Author Topic: Help with identifying wood - possible stave?  (Read 1156 times)

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Offline doggonemess

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Help with identifying wood - possible stave?
« on: March 27, 2012, 12:51:38 pm »
Greetings everyone, I'd like some help from some tree people here.

I have a small tree in my yard that used to be about 25 - 30 feet tall. It dropped these awful reddish berries all over my deck all the time, so we had it cut down. Years later, the blasted thing grew back out of the stump. We were trimming it so it would be bush like, but it keeps getting bigger. The other day, I hacked off two of the major trunks and left one as it doesn't look too bad now.

I'm trying to figure out what this is. From my research, it seems like it might be Serviceberry, but I'm not remotely sure. Take a look at the images, tell me what you think. I also have pics of the trunk pieces I saved. They look like they could be made into decent bow shapes, but I want to make sure it's worth doing.









Thanks!
"We've all heard that a million monkeys banging on a million typewriters will eventually reproduce the entire works of Shakespeare. Now, thanks to the Internet, we know this is not true." - Robert Wilensky

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Offline Bevan R.

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Re: Help with identifying wood - possible stave?
« Reply #1 on: March 27, 2012, 01:12:34 pm »
looks like the chokecherry around hear.
Bowmakers are a little bent, but knappers are just plain flaky.

Offline PEARL DRUMS

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Re: Help with identifying wood - possible stave?
« Reply #2 on: March 27, 2012, 01:16:43 pm »
Looks like firewood to me. I wouldnt mess with those branches. There are so many knots, twists and turns it would be very hard to get a bow from either chunk.
Only when the last tree has died and the last river has been poisoned and the last fish has been caught will we realize we cannot eat money.

Offline doggonemess

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Re: Help with identifying wood - possible stave?
« Reply #3 on: March 27, 2012, 01:18:38 pm »
Chokecherry - that's what my neighbor told me years ago, and I just couldn't remember what she said. I just looked it up, and it's hard to tell what the difference between the two is. Although, according to this forum, it's also a good bow wood. Thanks!

Regarding the shape - I don't know - I may be able to still make something interesting. Maybe a Dr. Seuss bow.
"We've all heard that a million monkeys banging on a million typewriters will eventually reproduce the entire works of Shakespeare. Now, thanks to the Internet, we know this is not true." - Robert Wilensky

Great minds discuss ideas, average minds discuss events, small minds discuss people.

Offline Dauntless

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Re: Help with identifying wood - possible stave?
« Reply #4 on: March 27, 2012, 02:39:28 pm »
If the berries were red that is a pin cherry, if they were purple to black it's a chokecherry.  Either way those staves don't look too promising for a bow.  The wood is lovely though, makes great spoons, overlays, knife scales, etc.
The starving grad student with too many hobbies.

Offline doggonemess

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Re: Help with identifying wood - possible stave?
« Reply #5 on: March 27, 2012, 03:24:27 pm »
Looks like you guys are probably right - the bark looks exactly like online examples of Chokecherry. I might scrape the things down and see if I can do something cool with the wood, even if it isn't going to make a good bow. It might be nice for some carvings. Thanks again!
"We've all heard that a million monkeys banging on a million typewriters will eventually reproduce the entire works of Shakespeare. Now, thanks to the Internet, we know this is not true." - Robert Wilensky

Great minds discuss ideas, average minds discuss events, small minds discuss people.

Offline Bryce

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Re: Help with identifying wood - possible stave?
« Reply #6 on: March 27, 2012, 03:35:10 pm »
Chokecherry. Makes a good bow.
Clatskanie, Oregon