Getting ready for the first one(New Pics and Questions)

[Fritz]

Well, I think I have read and trolled around long enough,time to build my first self bow. My son Tyler and I went out and cut a 12" hickory tree. We got three 6 to 7ft sections out of it. Got it home and split it into halfs and debarked it. Sealed the ends and the backs. It is now drying on saw horses in my garage. How long should I let it dry before I trim a staff into rough bow dimensions? I want to build my 11 yr old son one first, so any help with bow dimensions is appreciated. Also, do I need to build a hot box to keep the bow in as I work on it?

[Pat B]

Fritz, Ideally you will want to let the wood dry for at least a year but longer would be better. If you take a stave(s) down to almost bow size it will dry quicker. There is no need for a hot box but they are very useful. If your home has ac it also dehumidifies the air and that will help your wood dry. Under your bed is a good place to store wood to dry.

[Fritz]

Thanks Pat. After reading TB I I thought I could get to work on it in a month or two. I didn't realize it took that long for hickory. Oh, well. It is what it is. How about bow dimensions for an 11 yr old, any thoughts?

[PEARL DRUMS]

Hickory likes to be drier than most white woods. If you rough it out and stash it under your beds as Pat said you could probably get a bow from it in 4-8 weeks. Im guessing LA has some crazy humidity about now.

An average 11 yr old will pull 25-30# @ 20-22". A hickory flatbow in the 60" ttt range would be good. I would go 60" long, 1 1/4" wide 12' past the fades, then straight taper to 1/2" tips with a 3-4" handle section and 1 1/2" long fades. Keep it simple and have fun. Hickory will take whatever you give it.

[Fritz]

Thanks Chris! That's exactly what I'll do. And yes we have crazy humidity all the time. I will have some more questions in the near future. Always enjoy your posts. Thanks for the help.

[Troy D. Breeding]

Fritz,

Check with your local lumber stores (homedepot, lowes). They sometimes carry kiln dried hickory lumber. Though most times not as good as a hickory stave, it will give you something to work with while your staves are drying. Just take your times and pick a clean straight grain board.

Troy

[PEARL DRUMS]

The hot box would be a VERY wise investment for your neck of the woods. You may never get staves to dry down thar without one. I struggle up here with averages well above normal. I need a box myself.....still.

[Fritz]

That's what I was thinking,too. Seems like I would have alot more control on the drying process than just putting it under my bed. I got plenty of scrap osb in my shop. Might as well put one together. Believe Paul Comstock suggested the same thing in TB I.

[Fritz]

Well, got my hot box put together out of scrap parts today. 21" square x 81" long. Loads from the end, wrapped it in foam board. Three 75w
bulbs wired in parallel on a dimmer switch. Vent holes on both ends, 1 high, 1 low. Gotta add a themometer tomorrow. Now to the questions. I cut and split my hickory a wk ago tomorrow. Should a wait another wk or so before reducing a few staves down to near bow dimensions for drying in the box or is it o'k to do now? When reducing the staffs to rough dimensions, how close to finished dimensions do you go to? Keep the temp
around 90 degrees? Sorry for the crappy cell pictures. Thanks for the advice. You guys are my heros!!!
 
 
 

[Pat B]

Be careful putting a stave directly over a light bulb. The concentrate heat in that one area may scorch that spot on the stave. You could add an aluminum foil tent over each bulb to help prevent it from scorching.
  If your house has A/C it is virtually a big "hot box". R/H that is comfortable for us is good for reducing bow wood moisture and your A/C keep that moisture down.

[J.F. Miller]

my hotbox is very similar to yours, Fritz, except mine has a hinged door on the top of box. I have 5 bulbs in line on a dimmer, much like yours. I use 25 watt bulbs and have them tented with aluminum foil, like Pat B suggests. I keep a cheapo thermometer in the box, too. seldom do I get it over 90 degrees in there, but It will reach 150 easily if I turn dimmer up to full power. I guess I use my hotbox more for low-humidity storage these days than anything else, but when I need a selfbow stave dry, I'll empty the box of everything but the stave I need dry and turn the heat up.

I think I would work staves to very rough bow dimensions shellac the backs and ends, and leave them to stabilize(read "air dry") for a few weeks someplace indoors(i.e., not outside in the sun or wind. is a bad idea to put really green wood in hotbox, even at low temperature as the danger of checking is highest when wood is wettest. and when you do put them in the hotbox, keep the temp around 70-75 degrees for a week or two and slowly increase temp to 85 or so over a few more weeks. I'm a firm believer in force-drying bow wood, and I've done it non-stop since I started building bows. only drying related disaster I ever had was when I tried to steam an entire stave to make corrections that was too dry. that thing checked beyond any hope of ever being anything but firewood.

[Fritz]

Thanks Pat and J.F. I will do as you suggested about tenting the lights and take the drying process slow, as well.