Ocean Spray

[UserNameTaken]

I was out mushroom hunting the other day and I found this really unusual piece of ocean spray. Didn't really know what it was at the time, but it sure looked like good bow wood to me. It's straight as an arrow, and there are no branches on it--just some lumps and bumps. This thing is SOLID. Lots of potential for power in a very small package.

Length: 5' 10 inches, after I remove the ends which are expected to check.
Base: 1 1/4 inch diameter
Tip: 3/4 inch diameter
Center: 1 inch diameter

This thing looks like a real gem to me, and I don't really want to mess it up. So, I'm asking the more experienced folk here: What the heck do I do with this thing? I saw somebody do a plum branch bow a while back that came out really nice. They left the handle section in the round and then tillered out from there. I sort of like that design, but I don't know how you can be sure what the grain is doing without splitting it in half. That also would give you a non working handle, right? A working handle would probably be better...

I'm eagerly awaiting your suggestions.

[Badger]

  ocean spray is some strong stuff, if you have a 28" draw I would leave the handle round and just tiller it out flat bow style around 66" long give or take a couple of inches either way. I had a 48" piece drawing around 54# at 28" with a stiff handle. Great wood.

[UserNameTaken]

Badger, so do you just use a rasp to tiller it out and hope that the grain isn't all funky? Or, I suppose I could also maybe use a draw knife and try to split out from the handle to see what the grain is up to. I don't know how branch bows with round handles are usually done. What little experience I have came from split logs.

Also, this is green wood. Any idea how long it's going to take this thing to dry out? I've heard that plum takes a really long time, and this seems to be a lot like plum. It is a really small branch though. Might be able to dry it pretty quick.

[Buckeye Guy]

Welcome to PA
Guy

[UserNameTaken]

Hey, Thanks Guy.

[MWirwicki]

What is Ocean Spray?  Never heard of it.  Where do you find it?

[UserNameTaken]

Ocean spray is just a bush with super dense branches. If you do a search for ocean spray plant on google images, a bunch of pictures will pop up. Wouldn't look out of place in the backyard. I've heard that it makes great arrow shafts also.

[randman]

Be sure and seal the ends and keep it in a place where it will dry real slow. I don't have much experience with it but after discovering what it is, I have been collecting it like crazy! I just did what I read in other posts around here and am keeping an eye on it for splits and checks. I had one which started to split (fortunately on the belly side) so I roughed it out to floor tillered stage (basically down to the pith) and sealed it with shellac and that stopped any further splitting (so far - 1 month). Another had part of it split off in the harvesting process so I roughed it out also - sealed - and it looks pretty good so far (1 week). The stave still weighs 4 lbs though!  Most of the consensus about ocean spray was that it wasn't very big - needed to be glued from smaller billets to get a longer bow but I have had good luck finding Big stuff. And I have a whole bunch of thumb size stuff that is real tough and springy. I am amazed at how springy this stuff is even soaking wet.
UserNT- that stave you have sounds like a Big Boy. I have one that is 76" x 1 3/4" dia that is truly war bow material. I have sealed the ends and left it whole and keeping it outside so it won't dry too fast. I'm keepin an eye on it hoping it won't split but if it does, I will just rough it out also. It seems to split on one side down to the pith (like in a handle area left thick) because it dries so fast. This is from my limited 2 months experience collecting it. It's almost as plentiful as Scotch Broom around here (another amazing springy wood I'm having a lot of fun with). I love free materials

UserNT - are you on the east side of the Cascades or the west? That might determine how you choose to season the sticks that you have. You gotta be in the NW to be even talkin about finding Ocean Spray while mushroom pickin.

[UserNameTaken]

Rand, I'm on the West side of the Cascades (Vancouver, WA).

Yeah, I couldn't believe how strong this stuff is. How are you roughing it out? I don't know if I should split the thing in half or just rasp it into shape and hope that the grain isn't all gnarly. I did seal the ends immediately after cutting it; so far, there's no checking.

What's scotch broom like?

[aaron]

UNT- welcome to the forum!
the hardest thing with ocean spray is avoiding checks- those are drying cracks. these cracks usually start at the ends and tend to go as eep as the center pith. I have not yet figured the best way to dry ocean spray but here are two options-1.  seal ends and dry slowly starting in an unheated garage, and moving inside after a few months.
2. as someone else said, take it down to about half with a rasp, leaving the handle area thicker. seal the whole thing and dry slowly the handle will split down to the pith and (hopefully) stop there. It might dry faster this way.

with either method, lash it to a 2x4 with some bungees to control warping while drying.

perhaps cut a few and try several methods at once.

hopefully elk tracker will chime in- he and i have harvested a bunch of this stuff.
I have a few similar staves dry with checks, and this winter i will make some branch bows out of them .

[aaron]

also, don't worry about "what the grain is doing" it'll be fine- just leave the bark on the back for now.
and drying time- it's hard to say... a year would be plenty, if split in half, 6 months might do it.
That's why I like vine maple- dries faster with little checking. i don't even seal the ends.
so, grab yer saw, go get a few more OS and a VM or two. dry the vm quick and the os slow.
Ideally, peel the vm bark immediately , but don't seal the ends. lash the vm to a 2x4 and dry in an unheated garage 2 weeks. then move inside (cool place) 3 weeks, then put it somewhere warmer and drier for 2 weeks and it should be ready. this is for a sapling stave- try for one like your OS. be very careful of the back- do not cut or ding the outer growth ring. I use a wood or bone knife to get the bark off.

[UserNameTaken]

Thanks Aaron. Vine maple is what I've been working with almost exclusively for the past year. Seems to be really forgiving, but I have yet to find a piece where the bark isn't crusty and stuck like glue--regardless of what time of year I cut it. I even tried leaving the staves in a hot shower, but that didn't accomplish anything. I stripped the bark off of one yesterday that wasn't too bad, but it still didn't peel like a lot of other trees that I've debarked, and between the bark and trying to get my strings to align with the center, my experience with VM has been a lot like work. I've gotten really good at bending wood, but I'd like to start out with a remotely straight stave for a change.

[Badger]

       If you rough the stave out into a bow and lash it down it will split in the handle and fade area most likely, just wrap that area or the entire stave in plastic wrap with a few small slits in the plastic so it can slow dry. The plastic does a good job keeping the moisture in and releasing it slowly.

[UserNameTaken]

I wonder if cutting ocean spray in the winter would help with the splitting problem. Don't trees/bushes tend to be dryer in the winter?

[danlaw]

I find the best way to keep OS from checking is to keep the bark on, rough in the stave, then wrap the entire stave in painter's tape. leave it for a few months and you're good to go. I've done plastic wrap too, and find it works, but if there is even the slightest gap or rip, you could get a nasty check. After roughing in the stave, a little slice down belly of the handle ensures that when it does check (as it must if the stave is still a full branch at the handle), it checks where you want it to.
For a quick job I simply run the tape down the belly when I am finished for the day, then take it off when I want to work on it again. Any defect in exposed bark will turn into a check in the wood underneath though. I've also duct taped a wrapped stave to a 2x4 (to recurve it). That worked great too.