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Offline Zion

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Today's harvest
« on: April 13, 2013, 07:40:05 pm »
I only have about 3 halfway decent pieces of OS left so today i went and got more. There's so much of it out there that i just skimmed the area, i coulda gotten probably 300 more lol. I also got like 14 arrow shafts. The staves i got weren't all the biggest i've seen but i made sure to get them of a size that'll work. Total haul: 18 OS and 1 Serviceberry  O:)
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Offline bow101

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Re: Today's harvest
« Reply #1 on: April 13, 2013, 07:47:02 pm »
That OS looks great.  I have a source but the biggest pieces are no where near what you have.  But there is an endless supply of Hawthorn.  Funny thing I was draw-knifing an OS sapling today.  It's been sitting since Feb.25th.........I floor tillered it for now and have it wrapped in poly for some slow drying inside the house..... ::)   
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Offline osage outlaw

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Re: Today's harvest
« Reply #2 on: April 13, 2013, 08:29:09 pm »
Nice haul.  Now let those bad boys season for a while.
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Offline Zion

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Re: Today's harvest
« Reply #3 on: April 13, 2013, 08:33:37 pm »
Yeah for years i searched for big OS and could only find small ones. Now i can find an endless amount of it all so i guess i'm pretty lucky. Lol yeah the seasoning is the most painful experience for me. Not so much the checking but the time it it takes lol. I guess that's what ya get for wood this dense!!  :o
Lol these are the only plants that force me to let them dry long  :'(
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Offline dmenzies1950

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Re: Today's harvest
« Reply #4 on: April 13, 2013, 10:45:31 pm »
Nice haul Zion! I can't really tell how big those bad boys are. Could you hold one up so we can get some perspective? Anyway you got some fun times ahead with those.
 Last week when we were over there looking at land, I cut a couple small ones myself!
                Dale
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"His bow remained steady, his strong arms stayed limber, because of the hand of the Mighty One, the Shepherd, the Rock of Israel." Genesis 49:24

Offline Zion

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Re: Today's harvest
« Reply #5 on: April 13, 2013, 11:16:29 pm »
Dale they all range in size quite a bit but most are around 1" to 2" in diameter. Their lengths are all different, i doubt any are less than 52" tho, and that's all ya really need for a bow lol.

Not trying to be intrusive, but are you guys looking to move up here? Crazy how much bow wood is around.
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Offline lesken2011

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Re: Today's harvest
« Reply #6 on: April 14, 2013, 12:06:05 am »
Nice haul, Zion!
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Offline dmenzies1950

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Re: Today's harvest
« Reply #7 on: April 14, 2013, 01:38:06 am »
Zion, 2 inches is a big OS in my limited experience with them!
My wife and I have been looking for some land up in the hills to build a hunting cabin, and a quiet place to get away from the rat race here on the west side of the mountains. We located some real nice 20 acre properties we just have to decide which one will suit us best.

Anyway, that is a nice haul of OS. We will expect you to show us some awesome bows in a few months!             
                          Keep em coming! Dale
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"His bow remained steady, his strong arms stayed limber, because of the hand of the Mighty One, the Shepherd, the Rock of Israel." Genesis 49:24

Offline randman

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Re: Today's harvest
« Reply #8 on: April 14, 2013, 03:04:41 am »
Nice haul Zion. That's the gamble (dilemma?) with OS - how many are going to make it through the seasoning process without splitting where you don't want it to. You can split them and keep that from happening (and decrease the drying time) but then you're stuck with the flat bow design and if you leave the handle area full round it might split there even if you take steps to avoid it (seal the handle - wrap it with plastic or whatever). The smaller stuff seasons more successfully without splitting. I was messing with a 3/4" dia. x 48" piece today that seasoned without splitting anywhere. I was reading a post about full round section African bows that are evenly tapered to a point and made out of the densest woods so I did that to this piece. Full round in the center and round section all the way down the taper. It's ready for low brace and feels very strong with a beautiful bend to it. I would be surprised if it doesn't make 45 lbs at a 22-24" draw (especially with a little heat treating). It weighs 11 1/2 oz. Anyone familiar with the mass formula that can figure out what weight I can expect from that mass (I can't figure that thing out but I'll take you mass formula guy's word for it).
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Offline Zion

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Re: Today's harvest
« Reply #9 on: April 14, 2013, 04:09:24 am »

That's cool Dale, yea lots of free space around here. As for the staves all i have left to do for a while is seal em up and play the good ol waiting game  ::)

Last time i tried making a fully rounded bow it didn't seem like it knew where to bend and twisted. Maybe it was just that and the weight (it was decently heavy.) To compromise I flattened the belly and since it was long i was able to pike it 4 inches and keep most of the  weight. I would split all my OS if it were big enough but with most of these pieces i got i don't think i could get much weight out of them. Maybe if one was split and then heavily heat treated and reflexed....
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The secret of life is learning to make your own luck.
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