The propeller twist bogeyman

[CB57]

Have several white wood staves, in hop Hornbeam and Juneberry, with pretty pronounced twist, up to 90*. Not sure if I can get them flat with dry heat, or should they be steamed first? How many have actual experiences in straightening twist like this, and what worked best for you? I don't want to make anything complex, just reflexed flatbows.

[stuckinthemud]

I have no experience with those woods but I have straightened several staves with twist like that. Best to rough the bow down as much as you dare. Steam or dry heat are both good, steam should be used on damp timber; I've used steam and dry heat on dry wood to good effect although some say you should only use dry heat on really dry timber

[Dances with squirrels]

I've done a bunch of hophornbeam with steam, by steaming the entire stave for one hour, another 15 minutes if it's really bad. Some staves have had a significant amount of twist from one end to the other, almost 90 degrees... although I try to avoid trees with that much twist. I do them while they still have a fairly high moisture content, but it may work if they're drier too. I bring them to about 1 3/4" wide end to end, 3/4" thick at the dips to 5/8" thick at the ends... bark removed, two coats of shellac on the back. I like to leave them clamped up until the next day if possible, but have removed them after they've cooled... doing 3-4 a day.