I have made a few Crooks.
The best book on the subject is
https://wordery.com/stickmaking-andrew- ... wwodyYoCQA
The usual height of a crook stick is to sternum height. This height assists climbing fences big time and is superb for descending steep slopes. You will see from the book that there are important dimensions - at least 4 fingers width at the 'gape' and the nose of the handle should be at joint height, etc. If these 'measurements' are not kept to, the stick will not look 'right'.
Making a rams horn handle is the epitome of the craft and needs jigs and formers (as well as just the right rams horn,) best to start with simpler materials. later (after say half-a dozen sticks you might have a go at a rams horn handle). You can buy Buffalo horn handles on ebay and the fit these to bought shanks - a good way to start.
I started by buying components from here:
http://www.highlandhorn.com/stickmaking.asp
You can harvest hazel shanks from the forest, but buying a couple of ready seasoned shafts means that you can short-cut the process and get going right away.
Hickory shafts, ferules, collars, etc. were bought from Highland Horn and then I honed and refined my fixing and finishing techniques.
In truth, if you take your time and do a bit of reading, its not difficult to make a stick of which you are not ashamed, you don't need to posses high level DIY skills. I also made some handles from Burr elm, oak, etc, but the problem with a wooden handle is that the grain will always be vey narrow somewhere on the head and it will break if its dropped.
I found the very best material for my early stick handles was marine ply, (no uniform grain to break makes it almost indestructible (except by fire). it make a great 'working stick'. You can buy a slab of say 25 mm marine ply and then fashion a nice handle, it can be sanded and varnished and looks OK. You can buy these materials on ebay. Have a look at this site and see some of the marine ply handles here:
http://www.wrencountrysticks.co.uk/prev ... sticks.asp
The best way to join the handle to the shaft is with a threaded rod, your first sticks will not have a perfect joint but you then hide this with a collar. My first ply-handled stick is still the one I pick up everyday - I love it. The ferrule is an 'alpine spike', (best to de-sharpen this a bit in case you stab your dog!) and the collar is a black buffalo horn collar. I even learned to print my name and a wee 'subtitle' on micro-acetate film on my computer and bending it on screen to fit the shape of the handle, then I printed it and placed it on my prepared handle and gave it 10 coats of marine varnish, sealing it in. Every year of two I give it a light rub down and re-varnish with a few coats. The shaft (hickory) is also varnished now and again.
My first stick must be 10 years old, nothing has broke on it.
I have lost it twice, both when surmounting a fence and handling the dog, I put the stick down and forgot it! Both times, I retraced my paces at the end of the day and found it!!
Cheers, Terry
Thank you so very much Andrew and scotsgent !