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Author Topic: Preferred White Wood - Hackberry or Mulberry?  (Read 8916 times)

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Offline Lee Slikkers

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Preferred White Wood - Hackberry or Mulberry?
« on: July 29, 2012, 05:59:15 pm »
Just curious what folks think who have worked both...I am relocating south of my current location by about 60 miles and the area I am settling in has tons of decent Mulberry and Hackberry.

Thanks!
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~ Lee

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"The last word in ignorance is the man who says of an animal or plant: 'What good is it?"
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Offline crooketarrow

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Re: Preferred White Wood - Hackberry or Mulberry?
« Reply #1 on: July 29, 2012, 06:08:41 pm »
  I like mallberrie best but It might because I've built way more mallberries. But my hackberrie bows came out good also.
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Offline Pat B

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Re: Preferred White Wood - Hackberry or Mulberry?
« Reply #2 on: July 29, 2012, 06:29:03 pm »
Both make very good bows. The hackberry is a whitewood but the mulberry wouldn't necessarily be considered whitewood. You can build a bow from what is under the bark but your best bow from mulberry will come from all heartwood. Treat it like osage but make it 10% bigger all around.
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Offline toomanyknots

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Re: Preferred White Wood - Hackberry or Mulberry?
« Reply #3 on: July 29, 2012, 06:53:21 pm »
Besides osage (and lowes red oak boards) those are the main two woods I make bows out of. Like pat said mulberry ain't really a white wood, but can be treated like one when making a bow if ya want. Although it does tend to have alot of pin knots, that sometimes give me trouble. Wheres as a hackberry tree doesn't even know the meaning of the word knot. Hackberry is about the most dependable wood for making bows you can find I would think in terms of consistency from tree to tree, most are all straight with few limbs till the top of the tree with no knots. If I could only have one it would be hackberry. If I was going to make a sinew backed bow though, mulberry seems to be good at that.
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Offline coaster500

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Re: Preferred White Wood - Hackberry or Mulberry?
« Reply #4 on: July 29, 2012, 09:53:39 pm »
I've used both ...  Hackberry is the move forgiving of the two I think and very light weight and easy to work..  The Mulberry I used was very much like Osage and much harder wood than Hackberry. My shoulders LooooVeeeee Hackberry :)
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Offline vinemaplebows

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Re: Preferred White Wood - Hackberry or Mulberry?
« Reply #5 on: July 29, 2012, 11:10:59 pm »
Thought Mulberry was a cousin to osage?
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Offline Hrothgar

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Re: Preferred White Wood - Hackberry or Mulberry?
« Reply #6 on: July 29, 2012, 11:17:01 pm »
Tough choice. I enjoy working with mulberry since its coarse and straight grained. Hackberry, like elm is often inter-locking making it harder to split and work. Hackberry is durable and light but also has a higher degree of shrinkage. Both make great bows.
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Offline Lee Slikkers

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Re: Preferred White Wood - Hackberry or Mulberry?
« Reply #7 on: July 29, 2012, 11:23:37 pm »
Wow, thanks for all the great input on the topic Gents!  I did recall that Mulberry wasn't a true whitewood shortly after I hit the post button but alas...it was sent.

Being that I have a ton of Osage and Mulberry is a cousin I think maybe I'll give the Hack a shot since I've heard lots of positive things from other threads and it seems to have a pretty good endorsement from most of you.  Or maybe I'll find a smaller diameter tree of each and try them both...what I did find on my walk on some property I can harvest trees from is a huge old (for MI) Yew with very large diameter branches that are clear of twigs and small branches.  There are at least 5 maybe 6 bueno limbs that kind of got me drooling at the sight of them  >:D
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~ Lee

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"The last word in ignorance is the man who says of an animal or plant: 'What good is it?"
— Aldo Leopold
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Offline TRACY

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Re: Preferred White Wood - Hackberry or Mulberry?
« Reply #8 on: July 29, 2012, 11:57:04 pm »
Hackberry, because I just started one. I like mulberry, over build like pat said. I think it was one of the Thompson brothers (Maurice) that swore by mulberry as the best. If just whitewoods, bitternut hickory. Use what you got access to ;)

Tracy
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Offline Lee Slikkers

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Re: Preferred White Wood - Hackberry or Mulberry?
« Reply #9 on: July 30, 2012, 09:51:50 am »
Thanks Tracy, I like the use what ya got BUT we do have access to a variety of nice wood in the area.  Just need to jump in and try some of the stuff that is new to me.
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~ Lee

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"The last word in ignorance is the man who says of an animal or plant: 'What good is it?"
— Aldo Leopold
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Offline tom sawyer

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Re: Preferred White Wood - Hackberry or Mulberry?
« Reply #10 on: July 30, 2012, 11:58:34 am »
The little bit of mulberry I've cut and used around here, had really big growth rings and wasn't all that dense.  Looks kinda like hedge but doesn't act like it.  I suppose it'd make a fine ELB style though.  I've heard others say they have more dense mulberry so maybe I shouldn't give up on it.

Hackberry is light but makes a pretty springy flatbow.  Its a cousin of elm I believe.  It wears out faster than a hedge bow but what self-respecting bowyer wears a bow out before they make three more?
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Offline PEARL DRUMS

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Re: Preferred White Wood - Hackberry or Mulberry?
« Reply #11 on: July 30, 2012, 12:10:16 pm »
Lee I made an all sapwood mullberry that made 50#, not by much. Stick with heartwood as Pat suggested. That being said. Hackberry is twice the bow wood as far as Im concerned. Others have their own cpionions of course.
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Offline Lee Slikkers

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Re: Preferred White Wood - Hackberry or Mulberry?
« Reply #12 on: July 30, 2012, 12:17:14 pm »
Thanks PD, I think I am leaning more heavily towards the Hackberry...there are some really nice trees of it here in Berrien Springs.
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~ Lee

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"The last word in ignorance is the man who says of an animal or plant: 'What good is it?"
— Aldo Leopold
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blackhawk

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Re: Preferred White Wood - Hackberry or Mulberry?
« Reply #13 on: July 30, 2012, 12:24:53 pm »
Hack away my friend...you got plenty of better " colored" heartwood to chase rings on.  ;)
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Offline Lee Slikkers

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Re: Preferred White Wood - Hackberry or Mulberry?
« Reply #14 on: July 30, 2012, 12:34:10 pm »
Quote from: blackhawk on July 30, 2012, 12:24:53 pm
Hack away my friend...you got plenty of better " colored" heartwood to chase rings on.  ;)

 8)     >:D
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~ Lee

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
"The last word in ignorance is the man who says of an animal or plant: 'What good is it?"
— Aldo Leopold
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
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