My first osage stave! ... It is finished!!...

[Echatham]

I wanted to get a look at the anatomy of a pin knot, so when i cut off the extra off the end, i cut right through the middle of one. i can see now that i don't need to leave a massive lump of wood over the thing.
 

[Echatham]

i think this is what im going to do with the handle. the knot is there. can't do much about it so i might as well use it. laying it out this way will bring it closer to center... and i like the character. IF ANYONE WHO KNOWS MORE THAN ME ABOUT SELFBOWS (most of you will qualify) THINK THIS IS NOT A GOOD WAY TO DO IT... WARN ME SOON! Im in the mood for wood removal! by the way the lines i have drawn are 1" wide at the handle.. thats 4" long, the center being the "C"  and then out to 1.5" at the fades. and im going to cut way outside the lines for now.
 

[Echatham]

and here aere some pictures of the out line. everything is following the grain.  and its a pretty steady taper from 1.5" at the fades to 1/2" at the tips.... 72" tip to tip on my outline... but i will probably decide on something in the neighborhood of 68" ntn.
 

 

 

[Echatham]

cut some excess wood off well outside the lines and started chasing the next ring. quit at 0330 this morning when my fingers started cramping up. got about 2/3 of the way down the stave though.  i love osage. it just feels like it wants to be a bow.
 

[Zradix]

dang!
Just drawing the shape out on that would've had me stumped Eric.

How you guys can look at a wavy piece of wood like that and visualize a bow is amazing to me.

Even if i could somehow see the bow in it like you've drawn, figuring out how I'm going to straighten it and "make it happen" is so beyond me it's actually funny.

All I can do is wish you luck and wisdom while you work buddy.

   

[Echatham]

step by step that's all. doesnt take any creativity to lay it out. just draw a line down the middle of the stave following the grain and every thing is measured off of that.

[Echatham]

shouldnt have to do much straightening.... the tips line up with the handle so it should be pretty good. i think i am going to flip the tips though.

[Echatham]

what of my dimensions? 1.5" down to a half inch good for the limbs? I just want to stick with a proven design as this is my first one.

[John Scifres]

I'm not crazy about that handle layout. I try to make my handle straight and lined up so the string bisects its length.  This keeps torque down.  I also do not narrow the handle until I get it tillered.  If it were me, I would scoot my layout away from the knot.  It looks like you have room.

[Echatham]

I do have some room, will have to look at that. is it ok if the handle doesnt "exactly" follow the grain?  I can move the whole layout over away from the knot a good quarter of an inch, but the grain still curves around it. this isn't going to be a bend in the handle bow... so i guess its probably going to be ok if i don't really follow the grain right there.

[John Scifres]

Since the handle will not be bending you can lay it out how ever you'd like, within reason of course.

[Echatham]

when i get a chance to get to it again, im going to finish chasing the ring, then i will redraw a new layout and post a pic to see what you thinks. Thank you for your advice... much needed and appreciated.

[Echatham]

i devised a nifty method of quickly removing wood around a knot.  sharpened a flat tip screwdriver with a file and just kinda slowly and in a controlled... two handed method, just chisel it toward the knot. you can really feel the difference in the early and latewood, when you get close to the bottom of the early wood it really gets crunchy... same as with the draw knife. if there are any soon to be first timers reading this, do yourself a favor and practice on a ring above the one you want with a draw knife, if you are like me you will have to be alot more aggressive with it than feels right. get the feel of the wood. you can feel it better than you can see it.  anyway.... heres some pics

 

 

 

 

the last one is all cleaned up with my favorite tool in the world... a gooseneck scraper.

[Echatham]

and here she is, all cleaned up. no more ring chasing!  anyway, i got about an hour before my wife comes home, so i have to go catch up on the honey do list     really really fast... or im going to be in big trouble.  later tonight after everyone is sleeping i will sneak back down and draw out a new layout to run by you guys!        Thanks for watching!

 

[Zradix]

that's pretty cool man.

[John Scifres]

Very nicely done.  I have a couple little wood carving chisels that do about the same.  Eric Krewson had a nice little tool he fashioned from a flat nail that was also really cool although it had more of a hook design if I remember right.  It's coming along very nicely.  Makes me wanna chase a ring.

[Echatham]

Thanks John! I was going about it way to timidly the first time. once i realized i had to chase another ring i went ahead and attacked what i had left with the draw knife, just to see how close i could get to the first ring without punching through. made me alot more confident to go faster. the late wood is so much harder that tools really don't want to cut into it.

[Roy from Pa]

I guess it's ok..  

[Echatham]

Pipe down Roy. You aren't a stave expert remember! Just sit back and watch. ya might learn somethin!
   

[Steve Kendrot]

So are you an uphill chaser, or downhill chaser? I found that pulling towards the ring/s you are removing rather than towards the ring you are revealing was a lot easier to control and protect the target ring from inadvertent digs.