Seasoning wood

[Aussie Yeoman]

http://ses.library.usyd.edu.au/bitstream/2123/581/1/adt-NU20041011.13343802chapter1.pdf

As an aside I'd just like to mention for the benefit of Australian bowyers out there that Blackbutt can be made into a bow. Not terribly pretty to look at. It's a bit bland actually, but if it's all you can get, then it'll make a fair enough shooter.

I think a fair experiment would be to make some bows of different types of wood that has been kiln dried or whatever, and carefully measure things like MC. Then every year re-measure the same quantities to see what happens. You'd probably do well to make several bows from each timber and store them in the same conditions.

[George Tsoukalas]

Red oak is a whitewood. I leave the sapwood on and there  is a lot of it.
In boards there is a mix of sapwood and heartwood.
I only mentioned red oak because I have made bows from logs and boards from that species.
Have fun. Make bows while you can.
Someone younger than I can force dry and season 2 staves preferably sister staves and see what is up with that regarding this issue.
Jawge

[Badger]

  I don't think kiln drying or force drying hurts wood at all I do it all the time and have for years. I was never a believer in seasoning until very recently when I started pulling old seasoned bows out of stock for reevaluation and a little rework. I really don't notice any difference on the white woods as much as I do osage and yew but I don't have very many white wood bows I have kept all that long to compare.  A well seasoned bow seems to have a lot of the characteristics a heat treated bow has. I know its not all about moisture, my wood stablizes at about 8% where I am at.

[adb]

In the last 10 years of bow making, at any time I tried to force anything, the results were always less than I had hoped.

[mikekeswick]

.
Do what makes ya happy. You will likely make better bows from woods that you have confidence in.
Jawge

I could not agree more.   
Wise words