candy cane grain

[WolfPupTee]

Alright I want to apologize ahead of time for any format issues that may be in this post. I only have internet access from my phone now. Anyway I cut down a small tree about two inches in diameter. Debarked it and started shaping it before I set it someplace to season. But as I'm hacking into this thing I'm seeing that the grain is really spirally, like the lines of a candy cane. My instincts tell me to stop shaping it and get a new piece of wood. What I want to know is did I miss some kind of indicator that the grain would be spirally before I cut it? Because I would really like for that to not happen again.

[Matt S.]

The bark will usually give you a clue as to the grain of the wood underneath, but sometimes, especially with smooth bark from saplings, it can be difficult to tell.

[WolfPupTee]

One thing about this sapling tree though, its rough adult bark was formed already and the bark was straight. Maybe that in itself should have been a warning sign.   

[JW_Halverson]

I've tried sapling bows from the hornbeam around here, but it will invariably have 360-720 degrees of twist in a 7" sapling!  And just like you saw, the grain looked fine! 

For all my best efforts I shoulda just made walking sticks out of them!  Maybe you will have better results than I did, the frustration alone made me want to take up a aluminum limbed, 12 speed, disc braked, 8 cylinder, blown-hemi compound bow!

[UserNameTaken]

With some trees you can't really tell until you split them--unless you've got the Jedi skills. Vine maple is that way.

[WolfPupTee]

Well that explains alot because I do believe that these trees are vine maple and there are sooo many of them. Maybe I will luck up when i split this other one tomorrow.

[mikekeswick]

Look at the bark not from a distance but get your ear against the tree so your eye can look directly along it.
Sometimes it's tricky!

[UserNameTaken]

I just posted a thread not even a week ago about the implications of twisted wood. The consensus seems to be that there's nothing wrong with a twisty bow. They're just really difficult to tiller. I'm also told that you can straighten them out, if you've got a surplus of patience.

[zenmonkeyman]

My last (and best so far) bow had at least 180 degrees of twist in the lower limb.  I figured, meh. Wouldn't be my first failed bow.  So I roughed it out green, left it to dry.  That's when I found out that (at least with serviceberry) the twist actually WORSENS while drying.  Oh well, I cranked on the tip while applying heat, and improved the situation (at least at the tip). Tillered it out as much as I dared (probably 25" or so) and backed with rawhide.  I'm pretty sure the rawhide is key to this working. Plus; I'm pretty sure the high crown helps lots, too, because at the bow's edges the bending stesses are close to parallel the twisted fibres rather than in a shearing plane.  I'm expressing the concept badly, but I hope you understand what I mean.  Anyways, long story short, the bow is 59 1/4" long, sweetly draws 28", I've put hundreds of arrows past her gopher-furred pass, and even kilt a b'ar with er.