Chasing ring on Mulberry

[rmjames]

When chasing a ring on a Mulberry or Osage stave that has pretty thick rings--3/16" to 1/4"--do you have to leave the back of the chosen ring pristine without nicking it at all or can you actually cut into it some and then scrape and sand smooth??
Put another way how much can you violate the back ring, if any at all, and still be OK?
Thanks, Rick

[JW_Halverson]

If your rings are as thick as you say, you should be able to sand out nicks and dings and still be in the safe zone.  I know I always end up with stuff that needs a little TLC before tillering and I have had one mulberry or osage stave let go on me.  And that one actually had a serious seperation between the growth rings when it failed so I think the tree had been subjected to some serious damage prior to me getting the stave. 

Doesn't mean, however, that you can go at ring chasing like a blind axe wielding mass murderer and think you just need to use a little extra sandpaper to salvage the work.  If you are concerned, just use the draw knife to remove the hard late wood and scrape the crumbly, crusty early wood with a scraper or knife blade. 

good luck

[Postman]

I've had good luck dinging thick ringed osage without any problems. Superglue up any cracks or tearouts, and you should be fine. My favorite hunting bow has a glued up tearout from a knot I ripped whie scraping.

[JW_Halverson]

You got more guts than I do, Postman!  Or maybe I am too much of a perfectionist.  I'd have to take the next ring on that bow if it was me.  That's one of the things I love about Osage and Mulberry...you can get such a beautiful finish to the wood by running down to 600 grit sandpaper and then compressing the fibers by running a glass bottle neck or steel burnisher over the wood.  It's my second favorite part of the process. 

[Pappy]

I usuall case down to the winter [crusty] ring and take it from there with a scraper,it won't hurt to nick it a little ,but you don't want to nick it anymore than you have to. I just go slow from there,less nicks is better. I with you JW if I tear out a know ,I'm going to the next ring. I try and be very careful around them. 
    Pappy