another idea for a new bow.

[david w.]

i cut a nice hickory sapling today. Its about 2 1/2" in diameter and 68" long.  I will have to cut it to about 66"because of stray hatchet marks.  So i was wondering if i could make it 1 1/2 - 1 3/4" wide by 64"ntn 50# @ 26-28". Do you think that is doable.   This would be backed with linen and i would try to decrown it the best i could.

[michbowguy]

that is totaly possible but...

do not cut to length now!
keep long and put white glue, or latex paint on the ends
let ends dry for a couple of days
then scrape the bark down to the reddish cambium layer while sap is down.
then stand upright in your hot water/furnace room for about 2 weeks...
then check and see if the ends are checking...if they are add more glue/paint.....then turn stave upside down for another 2 weeks.

then place in the back of an upstairs closet for about 2 months.

or if you realy cant wait..

roughly cut to shape,leave long,coat whole bow with watered down tb1,or elmers glue,and let it dry overnite.
then take rubber tiedown straps/or cut innertubes and wrap it up like it was the devil himself to a 2x4 and set in your hotwater/furnace room for 2 months.

if you want to induce a perry reflex you can build up the ends of the 2x4 before you wrap the bow to it.

i usualy can tell when a bow wood is workable by wood type and how i age it.
but normaly i can have a seasoned sappling bow in a couple of months maybe less depending on size.

if the wood you start to remove by way of file/rasp orsaw starts to "gum" up on teeth...it is too wet!

hope this helps.
jamie

[Hillbilly]

Your best bet from that diameter hickory would probably be a 66" Eastern Woodlands flatbow about 1 1/4" wide, barely bending  through the handle. I wouldn't decrown it, you can ruin a good stave if you're not careful. I would much rather have an intact ring on the back, and at that width, the crown won't be a problem. The Woodlands style of bow was probably designed around small diameter tree staves.

[david w.]

thanks. this really helps.

[Kegan]

I've reduced hickory and other white woods down to the floor tillered bow, then let it sit by the fireplace for a week or two until I can put it into the bow dryer. I haven't had any checking, and all the warping to the sides has been into a reflex or into an almost center shot bow. Like Hillbilly said, an Eastern woodlans style would be good, or the style Tim Baker describes in the Bowyer's Bibles. 1 1/2" wide for the middle half (for a 66" it would be the middle 33") tapering to 1/2" nocks. I personally like the second... don't really know why though .

[Gordon]

Yes, a bow of that dimensions if definitely doable with the wood you have.

[david w.]

thank you for all the comments. i am i no hurry to start now so i will debark it and let it sit a couple months then rough it out and let it sit some more. then i will finish it up.  thanks again

[Pat B]

Any time I remove bark from wood, no matter of the wood type or moisture content, I spray the back with shellac. The wood might not check but I'd rather use a little spran than to risk loosing the stave to checking and twisting.  JMO     Pat

[Ryano]

if you want to induce a perry reflex you can build up the ends of the 2x4 before you wrap the bow to it.

Jamie, Thats not called perry reflex, perry reflex is two or more pieces of wood glued up in a reflexed position. (named after Dan Perry if Im not mistaken) What your describing is just forced reflex from moisture loss.