Curbside bow wood

[takefive]

I walk my dog just about every day and was happy to see some tree trimming going on in my neighborhood the past few weeks.  I talked to both homeowners and they told me to take as much as I wanted before the city guys came with the wood chipper.  There will be some heat straightening involved and small knots to deal with    
The bottom 4 billets are apple and the rest is buckthorn.  I strapped (duct taped   :rolleyes: ) the one stave down 'cuz it has 3 1/2'' of natural reflex and I"m hoping not to gain any more.  Still have to debark the deflexed half of it and see if I can steam some reflex into the outer limbs.  I've never worked with either wood, but have heard good things about them.  Hope to post a finished bow some months from now.  Or have a good campfire.

Buckthorn heartwood has a nice color to it.  I have a couple of short, thick pieces that I hope use in risers.

 

 

[mikkekeswick]

Great haul!  
The only thing i'd say is that they both love to check deeply! Seal 'em up straight away or else they might split themselves into smaller staves!!

[scrub-buster]

Good job saving some bow wood.  Buckthorn make a beautiful bow.  I have a couple of pieces but I haven't worked it yet.

[dringge]

My daughter lives in northern Minnesota. They have been trying to rid their property of buckthorn. I had no idea.

[takefive]

It's an invasive species here in Wisconsin, too, dringge.  But it's supposed to be fine bow wood.  I've seen some nice bows made from it on the Primitive Archer forum.

[dringge]

I know I could get some from my daughter. How big of a trunk would I need to get? How long? How big around? How straight?

[takefive]

You could go as small as a 2" or 3" diameter sapling to as big as you want to mess with.  The pieces I got were from a little over 2" to 4 1/2" in diameter.  I think the only drawback to a sapling is the higher crown on what will be the back of the bow.  Can't beat a reasonably straight, 6 foot long stave that isn't twisted or has a lot of knots in it.  Some natural reflex is nice, too.
I don't have my own trees to cut.  Maybe some of the guys on here that do will weigh in.

[dringge]

Thanks. Ill be up north this summer. Ill see about getting some.

[takefive]

Hope you have good luck with it.  My buckthorn is slowly drying in the basement.  Probably going to be a few months before I can work with it.  I'm already getting impatient.  

[ty_in_ND]

Dringge, in what part of Northern Minnesota is your daughter (without getting too specific)?  We don't have much in the way of bow-making trees in the Red River Valley area, so if it's not too far east, it would be fun to make a day trip and try to find some buckthorn to harvest.

Before I do try to find some, I saw the Minnesota DNR website says it's illegal to import, sell, or transport buckthorn in the state.  I'm not sure if they're just referring to live plants or any part of the tree.  I'll check in on Monday and post the answer here, as I wouldn't want to get on their bad side.

[dringge]

ty_in_ND, My daughter lives in Duluth. Her husband is from ND and travels to Grand Forks for work quite often.
Let me know what you find out about transporting buckthorn. I wouldnt want to get us in trouble.