Thank you for bringing this up, Justin. I have made hybrid cane tips out of the rubber part of the metal tips we're used to and the ceramic part of the Ambutech hook-on ceramic tips. I trimmed the part of the rubber that the metal had been crimped over on our tips. For the ceramic tip, I rolled the rubber O-ring off and threw it out. I clamped the plastic part in my vice and cut the plastic with a hack saw just behind the ceramic part. Then I held the ceramic part in my left hand and carefully drilled into the remainder of the plastic, using 2 or more small drill bits. Then I used needle nose pliers to pick the rest of the plastic out/off. Then I used guerilla glue to put the ceramic and rubber together. I clamped them together gently for a couple hours. Then I filed the excess glue away. These tips held up pretty well when I followed the steps above. But it was of course time consuming. I thought the tactile feedback was superior to metal tips, and my clients who tried this cane tip design agreed. If anything gave out with these tips which numbered less than 20, it was the glue bond. The ceramic did not shatter. So I think this is worth looking into much more. Also, having the disk shape we're used to would probably help a lot with auditory feedback, since the hemospheric ceramic tips from Ambutech don't sound as good as our tips in my opinion. I used to think the poor sound was because of ceramic. But to truly be objective, we must consider the shape factor, too. I sure would love to have ceramic tips as an option for the NFB and NFB-style canes. Most of my clients prefer our canes, so it would be a good investment of time and perhaps money. Sincerely, Ben

On Oct 20, 2020, at 7:14 AM, Justin Salisbury <PRESIDENT at alumni.ecu.edu> wrote:

? Hi everyone,

I remember seeing, at a convention a few years ago, some ceramic versions of the metal cane tips that we so often use. They might have been made by Chris Park, but I?m not sure.

I haven?t seen them since then, but I?d like to be somewhat knowledgeable about them. Does anyone here know why we haven?t adopted those tips? Are they too heavy? Do they scratch floors? Do they crack?

Stay well,

Justin

Justin Mark Hideaki Salisbury he/him/his

Phone: 808.797.8606 Email: President at Alumni.ECU.edu LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/justin-salisbury ResearchGate: https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Justin_Salisbury

?Once social change begins, it cannot be reversed. You cannot un-educate the person who has learned to read. You cannot humiliate the person who feels pride. You cannot oppress the people who are not afraid anymore.?

Cesar Chavez

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