Burl

[DC]

This little burl is 43" from the end of a 72" stave. I have never dealt with a burl. It looks to me like I've got a couple of billets but I thought I would check. I might be able to sneak a full length off one side. Does the burl render that part useless?

[Chadwick]

Put it at one end of a 4" stiff handle, you could work with a 64" bow then. I would hesitate to use it in working part of the limb, and I didn't see much wood off to the side.

[DC]

I thought there might be some sapwood under the burl but I bandsawed a thin piece off the side and the sapwood ends where the burl begins. It looks like the heartwood got an infection and boiled up through the sapwood, if you can picture that. I don't think I will use any of that section. I will try to split off the one side(right side first picture) because even if it goes wrong there is lots of wood in the 43" section for two billets.

[bow101]

I would of left 'er hanging, but then again.  Have you done any billet bows yet..?

[DC]

I'm not even sure it was a burl. Well, I guess it was at one time. I did a post-mortem on it- I cut it up with the bandsaw. It all looked rotten. It was all grey and punky. Where it was there was no sapwood so it wouldn't take any strain. I got a couple of billets out of it and I did get a split off the side. It's a little thin but I think it will make a bow. I have two billet bows glued up(an OS and a Saskatoon) but I haven't tillered them yet.

[Drewster]

Interesting bark......what kind of wood is that?  Yeah, that burl looks like trouble.  A billet bow looks like the way to go.  Keep us posted.

[mikekeswick]

Yew 

[Aaron H]

I would hang on to that burl I were yew  ,  if it's solid that is.  You could make something really neat out of burl wood.

[DC]

Yes it's yew. Kind of a mediocre yew, but yew. Here's a picture of the remains of the burl. It is almost to the punky stage. Not much use.