Old walking stick--trying to figure out how the tip works

[ABTOMAT-47]

I know this is pretty silly but I'm curious about this. Picked up this nice Orvis walking stick from the '70s. The tip is weird, though. Outside is a stainless tube. Buried deep inside is a ceramic cylinder screwed to the wood. What is this? Only thing I can think of is that something used to go over the ceramic bit and stick out of the tube.

If I can't figure this out I'm probably just going to machine some kind of insert so I can use it.

 

[brizbane]

I don't quite understand that tip but if it was me, I would sand that stick down real smooth then apply some Butchers Wax. Just my 2 cents.

 

[newadventure]

Neat stick - I like it. Not sure how the tip is supposed to work though, doesn;t look like anything I have seen before. Is the ceramic fine enought to sharpen a knife? By the way it is installed in the stick, I would think this is not it's intended purpose, though. Good luck with it - please let us know if you figure out the purpose of the tip - very curious!
Fred

 

[UffDa]

I could be wrong, but I believe that the stick is designed to take various tips. Maybe a soft tip for city use and a spike for the country. I have no idea what the ceramic insert would be for.
Maybe it was added by some owner in the past just because he thought it would be a good idea.

 

[Shotgun]

I like the shape of the handle section.

 

[Esav Benyamin]

I had a stick like that, about 4' high, no tip, just ended in wood that I put a rubber cane tip on.

 

[ABTOMAT-47]

About the only thing I can think of is that the ceramic may have originally been cast around the screw as a plug that stuck out the bottom. For traction on ice or rocks?

 

[texas gun person]

Contact Orvis and they just might be able to tell you.

 

[FlaMtnBkr]

The ceramic almost looks like old dry rotted rubber. I would just go to a pharmacy and get a cane tip to protect the metal piece and give some traction. A 1/2" tip is probably the smallest they make. Hard to tell if that would fit just from the pics. I just bought a cane tip and stuck it on my new umbrella and it fit great. Using it like a walking stick makes it a lot easier to tote around and won't tear up the end. It almost looks like it came with it on.