Bow Woods Getting Dark!

[LoweBow]

Many woods get darker over time...unlike your hair color.  Maybe once your head is all gray it'll start to darken like your TT riser...  

[KentuckyTJ]

Mike, I need to find a new Best Bud. Taking application starting tomorrow.

[Steve O]

THAT  was funny LoweBow    

Many, many woods darken with age.  Cocobolo is nutorious.  I have had some that started canary yellow and orange that is now a deep dark red.

Those exquisite Snakewood bows are going to be pretty plain jane years down the road...

[KentuckyTJ]

That's not funny Steve. What's funny is Mike is 6'-4" and wears a size 8.5 shoe. He claims "It's a Myth" but when asked to prove it he always stares at the ground and kicks the gravel.

[Steve O]

Nope, I don't think I could cut it in that circle...you guys must be close as brothers    

[Bowwild]

I can tell the darkening of the bocote stripe but that's all.  I have some bocote limbs, especially on one bow that I hope do darken over time. For sure I had a High Sierra that had an osage limb face that darkened over time.

[KentuckyTJ]

Here is a closeup of the Bocote stripe that was under the old larger shelf material. As I say I changed this just the other day.

 

[ishoot4thrills]

Still, that's a fine looking bow Tom. I'm like you though, at least when it comes to osage. I love that bright yellow wood when it's freshly cut. I like it much better than the dark orange that it takes on with age.

[ishoot4thrills]

Before:

 

After awhile:

 

[KentuckyTJ]

Yeah big difference Doug. The grey action or dymondwood whatever it is doesn't seem to be as affected. Thanks for posting?

[papawoody]

Changed the grip on my Big River tulip wood long bow and the bow is lighter in color then under the rest.

[Jim Wright]

It is well known that Osage darkens greatly with exposure over time and I can assure you from my own experience with a couple of bows with Yew veneers that it darkens notceably and beautifully. The same has occured with a Honduran Rosewood risered t.d. recurve I have , it must occur somewhat commonly.

[Bigriver]

Some woods darken with age, some fade. Bacote , osage, cherry, all get darker. Some finishes have uv protection, typically exterior varnishes. Problem is they tend to yellow/amber over time. Typically interior catalyzed finishes dont yellow as much, but if light gets through, they  will change over time. The finish is clear after all. We deal with this all the time in our wood finishing on homes.

You want the wood to stay the same over time, paint it black