Good day splitting osage

[richpierce]

A friend with a bad shoulder had 4 osage logs, each about 1' in diameter, and his wedges stuck in one of them.  3 of us went over and spent half the afternoon splitting them up.  We got about 30 staves that could be used for sure, another half dozen that are pretty twisty.  I got my first piggyback splits to work well, getting 3 staves that way from the best quarters.

I am working on 3 staves for working on first.  I am removing most of the sapwood, the heartwood, fresh cutting the ends and applying glue to them.  It's rainy and cold here in Missouri- should I leave them outside or bring them into the basement (60 degrees)?  I don't have an unheated building (no garage etc).

One of the logs was old, had the bark off and the wood seems somewhat seasoned.  Any chance of getting a bow built from one of those staves if I get it down close to bow size soon?

[Pappy]

Be sure if you take the sap wood off to seal the back also or it could check.The one with the bark off will need to be worked down to a ring but then will still need to be seasoned several Month's
after that.How long has it been cut?I usually wait at least a year and longer if I can.
   Pappy

[richpierce]

Thanks, Pappy.  One log was down quite a while, the bark was off it and it had some surface checking.  The others were all cut in the spring, I think.  All of them had natural splits in them from checking and we just followed them at first.

I'll go ahead and seal the backs also where I took most of the sapwood off.  I guess paint, glue or polyurethane, all about the same for sealing?  Wax not good enough?

[Pappy]

I use wood glue or Polly.You really need to get all the sap wood off if possible.It will start checking quicker than the heart wood and go down into the heart wood.Usually if I start taking the bark and sap wood off I try and at least get it down to all yellow wood before I quit.
   Pappy

[richpierce]

Will do, thanks for the advice.  The piggyback staves are already down to yellow, so to speak!  This was my first success with piggyback staves.  I am going to make some wedges especially for this purpose.  I might even make a gently curved one forged from a large masonry chisel.  I have a good swage block with various curves and forging one to arc like a 4-6" radius might be helpful.

[tom sawyer]

I think I'd leave the wood outside for a few weeks before bringing it in a heated area.  This time of year the low humidity and warm conditions might make it dry too rapidly.  Try and cover it up and put it up off the ground (on 2x4s or something), its supposed to snow in a day or two.  I usually use shellac to seal ends and back.  I have some fresh splits in the driveway, probably won't get around to removing bark for a week or two.  We had seven wedges in this log before it busted open.  I'm glad we were just doing the one.

Your one older log is probably still fairly wet in the inside.  Still, if you want to work on something, getting a blank to near dimensions and stored in a warm low RH place for a month will give you something to work with.  If the wood is really clogging your rasp, it si probably a bit wet.  Every time you work it, you'll expose new wet wood.  So go kind of slow and don't over-work the bow right after a good rasping session, even though you'll want to see what you did.

[Auggie]

Hey rich,any day its not over 80 its a good day for splitting in my book! I have a buddy who made me some wedges from the ends of leafsprings,a little bit of curve and already tapered on the end.They work really good for getting things going,and for pigs too. Auggie.

[Justin Snyder]

Hey rich,any day its not over 80 its a good day for splitting in my book!  Auggie.

WHAT!!! Any day is a good day for splitting osage.  I like to go out when it is about 100*.  Nothing like a good hard sweat to cleanse the body.  BTW if it gets to hot for you to split any next year, just send it to me and I will take care of it.  Justin

[Sidewinder]

Good for you on your find. I love to split Osage  and begin to dream about what each bow will look like once its been released from its chrysllis, besides I like using a sledge and a wedge so long as I don't have to do it for a living. Danny

[Squirrelslayer]

Hey evdryone who has posted on this thread.  Found the info here really helpful for when I split my maple tomorrow.  SS