stave question. answered...now a few more questions

[ibohuntwhitetails]

I have over 600 acres of private land and over half is forest. I have osage, oaks, hickory, you name it and its in missouri I probably have it. Anyway when is the time of year to get bow wood?

Anything I am looking for in the tree itself?

Any one wood better or easier than another? Any one or another better for youth bows? Or just collect some of each and go at it?

Also what is the best way to prep and dry the wood? quartered, uncut, something else?

Can the wood you get be made ready to put in lam bows or just self bows?
 
And last but not least how much longer should the piece be that the bow I want to make 2 or 3 inches?

Thanks for all the help in advance hope I'm not to much of a pain!!!

[Cody Cantrell]

Thomas,

It is just my opinion that osage is the best, it takes a little more work to get the back established than oak or hickory but I believe it is well worth the effort.  On the oak and hickory all you have to do is peel the outer layer of bark and you have your back.  

They say the time of year to collect your bow wood is in the winter when the sap is down, I say the best time to collect it is when you find a nice tree cut it down, but make sure you coat the ends and exposed surface to slow the escape of moisture, so it doesn't check on you.

When you look at the tree it should be at least 70" long for staves and 36" for billets.  I think at least 8" diameter is good that gives you a flatter crown on the back.  When you look at the bark as it goes up the tree it should run straight up the tree and not "barber pole" this indicates the grain of the wood and if it barber poles it will twist when you split it.


If you are going to use the wood for selfbows it is best to at least split it in half if not all the way into single staves.  If you are going to use it for lam bows take it to one of the sawmills around and they will cut it into lumber for you.  Stack and sticker it to let it dry properly.

If you can cut it at least three inches longer than the finished bow, even though you seal the ends sometimes they check anyway and if it is longer you can cut the check off.

Hope this helps, if you need help let me know I am just down the road.

Cody

[Eric Krewson]

Cutting staves is a frequently asked question. Perhaps we could make a topic in the how to section that could be easily accessed for future selfbow makers.

Back to your question, Wood wasp larva attack osage quickly so you need to remove the bark and sapwood if you have the time and coat the back and ends with 3 or 4 coats of shellac to prevent cracking. Shellac is by far the best treatment to prevent drying cracks so invest in a quart.

If you don't have the time to remove the bark and sapwood you need to soak the bark with a good bug killer like Diazinon. This will keep the wood wasps at bay for several months.

Splitting into staves will shorten the drying time considerably as wood drys at a rate of one inch of thickness a year on average.

Long staves are great because you will find some surprises when you remove the bark and sapwood. You may need to shift a bad spot into the handle area or be able to shift your pattern down the stave and simply cut the bad area off.

[Pat B]

Cody is correct in almost everything IMO. Wood can be cut at any time of year. For woods like osage, I like to cut it(when I can find any)during the dormant periods(winter) but any time you have a chance to is OK. For white woods, I cut during the growing season so the bark will peel off without much effort. On whitewoods, what is under the bark will be a good back for your bow.
  I consider hickory, red and white oak, maple, hop hornbean, cherry, walnut, etc, to be whitewood. I make bows with their sapwood.
With any wood freshly cut for self bows, split the log in half and seal the ends and store properly in a cool dry place. I usually cut staves(logs) to 6' or 7'long. If you peel the bark off of the white woods, seal the back. With osage, mulberry, locust, etc, Leave the bark and sapwood on, at least for a while, until some of the moisture is released. When you remove the bark, also remove the sapwood(unless you want a sapwood back for the color contrast) and seal the back. These woods WILL check badly as they season if not sealed.
   I have never had wood cut at a sawmill but Cody's recomendations about that sounds good to me. Pat

[Pat B]

...and what Eric said about preventing insect problems. I also like shellac for sealing staves.   Pat

[ibohuntwhitetails]

Thanks for all the quick responses. I sure was going to be on the wrong trail without the answers. I didnt realize the trunk of the tree was what I was after. I thought that the branches where what people were cutting off to widdle away at. Thanks again I knew I could count on you all!

Tom

[ibohuntwhitetails]

ok one more question. for now anyway. I have acces to alot of diferent types op furnaces and dryers and such. Can the drying process be quickened by  such things or is it better to let nature run its course? and how dry does it need to be before you can make a bow?

Thanks
Tom

[Pat B]

Quick answer...yes, yes and depending on the wood, anywhere from 6% to about 11% M/C.
   Again depending on the wood,...basically you can take the stave down to almost bow size and with the back and ends sealed put the stave in a hot box(or other dryer)until you achieve the appropriate M/C for that particular wood.
   We have been having a debate about dry vs. cured (seasoned) wood over on the PA site. There is a differance. Good bows can be and are made with force dried wood. Just ask Dean Torges(or better yet, read his book). I use whatever wood I have available but if I had a choice, I would pick a well cured stave over a force dried stave any day. Unfortunately, we don't always have access to good seasoned staves when the urge hits.   Pat

[Eric Krewson]

If you push wood to dry too quickly in uncontroled conditions it will crack from back to belly, been there, done that.

[ibohuntwhitetails]

Any suggestion on what is to quickly and uncontrolled? I have a cure oven that can hold a given temp from 32 to 500 degrees with a slope of +5/-1 and the box is sealed so atmosphere changes in temp and humidity outside the oven have a null effect on the happenings inside. I was thinking of cutting some wood this weekend and sealing most of it and putting it up but would sure like to speed the process up on atleast one or two pieces to make some youth bows for my daughters and nieces to shoot with me.  Thanks again for all the great input.

[**DONOTDELETE**]

Do you have a copy of Traditional Bowyers Bible Vol. 1? If not, I can send you my copy so you can read it. Good stuff in there that might help you. Justin

[Eric Krewson]

What I am referring to as uncontrolled is time in the attic, behind the water heater, in a closed up outbuilding in the middle of the summer.

Controlled would be starting a lower temp, say, 90 degrees the raising the temp 5 degrees a week until you get to 110. Your stave would be dry in a little over a month.

[Cody Cantrell]

Tom,

If you are concerned about ruining the wood by force drying contact me and I can give you a few pieces you could make some kids bows out of, just let me know.

Cody