Stripped the bark off of one stave

[razorsharptokill]

 

What are your thoughts on this piece? It has knot about 3" from one end. Both ends bend the opposite direction.

I reduced the sides and belly down some too to aid in drying. I have two coats of TBII on the back. I figured I'd practice with this stave(1st one) before moving onto better ones.

What now? The sap wood was still a little clamy.

[Pat B]

You can get that baby straight with a little heat. Looks pretty good to me.

[Dano]

Seen worse, like Pat said a little heat will straighten her.

[razorsharptokill]

How about that knot? should I leave it or lopp it off when the stave is dry?

[Pat B]

At the end of the limb like the knot will add character and should not be a threat. That is usually a non-bending portion of the limb.
   When I saw your stave it reminded me of this stave I worked on last winter.  It went from this...
 
...to this...
 
...and this...
 
...to this
 
...and this...
 

[Dano]

What was the length of that stave? If it's long enough with out the knot whack it off. As Pat said, where it's at won't be a threat.

[Osagetree]

When was this stave cut? If recently cut it may warp a little more! Clamp it down to something for a few months.....

 To eliminate checking; I once tried this and it worked for me on a greener than dry stave. I just hated messing with the boiled linseed oil.

An old bowyer told me once,,, that he always used green osage staves for his bows and would give them away each year. He'd simply make another for the next years hunt. He would work the belly and sides off the stave with a drawknife to reduce the stave and smooth the wood so it would accept the linseed oil where it was split from the log. Leaving the back of the stave alone, bark intact. He leaned them in the corner for only a few months before shaping the bow further. Then he would recoat any bare wood each time he worked on the stave and until he was shooting the bow. Finished with boiled linseed oil!

I thought about it and used it on some staves that were already fairly dry but, I was not for sure. I never got checks though! I just hated the oily rags and smell of it.

Carefull, the oily rags can spontaneously cumbust if left in the heat of your 12 x12' building!!!!!

[razorsharptokill]

The stave was cut in Sept 09. It is 66" long with the knot section. I reduced the sides and belly a little more then sealed the belly with lindseed oil.

Not sure why but a spontaneous grin comes over me once in a while while working with the draw knife. Is that normal?        

How do I lay out the limb edges? They are taking on a semi snakey look by leting the draw knife take what it wants. The center portion is still 2 1/2" wide and the tips are still 1.5" + wide.

I have an 80lb anvle on the really curved portion of one limb to "suggest" it start going the right way.

Oh, I also ordered the Dean Torges book "Hunting the Osage Bow".

[razorsharptokill]

Split another log quarter. The first one went off to the side and ended up being about 1.5" wide at one end and 3" at the other. The next one split right down the center and I got two nice staves out of this one! This is the before pic.    

And an after pic. Its the one with the bark still on.
 
It has quite a bit of twist at one end as you can see but it over 6' long and from what I've read so far, it can be heated and bent a ways. On the table you can see the otherstave with the anvil on it. So far it hasn't straightend an at all. This osage is tough stuff!

[Tom Leemans]

Jim,
Have you built a caul to straighten staves on? Well worth the time. You can leave an anvil on there for generations and the osage will just laugh at it. Some heat from a heat gun will help more than anything. A pipe wrench for a lever tied to a bucket of water or rocks or maybe even an anvil    will help get the twist out. May take several heating sessions but it works. I got a nice straight stave that twisted in opposite directions when dry. I got her straight though!
p.s whatcha got standin' in the corner there?  

[Pat B]

On the stave I posted there were probably 6 or 8 heating sessions, each with a specific goal. Some for side to side straightening, some for the hoop-tee-dos and a few just for tempering and reflexing.  This was all over about a weeks time. I like to let the wood cool completely(overnight in my unheated basement) before I tackle another section.

[shakeyslim]

doggone pat! what i would give to have that kind of skill!

[Pat B]

Slim, it is more the heat gun, clamps, form and the time to do it. Not necessarily the skill! d;^)

[razorsharptokill]

Thanks for all the help guys! That is rivercane in the corner Tom.  I haven't built a caul. Anyone have pics?

Here's this evenings work.
 

 


How much more do I need to remove from around this knot?
 

I covered it with glue and quit for the night. I'm beat!

[razorsharptokill]

Well I made it all the way to the end with the knot in it and violated the ring.
 
It tricked me into believing that this was the last of the ring I was scraping.

At this point the bow would be 57" long if I lopped it off. This was a thin ring anyway and I guess it got REALLY thin by the knot. It wasn't actually my target ring in the 1st place. That one is one more down. Should I chase it to that ring or make a kids bow out of this one by lopping it off?

Also, there are some deep checks in the belly in the handle section.
 

[Pat B]

Jim, the checks in the belly won't hurt anything. Don't worry at all about them.  The knot is in a non-working part of the limb and a grain violation there is not as critical as in the working portion of the limb.  How thick is the limb now?

[razorsharptokill]

They are still over 3/4" over all. When would be a good time to start bending the twist and sideways curve out of the limbs? Do I use a heat gun or steam?

[razorsharptokill]

TTT

[DCM]

I like to wait and do my heat work after the stave is rough shaped to just about floor tiller stage.  If I have work to do in the handle or fades, I rough shape them first.  The less wood you have to move around, the easier it is.  Generally dry heat for seasoned wood, steam for still green wood.  For big work like bending recurves, steam heat is often preferred but I think more or less because you want such a long heat soak it avoids the potential of surface damage from the heat source.

That stave looks like a good one.

[Art B]

I think it's easier to take a twist out of a limb when it's wide but not so thick. One that's thick and narrow is much more difficult IMO. Consequently, it's easier to move a limb laterally (side to side) when it's narrower and thicker.

So if you have to remove some twist you might want to consider leaving your limbs a little wider but close to your finish limb thickness. After you get that done you can reduce to your desired limb width and straighten out any side to side drift. That approach has worked well for me at least. ART