Tight Ringed Osage

[Carl Galvin]

Ok So I have been experimenting with osage (as some of you already know) , and my experience has been that, with respect to the areas where growth rings are smaller and tighter (some areas have almost non-existent sap wood rings) that you get a very swirly result, where the sap wood and heartwood seem to dance around eachother or swirl around eachother.  It seems impossibel to chase a ring in this part of the stave, and I am therefore working my way down to a lower part of the stave that has thicker, more well defined borders between sap wood and heartwood.

Two questions, can a ring really be chased with success in this tighter zone of the stave, and, if so, is it possible to use this area as a back if you have mostly sapwood with some swirls of sap wood?

Sorry for my ignorance on this.  Thanks!

[Ryan Jacob]

You might be running into a wood burl. If that’s what it is, I have no idea what to do

[Carl Galvin]

What is wood burl?

[sleek]

Yeah, sounds burl-esq we need picks. If its burl, you should quit making a bow. It will break. Use it for knife handles, overlays, risers etc... Burls have no strength.

[Carl Galvin]

[Carl Galvin]

I was working my way down to the ring just below that first well defined light area.  I am currently in that area above that seems like there are light, almost non-existent sap wood rings in between. 

[PEARL DRUMS]

It appears you have at least two, maybe three rings in that top pic. 

[Carl Galvin]

yeah, but look at the bottom pic, it shows you where I am at.  Do you see any defining borders up there?

[PEARL DRUMS]

Cut about an 1/8" off the end so you can clearly see what your doing. All that sealer muddies it up.

[Carl Galvin]

Thanks

[sleek]

From the looks of that bittom pic, and the deffinition between the rings on the tip pic, id guess you are chasing moon rings.

[Carl Galvin]

Moon Rings?

[sleek]

Moon Rings?

Also known as lunar rings and monthly rings. They are insignificant when chasing rings. You chase the big yearly ring, not the smaller lunar rings.  They are created visibly when a tree has exceptional growing conditions. It adds on rings so thick that you can actually see the layers it lays down to make its yearly rings.

I could tell you better if you get a clean cut across that end. But it looks by those very dark rings, those are your actual yearly rings and you only have about 8 rings total in that stave.

[Carl Galvin]

So I guess that ring after that first, noticeable, dark area is a good ring to chase no?  This one will be a Kid's bow attempt.  It is a small stave I had that I am using to practice on before messing up a bigger osage stave.  Thanks!

[sleek]

Make whatever bow you want of it. But if learning is your goal, male the best bow you can, regardless of weight. If you want to male a specific bow, that piece will make any bow you want, depending on length. What are its dimensions? And honestly, with that stave, it doesnt look to matter what ring you pick, they are all good.