??????????????Question about Juniper as bow wood ?????????????????

[frankg]

I've been peeling a bunch of limbs from my Juniper trees and most have little tunnels running just under the bark from those borer worms . My question is , can I safely remove a couple growth rings and still have a bow left ? Can I then back with linen and be ok ?
Those little bugs are hungry lil devils !

[SA]

i have never worked juniper , i tried erc once and failed it seems pretty touchy . i think in that case i might decrown it and back it with something like bamboo. surly someone here has some experience with juniper  or cedar that might chime in.....

[stickbender]

     Pm juniper junkie !  He will answer all your questions.

                                       Wayne

[mikekeswick]

If you can get hold of some sinew - you'll have one of the most elastic combinations out there. If you are going to back it with sinew then yes just cut through the rings on the back to get rid of the bug damage.

[IndianGuy]

There is a guy here named lofflerchuck ( hope I spelled right) that makes bows from juniper and sinew and makes really fine ones. Im sure he would help you with any questions on this project. He sure has that combo down!

Eric

[loefflerchuck]

Thanks Eric.  I back almost everything with sinew and juniper is one of the best woods for that. Cedar bugs live in the bark of juniper. They do not harm the tree until the tree dies, then they go to work on the wood. When you cut juniper it is a good idea to strip the bark to solve this problem. Make sure to seal the ends and the knots so you don't get splits. I have fornd around here Utah juniper has more bark betels than rocky mt juniper. Some juniper will make a nice self bow but most of the time the bow will break after a couple hundred shots. Sinew is the best backing, but rawhide and anything else to help relieve tension on the back works as well. I don't decrown the wood. If I have to remove some of the sapwood I bring it all uniform.
 Good luck. I will post a short sinew and juniper so you get an idea of what is possible.
Chuck

[frankg]

Thanks Chuck ! I guess Ill get my saw out and go limb shopping for fresh green limbs ! Lots of them around ! Bet the bark comes off easier when fresh too !
 I have some homespun Deer rawhide , so Ill try it this winter . And hopefully Ill have at least another green hide and some sinew  in a few weeks Im laying in projects for fall and winter .