seasoning hazelnut and vine maple

[Dante_F]

Question, can I take the bark off vm and hazelnut and then rough them out without checking or should I leave it whole. also is there a difference between fast dried and seasoned wood?

[DC]

I take the bark off, shellac the back and any end grain. I don't see any reason for not roughing them out but you probably want to tie them to something to slow down warpage, especially with the maple. I have Douglas Maple but it seems to be similar to Vine Maple from what I've read. It will quite often take on a huge bend so it should definitely be tied down. I've only done a few hazel and it seems to be very well behaved. It just sits there and dries. And fairly fast too.

PS I don't know if you are getting these cold dry outflow winds that we've had for two months but if you are a little caution is in order. I just ruined about a half dozen OS billets by treating the way I normally do. They had a coat of shellac on the back and still the backs split on all of them overnight. The RH has been down to 15% at times.

[Dante_F]

yeah im in the Vancouver of Washington not BC but its been really cold and dry for the past few weeks but we've got some rain in the last few days so that's good so youre saying they should prob be sealed, what about just not roughing them out and drying the  wood when split with bark on?

[vinemaplebows]

I personally keep the bark on, use wood glue on the ends. I would also mention that leaving staves (roughed fairly thick) then let to dry slowly for the first 2 weeks or so, will help movement.  Vine maple can be debarked without a problem for the most part, just remember to seal the back and belly of the top part of the stave to help prevent checking.

[Dante_F]

ill probably try that vinemaplebows, also i have no seasoned wood and the 5 i have are some mystery wood from the landscaping peoples burn pile but it seems decent but maybe that's because its green, but i'm gonna give it a go today

[PatM]

There is a difference between dried and seasoned and the best way to understand that is to make bows at every stage of drying to seasoned.

[High-Desert]

With VM I always strip the bark as soon as I cut it, which is usually when the buds breaks through summer when the bark strips the easiest, sealing the back right away. I live where it’s extreemly dry and I’ve never sealed the back, only the ends, and have never had it split. I’ve put it in my truck while green during the summer to speed drying and still no issues.

[Dante_F]

sounds good, ill probably try the fast drying stuff and not seal the backs of the stave, just the ends