Cutting osage and selfbow supplies

[grouse11]

So it is looking like I will be cutting my first osage tree down on Saturday. There farmer on the land that I hunt gave me permission. I opted out of cutting down the 40" diameter tree in lieu of the 15" tree to start    the one I picked out looks to be very straight for about 15 feet and then has some straight branches. So I have my mauls and sledges and wedges ready as well as some poly to seal.

I am hoping to get a good bit of quality selfbow staves as well as some wood for some veneers amd riser blocks. What is the best way to handle the wood? Should I try and remove all the bark right away and seal as well or can I stack it and wait for the bark to pull off by hand? Also I don't have any sort of rack so can I just stack with 2x4s in between to air dry?

Additionally what tools will I need when the time comes to build a bow? I am going to purchase a draw knofe as well as some cabinet scrapers. Will a rasp be handy and what size? Also does anybody have a plan for a bow horse or will a big vise work better?

I know this is a lot of questions but I promise to reward with pics of the haul. Also I most likely will end up with more wood than I need so may be looking to rehome some (for shipping costs) and see what other people can do with it. Ive never done this before but there is something about a skillfully crafted osage selfbow that really tickles my fancy!

All helpbis greatly appreciated!

[John Malone]

I would love to have a piece of that, cant get it around here cost to much online. You need a rasp for sure lots of options nelson 49 farriers rasp I believe is popular. As far as how to handle Osage those who know will respond shortly ive never even seen it in person.
 Good luck and happy hunting.

[Pat B]

Cut the log to length seal the ends well. Wood glue works well. Split the big logs into quarters and depending on the size of what else you get at least in half. Be sure all ends are sealed. Store off the ground in a protected area out of the weather and wind.
 You can remove the bark but if you do also remove the sapwood and seal the back(exposed under bark) well with glue. If you decide to leave the bark and sapwood on you should treat the bark with an insecticide to kill any insects that will hatch and eat into the wood.
 A good hand ax can be used to remove excess wood when you get to building. A farriers rasp(cheap or free) works well to remove wood. A Nicholson #49 is a good wood rasp for finer work but is expensive. Any good rasp will work. A good scraper will get you through tillering and on to a finished bow.

[Forwardhandle]

Good advice above I cut some osage last winter and have more this one I didnt have time to debark so I used  Neem oil to coat the bark it suficates any larva thats present I tried all kinds of insecticides before in the past and still had those nasty vile wood eating critters the neem oil is the only thing I trust you can dilute it and spray it on soaks into the bark , if you can elevate the wood on the end to get your splits started helps a lot on the back ,its like spliting steel also make sure the bark grain is really strait any waves in it will be amplified in the wood grain also I rotate the log when splitting to make sure Im getting a good run it will be music to your ears when you here that nice cracking splitting sound !

[Eric Krewson]

I wouldn't cut a 40" tree, you are biting of more than you can chew if you do, cut the 15" tree.

I have cut somewhere around 30-40 osage trees possibly more. I find you get better wood out of the average sized trees than the monsters. You can read the bark on a 15" tree to see what is underneath, not so on the big trees. The big trees are often full of wind shakes and flaws.

Faced with more wood than you can handle in a reasonable length of time some will end up firewood.

I cut too much one time, debarked and removed the sapwood from staves for a full month after work. My hands swelled up like sausages from all the draw knife work.

I learned my lesson and never cut more than one average sized tree at a time after that.

[Pat B]

Reading the bark is a very big consideration. If the bark "grain" spirals around the tree the wood grain under the bark will also. Look for the bark groves to run up and down. There can be a little spiral or even snakey but basically you want the bark vertical and not diagonal. Even on a pipe straight tree the bark can spiral.

[grouse11]

Eric, I apologize for my poor wording. I am starting with the 15" tree. I will take a picture of the 40"er. It may even be bigger than that but I didn't hang around because I was in the middle of a deer drive!

Pat as far as I can tell the tree has very straight grain based off of the bark for about 15'

Thanks for all the help so far! I cant wait for saturday

[Roy from Pa]

As soon as you set the chainsaw down from making a cut, seal both ends of the cut asap.

[scrub-buster]

Good advice above.  If it splits cleanly you should get quite a few staves from a 15" tree.  You don't need heavy sledge hammers to split osage.  I cut and split over 300 staves a year. I use a 4 lb mini sledge to bust the trees into chunks.  I switch to a 3 lb hammer to reduce them down into staves.  I try to cut straight grained large trees up to 30".  I don't have the equipment to drag out anything larger than that.  I can swing a 4 lb hammer all day without wearing my arm out. An old single bit ax head makes a good starter wedge.  

When you start splitting it look at both ends closely.  It will usually start to split on its own.  That is where the tree is wanting to separate so start your split there.  I try to start the split on the smaller end of the log.  Keep a hatchet nearby to chop all of the stringers that will try to hold it together.  Post some pictures of your haul!

[grouse11]

Well I got the tree taken care of today and boy am I sore! I overestimated the tree slightly but I'm not complaining. It was only about 12". We cut it down and I was able to get two straight trunk sections. I decided to go with 6' to allow some room to trim down when I go to start on a bow. All in all I ended with 21 staves (3-5 possibly too small). I also have 5 pieces that will possible be billets and 4 large pieces that I will use to make riser blocks. I believe this was a good haul and I already have a piece picked out for the first bow. Now to wait for it to dry!

Here is the link to the pics:  https://imgur.com/a/DCrW3

Also, I decided the 40"er is going to die of old age!

Feel free to critique the tree, I feel like it is a good one but I'm no expert

[mwosborn]

Looks like you have some good staves in that pile.  I can see why you are sore.     :eek:    If the ends are not sealed yet, I would do it asap.  

I like to remove the bark and sapwood and seal the backs.  When I leave the bark on it seems like I get beetles even when sprayed and kept inside my storage shed.  I start with the best looking pieces first.  Got a good draw knife?    

[grouse11]

All the ends are sealed and I sprayed the bark down with insecticide. Stacked in the basement drying. I have exactly 0 of the needed tools so now I'm looking for a draw knife, cabinet scrapers, and a rasp. I also need to find out how to build a bow horse to make my life easier

[Eric Krewson]

If you get a good place to work your staves down I would start removing the bark and sapwood on a few at a time. Both come of fairly easily green, still a lot of work but not near the work if you let them dry. Of course you have to seal the backs, I am a fan of shellac, easy to put on, easy to take off.

You have some piggyback staves as well, I would split them off and seal the backs now as well.

[grouse11]

Eric, I'm not up on the lingo. Do piggyback staves come from a stave that is deep? Would a just pick a growth ring and split it lengthwise?

[grouse11]

So I have some tools on the way: a draw knife, rasp, scrapers, and a moisture meter. I will start to remove the bark next weekend and split the staves smaller as I'm able. This is definitely a learning experience but hopefully in the end I am shooting a very special bow (or 12)

[Eric Krewson]

You are right, just pick a ring and split off the belly. Because the top stave will be your primary stave give it plenty of depth to make a bow. Sometimes a piggyback stave split won't stay in a growth ring and split off big on one end and small on the other and be ruined.

I always think of the top stave first, if I get a good belly split it is icing on the cake. I use small wood wedges for the split after I get it started by tapping in a screwdriver around the ring I picked. I have these wedges leftover from splicing handles.

 

 

Most of the time a belly split will pop right
off, sometimes with a clean ring.

 

[scrub-buster]

Nice haul!  Go back and cut that burl.