interesting conversations in an emergency room.

 

Stable/Horse Cane

This is a straight cane of about 60 cm (24 inches) long and just as effective in the right hands. It functions in the same way as the Head Cane but has a higher vibration rate as the straight shaft does not lose any of the recoil force like the travel around the curve of a head cane. 

Safety Considerations

The cane is a severe instrument with considerable potential to penetrate and do significant damage if harshly used. The injuries causes can be vicious, taking days if not weeks to heal as it cause deep flesh wounds, and have on occasion even resulted in broken bones. This device needs to be treated with the utmost respect.

 

Bare flesh strikes are a must when using greenwood or canes made of a material other than ratan. This does not preclude bare bottom strikes with ratan, but the disciplinarian needs to know the composition of their cane.

 

Usually, males have tougher skin than females, but even a light caning of a few strokes will leave intermittent evidence of the rod in the form of visible welts. Also, Orientals tend to hide the welts better than Europeans, while Africans and Eurasians quickly show the discolouration.  These stereotypes, however, have all been wrong on several cases in over 40 years of caning, so it is best to experiment and validate the victim in the first session for impact damage before proceeding to more stringent caning in subsequent sessions.

 

Any single stroke that immediately produces marks or breaks the skin is too hard for fetish purposes and ceases a fet-activity but simple abuse. Administering any caning is a matter of some precision, the attainment of which is generally a matter of practice. Administered fetish caning with a minimum of real force to be effective.

 

Another precaution is to take one's stance slightly to the left of the victim and as much as a half-pace. This ensures that the cane's tip, which travels faster than the rest of the instrument during the latter part of the flight, strikes the farthest point while the shaft lays across the bulk of the impact area at precisely the same instant. This will ensure that the force at the point and shaft remain constant and avoid the slicing effect of the cane's tip.  As an extra caution, it is suggested that the disciplinarian land the flat of the can on the impact site while allowing the tip to dissipate its energy in the open air a couple of inches beyond the body.

 

Caning of any type in all but the judicial form should be limited to a maximum of ten strokes. If planning on more strokes, it is recommended to use a fetish crop instead, although a maximum of 24 should be observed.  More than that is invariable simply abusive, and the pain will overtake the endorphin production resulting in a negative experience.

 

Shame and Cane

Shame is a great addition to caning as it increases the humiliation and other psychological factors essential in a fetish scene. It also greatly twists the activity from raw punishment and quiet (or not so) suffering to a shared and communal experience.  The greater degree of shame, particularly one administered as viewed by other slaves and dominant, is more effective as a tool of domination. The shame factor invariable increases significantly if performed on the opposite sex; there clearly is a psychological reason for this, but I have yet to discover clinical reasoning.
 

The shame maximizes when the victim is caned on their bare bottom. Deliver stroke in a narrow band corresponding to the plumpest and best-padded section of the rump. There is a side advantage in that the progress, effect of the punishment, and checking one's aim all become much easier.  Administering strokes at a slow pace (one every five-ten seconds), the disciplinarian has time to observe these marks begin to develop and adjust accordingly.

 

Technique

During a short flight from start to impact (usually a quarter arc), the device picks up a force equal to 10 times its size and weight. This is further enhanced by the force of the arm behind the swing. Unlike broad instruments, it has a minimal impact radius and length to deliver all of the force (excluding feedback) in that small space. Although the cane appears straight, it still vibrated and acted similar to a whip.   The cane should hum or whistle in the stroke and fall across the target with a sharp snap, like a  pistol. There should be a pause between strokes-say, a minimum of five seconds. The result of a sound caning should be a welted impact site, while the force will determine the vividness of markings on the victim.

 

The arm and wrist motion is, therefore, a complex one.  At the beginning of the stroke, the hand leads the tip of the cane; it continues to lead throughout the descent; only at the last moment, after the shortest of follow-throughs, does the wrist halt and reverse direction slightly so that the business end of the cane "catches up" at exactly the right angle to the point of contact. The achievement of a good caning action is, hence a matter of some diligence and constant practise.

The result should be a perfect stripe across the broadest part of the bottom. This mark will immediately appear in white as you finish the stroke; then it will fade; to re-appear (if it has been a severe stroke) within less than a minute as a thin welt.
I have spoken earlier about limits on the use of the cane. Feeble strokes merely tap the skin.

 

Savage blows can cut the skin and again are to be avoided at all costs. 
 

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