Hickory Question

[Scallorn]

  I'm wondering how long hickory needs to dry. I know it depends on the moisture in the environment, but I'm just looking for a ballpark number. I live in NE Texas along the red river so humidity is moderate. Thanks

[Stick Bender]

I was told when I started making hickory stave bows to ruff the bow down & let it sit on the wall for 2 months at 50% RH & that worked for me , but did another hickory bow with the same method & it seemed to still be a bit green so I let them set longer & I also hot box hickory now for a week after use a simple electric blanket as a hot box the one I'm working on this morning has been curing for over a year and hot boxed for a week, some times this bow making is hurry up & wait that's why I have 4 or 5 bows in the works at the same time so when one is setting I can work on another , hickory is a great bow wood when cured !

[bushboy]

From what I've seen,its best to have a stock pile!if you can have staves seasoned for at least a year debarked ,should be good to go.

[PEARL DRUMS]

Rough it out to about 20-30% over finished dimensions and stand it straight up and down on an AC register. Give it a few months and it will be ready. I will flip them end for end weekly so its gets consistent air flow over the whole length of the stave. Works for me on any wood I've used.

[Pat B]

Hickory is slow to release moisture but if done like Pearlie suggests it should dry enough in a few months. If you have a hot box with a fan in it it should dry quicker.

[BowEd]

A cheapy version of a stove pipe with a light bulb will work too.Invert it every other day for evenining out the drying will hurry things up too.With a small low voltage fan.Just like drying clothes.If your in a hurry.
Using the weighing method to see when it quits losing mass weight.

[nakedfeet]

A cheapy version of a stove pipe with a light bulb will work too.Invert it every other day for evenining out the drying will hurry things up too.With a small low voltage fan.Just like drying clothes.If your in a hurry.
Using the weighing method to see when it quits losing mass weight.

WHYYY did I never think of that. That's an awesome improvised hot-box idea.

[DC]

If you make a lid for the top with about a 2" hole in it, with a scrap of wood you can control the air flow and heat in the box. I use one for drying arrows and a hundred watt bulb will get it up to 90 degrees with a 1" hole. You should always check the temperature in stuff like this, sometimes they can get too hot and cause checking.

[BowEd]

Yes a analog thermomter is handy to have to keep things under check.100 degrees will dry things out in a hurry if roughed out to 3/4" thick in the limbs.In a hurry is at least 2 weeks yet though.Closer to 3 really.That's 24 hours a day all day.Last to leave will be the handle moisture if a stiff handle bow is desired.

[timmyd]

I don't work hickory without a drying box and moisture meter. Some claim to be able to tell but I guess I'm not that talented. I'm working a hickory blank now that I roughed out years ago. Pegged at 14%. Just leaving hickory sit for a period of time doesn't work.

[BowEd]

I usually leave it in a 50% humidity area at 75 to 80 degrees.When it quits losing weight for a 1/3 of the time it was losing weight it usually is around 8 or 9 % humidity and ready to be made into a bow.That process has worked for me on a roughed out bow.

[Eric Garza]

I'm partial to wood that's dried nice and slow. I prefer to rough a stave down to about 1 inch thick and let it sit for a few years indoors to fully season. But I don't make bows commercially, so I have the luxury of being able to wait.