maple staves

[Lee Lobbestael]

Hey guys I recently cut some maple to make some self bows over the winter. I split the log into staves with the bark on and set them in my shed to dry. I have never worked with maple before, how long should i leave them to dry?(I live in Michigan) I was thinking three months would that work? also is there anything else I should now about making a self bow out of maple? (not sure exactly what kind maple but tough stuff)

[Pat B]

All maples are not created equal! Hard(sugar) maple makes very good bows but red maple might be a bit weak.
 A few months is a good starting point. You will have to check it then to see. Generally fall and winter are relatively dry(less humid) and an excellent time to dry wood.
  You can reduce one to almost bow size and it will cure quicker.

[Lee Lobbestael]

Thanks Pat, Can you still build a bow out of red maple?

[Lee Lobbestael]

The leaves of the maple I cut turn yellow. Does that help?

[Pat B]

My Audubon Tree book shows(with yellow leaves) black maple(A. nigrum) to be very similar to sugar maple and stripped maple. The stripped maple(moosewood) is relatively soft and not the best choice for bows. I have heard of folks using stripped maple for arrows.

[shamus]

from Tim Baker (Tbb IV):

 

MAPLES: bigleaf, silver .47; red .54; black .57; rock/sugar .63; vine, about .60. A vinemaple bow is thicker than most. John Strunk discovered and announced the good qualities of this wood. He points out that when felling staves it’s important to indicate which side more faced the sky, which side the ground. Important because most vinemaple leans as it grows. Even more so than with other branch staves, if a vinemaple bow’s back is made of side wood it will twist during tillering. This is an important consideration when ordering staves. As with other strong-in-tension woods, there can be an advantage to a crowned back in medium to narrow designs. The crowned back has less mass, the flat-belly takes less set, so outshoots flat-back versions. The lighter maples are somewhat brittle in tension. All maples are diffuse-porous. Rock and sugar maple are the same wood.