Osage splitting when heating

[Badger]

   I use a cawl on all my osage with heat. I have had the occassional crack appear when the moisture has been too high. The piece I am working now I thought to be dry yet I did get a small crack that I am not worried out. I have to wonder now if the wood doesn't have higher moisture than I thought it had. Anyone else ever have a crack open up on dry osage when heating. The crack was not there before heating.

[Eric Krewson]

A bunch of times. I keep superglue handy and hit the crack when it first appears no matter how small. This always stops them and they tend to be invisible on a finished bow.

[Pat B]

I do the same as Eric. I also seal any newly exposed back with shellac, no matter how old or dry the stave is.

[rps3]

More often than not for me, but I seem to gravitate to the staves that require more correction.

[Aaron H]

I do the same as Eric. I also seal any newly exposed back with shellac, no matter how old or dry the stave is.

+1

[PEARL DRUMS]

Steve it has to be "wetter" than you perceive it to be. No other reason I can think the osage would rupture like that. Ive had it happen plenty of times myself.

[osage outlaw]

I've had 20 year old staves crack while reflexing them. 

[PEARL DRUMS]

20 years old doesn't always mean dry though. If a 20 year old stave is stored in 70% humidity for a month its not dry enough to work.

[Badger]

      I am kind of like Pearl, it never surprises me when the moisture is in question. The bow didn't take any real set as I was finishing so I went ahead and finished but I am going to stick it in my car for a couple of weeks and see if it gains weight before I do the finish work on it. The crack closed up once it cooled down and is barely visible if you are looking for it. Going to give it a touch of superglue and forget about it.

[PEARL DRUMS]

Its similar to how we can rough out a green stave and have it dry in 2-3 months. Its all about the humidity it lives in.

[Eric Krewson]

Years ago we had some abnormally dry weather, bluebird days with very low humidity. I had some seasoned osage staves in my garage, to my horror, when I looked at them they were riddled with hairline cracks down the backs. I thought they were toast but looked at them again several days later and I couldn't find the first crack, they had all closed up with the return of normal humidity. This was before I learned to shellac my staves.

[Badger]

  This one only opened up slightly on the belly side. My bows usually settle in at about 8% in my coastal california climate. I can live with that pretty well. Humidity runs about 50% but slightly drier indoors.

[Aaron H]

  This one only opened up slightly on the belly side. My bows usually settle in at about 8% in my coastal california climate. I can live with that pretty well. Humidity runs about 50% but slightly drier indoors.

Do you find 8% MC too low for some woods?

[Dances with squirrels]

I haven't experienced that as a problem. I've had very, very few develop cracks when heating to make corrections. I use no oil or crisco or anything.

I try to do the major corrections while they're green, with steam. When they're dry, I use the heat gun. But you guys are really making me wonder what I do differently than you... maybe I heat slower, or dont get them as hot? maybe I've just been lucky :^)

I live in western Pa, one of the cloudiest and rainiest parts of the country. All of my wood is in my garage or shop. I do keep staves I'm working on in my drying box. In my shop now I have a dehumidifier running, so things are fairly dry and stable there in spite of what's going on outside.

I don't ALWAYS re-seal the stave's back after exposing a new ring. If it feels dry, 'rings out' sufficiently while bouncing
an end off the cement floor, or reads dry with my moisture meter, I don't shellac them and they're just fine... again though, maybe it's the relatively stable environment. Not sure why, but cracks while heat correcting, reflexing, or recurving hasnt been a problem for me.

[Badger]

  Considering how many osage bows I have built I would say I have had very, very few develop cracks when heating or storing. I never seal the back once I have roughed a bow out unless I know the bow to be green. If a stave is 6 months old I feel pretty confident in roughing it out and not sealing.

I haven't experienced that as a problem. I've had very, very few develop cracks when heating to make corrections. I use no oil or crisco or anything.

I try to do the major corrections while they're green, with steam. When they're dry, I use the heat gun. But you guys are really making me wonder what I do differently than you... maybe I heat slower, or dont get them as hot? maybe I've just been lucky :^)

I live in western Pa, one of the cloudiest and rainiest parts of the country. All of my wood is in my garage or shop. I do keep staves I'm working on in my drying box. In my shop now I have a dehumidifier running, so things are fairly dry and stable there in spite of what's going on outside.

I don't ALWAYS re-seal the stave's back after exposing a new ring. If it feels dry, 'rings out' sufficiently while bouncing
an end off the cement floor, or reads dry with my moisture meter, I don't shellac them and they're just fine... again though, maybe it's the relatively stable environment. Not sure why, but cracks while heat correcting, reflexing, or recurving hasnt been a problem for me.

  This in my first dry stave to crack with well over 1,000 osage bows under my belt now. I don't plan to change anything if only one in a thousand develops a micro crack. I am going with the theory that I just thought it was dry and it wasn't.

  I have never found any need in sealing the back on a dried stave either. Green staves I don't take a chance on and rub the back down with whiteglue.