how long to dry osage in heat box

[TroyH]

I'm going to cut some new osage soon and was wondering how long or how fast I could get it dry in a hot box?  If I remember, you can't go too fast or too high a heat, but anything would beat waiting a year.  I don't have a moisture meter, so that won't help either.

[DCM]

Reduce it to near bow dimensions.  Seal the back completely, and the belly in the thickness of the handle and fades.  If it's still wet green just days off the stump I like to clamp it down on something, usually a caul with some backset.  Anything will do as long as it's fairly even.  Let it stand like that a week.  Find a humidity gauge, home center, walmart, whatever.  Keep it at around 50% relative humidity for another week.  Then try to find 40% Rh and keep it there until it stops loosing mass weight.  Usually a warm place in an otherwise cool environment, like the attic or a closet w/ a water heater in it.  Use any scale that will measure the weight accurately to within 1/2 oz, perhaps one of those "weight watchers" scales or similar you could find in the kitchen section at most department stores.  Need a max capacity of about 2#.

Six weeks is not an unreasonable estimate of the time required to go from stump to tiller tree.  But care must be taken, particularly in the thick area of the handle.  And it's not best case scenario as the stave might well continue to equalize over time, resulting in change of tiller in worst case scenario.

I ain't above working wet green wood, but get better results overall if I start with stuff at least a year off the stump.

Get yourself a number of caches going, cutting as soon as is practical, then you'll be ready in coming years.

[Pat B]

I agree with David.  One way I can tell if wood is dry or almost dry is by the sound of it as I scrape it. If you get a crisp sound instead of a dull sound you are getting close.      Pat

[Eric Krewson]

I like to stabilize freshly cut wood for a month or so before I put it in my drying box. I have a moisture meter and have found that any wood I put in the box that is over 16% mc will check no matter how low I keep the temperature in the box.

I have so much cured wood I seldom use my drying box anymore except for and "on deck circle" for the next bow project. A couple of weeks in the box insures a bow blank will be completely dry when I am ready to turn it into a bow.

One thing that always surprises me is how green thick osage is in the middle even after you have had it cut for a couple of years.

[Roy Steele]

Split staves let them dry natural.Weight and buy a stave.No matter how low your heat and how slow you go.You could get cracks in the back.
   You can take it down to ruff bow form.This will cut down on drying time.A lot if you don't have the time to weight.