Osage first try (ding ding)

[Pat B]

When you cut the tops off of the pins you are violating rings below the outside ring. In some cases even heartwood rings. You can see yellow in the flat top.
  You can work the sapwood rings down around the pins every other ring you go down but do one at a time. Working around knots and pics can litterally make or break a bow. Seems so minute but can cause trouble later.
  I have gotten to a point where I feel pretty comfortable "hogging" sapwood off a stave and chasing a heartwood ring(on osage) but when it comes to knots and pins I take it slow and easy.

[KellyG]

Will do pin knot slow and easy just to see how far down the wabbit hole they go. The darn thing are just so good at hiding.
I will get some good pics later to day.
Thanks kelly

[don s]

i think 3rivers sells that stave press. kelly, i have used a few drawknives. some were sharp and i had one that was very dull. i left that one dull because i also read that a drawknife should be dull. sometimes the dull one worked and sometimes the sharp one worked. sometimes it was bevel up and other times it was bevel down. no two pieces of wood behave the same when a drawknife is used. even if they are the same species. that being said. the only thing you want to remember with your drawknife is do what works best on that stave at that time. just go slow. you can't put the wood back on the stave.
                                           don

[KellyG]

Thanks don,
Today I will spend some time trying to learn more about the wood. I plan on using a maker to put a circle around the pin knots. I have not had very good luck avoiding them yet. I think I am getting the feel for when I get close to the changing grain. Need to work on getting her to one grain on the back for practice I have a few to practice with until I get to the big one. Today I will be happy with getting all the sap wood off. I need to hit the PX and see what they may have to seal it. If nothing else I hope they have white glue so I can at least mix it with water. The paints over here I oil based and smells like kerosene, I don't want to use that unless I really have to.
Once I get the sap wood of I will get PICs up. I am have some camera issues. I did not do anything last night on it.
Thank,
Kelly

[KellyG]

Ok to day I put forth some work on getting sap wood removed.  I tried very hard to not remove any more wood from around the knots than I had already done. Not easy they  come out of nowhere and jump in front of the blade.
In this image is the area was testing in my room, the left is what I need to make the whole log look like when done and down to the ring I want.
 
work area, I went with two straps.
 
From my point of view
 
Most of it done (sap wood removal that is)
 
Last little bit of sap wood
 
Pin knot, and more pin knots, I used  a marker to mark them so I could try and avoid them it helped.
 
 

[KellyG]

Here it is with most of the sap wood removed it got dark and I could not see the grain so I stopped but here she is undressed. aint she purty
 
Here is the wide end or bottom as the tree grows
I have several cracks along the back but the deep ones like this almost form a line to the other end. I think I would use them to split it.
 
well what are you waiting for  HELP!
thanks
Kelly

[broketooth]

great pics kelly. way to improvise on the picnic table . lookin good so far. ruddy

[KellyG]

Thanks ruddy yours is coming along nicely.

[John Scifres]

Try to get it to split through the center of those 3 knots toward the bottom that are sorta in a line through the middle of the stave.  I would start by tracind the gran from the center of the bottom knot.  Put your hatchet head there and hit it with a sledge.  I'm guessing it will split on the left hand side and that will leave you the big side on the right for a fer sure bow.  The split on the left will probably be enough for a character bow.  It is tough to predict how it will split around those knots.  Get your fer sure stave out of it.  It would be great if you could kerf it with a circular saw smack-dab through the center.

[J. Holden]

Lookin' good!  Can't wait for the next installment.

-Jeremy    

P.S.  I'll be mailing that article tomorrow (Mon.)

[red hill]

That's cool, Kelly. Now, are you following John's thread?  Looks like you're in just the right stape to benefit best from his thread.  Keep it comin'.
Stan

[SEMO_HUNTER]

Good Job Kelly, your getting there.    

I don't seem to have the problems with pin knots that you are having? I just work my way over them until the sapwood is removed and don't really worry too much about them until I start chasing the ring I want. Then I go slow from one end to the other and it may take me 2 days to chase the ring down the entire length of the stave. While doing that.....when I get to a knot or pin knot I slowly crawl around it with my draw knife being careful not to gouge into it and rip a chunk of wood off deep into my ring. Then I come back later and scrape around them with a fillet knife.

I know it's tough working down your first one and it can be a challenge because you reach many points where you just kinda scratch your head and think to yourself, "Where do I go from here?"
It's ok though, your doing great!    

It would be nice if you had access to a skill saw or a sawzall. Then you could score the stave straight down the middle like Jon said and when you split it, it will follow that line you scored. I've done that many times.
However, I know your limited in what tools you have available so you just have to make due with what you have.
Just remember, they didn't have power tools back in the old days......at least that's what I keep telling myself.  :rolleyes:  

Keep up the good work!

[KellyG]

John split donw the 3 knots got it
Jeremy thanks for the encoragement.
Red hill yep following his and others on here thanks
Semo hunter Sawzall I did just see one of those. I will draw a line on the bake I intend to follow and put up pics. Before I cut her.
Thanks,
Kelly

[Pat B]

Kelly, old sawzall blades should make good scrapers.

[KellyG]

thanks pat B I will see if they have any old ones.

[KellyG]

Ok today I split it. I started with a Sawzall and stopped. One it was not easy or quick and two I really was not enjoying the wood. I love the saw dust; all bright yellow. It did not feel  right. I went and 2 camp axes and an old axe head. Could not find the hand sledge but my bigger camp exe would have to do.

this is where I started my sawzall. I did not got deep but scored the back about 18" from the end before stopping.
 
I did take the camp axe and the lager one and tested the first know and pounded it. It started to spilt toward the next I stopped and wend to the next before the crack reached it and could run around it. Then pounded into it until it started to crack towards the third and moved to it. After It started to split, I used the axes to connect the cracks I started with the ones on each end.
This image show one of the knots and my split.
 
Once I was satisfied I would be able to walk the cracks I started with two wedges in the center as PatB suggested. (I would have started at one end but I am trainable)  
Starting in the center.
 
Starting to open up.
 
Here the splinter that don't want to split. I put the axe/wedge on them they can decide to run into the log so I just cut them in half before they get a chance.
 
oops what is this now we have two.
 

[KellyG]

Happy camper
 
Now here is my delima, do I play with the one on the left only two of the small knots in one limb but high crown on the rings, or the one on the  right with a flater ring but  7 knots down its back.
I hope most of the knots are removed with the upper rings but  I don't know. The knots will slow me down a little.
This Pic  was before the split but after the sawzall it shows the rings though.
 
So what do yall think,

Kelly

[KellyG]

Kelly
Almost forgot. I can only find oil based Paint it is thick and smells like kerosene should I use it to seal the one I am not working on.

I was also worried about a finish (I know I aint no where near a bow, but I just can run down a pick this stuff up,) and anyway the motor SGT told me he had about 5 gallons of linseed oil, so linseed finish it will be.

Thank and proud to serve,
Kelly

[George Tsoukalas]

Kelly, on the second to the last picture way to the left those are violations. The good ring is in the middle. Here's what I do. I find the ring I want on one of the ends usually o the right. Often I can do the hog work with the drawknife. Mostly I go to the ring above and use a shave hook to scrape to the ring I wand. Then I follow the ring to the middle and then the left.  With knots I go around the top and down the left. The main tool is a curved shavehook. A curved scraper will work too; otherwise you could be violating adjacent rings because rings are rarely consistent as they dip and wind. There's info on my site. Jawge
 http://georgeandjoni.home.comcast.net/~georgeandjoni/osage.html

[Pat B]

Kelly, that paint should work for a sealant especially if you plan to remove the wood directly under it. For the ends it will definately be fine.
  I would go with the worse of the two staves to start with. If you take your time with it(like I know you will) it will teach you way more than the other will. Concentrate on making the best bow you can from it and you will be way ahead of the game when it comes to the better one.