Bk rings

[Gregoryv]

Just harvested some black locust.  Is this typical? Thick rings toward the center and very thin rings toward the ends.  Will this make good bows?  Or firewood?  I have access to a whole grove now, so I can get more.  Keep it and split it, or but it and try again?
Greg
https://imgur.com/gallery/wpJgF2F

[Gregoryv]

Bk is Bl and buy is burn.  Apparently my autocorrect wants to make me look like I can’t spell.  lol.  Also now I am having doubts as to whether or not that wood is even locust.  It had the bean pods.  Either way maybe someone who knows more than me can fill me in.  (That’s about everyone here!)
Greg

[Bob Barnes]

It's good bow wood...go slow...go a little wider than osage...mine is 1 3/8" and 62"... and don't go too short...and have fun...   
 

[Gregoryv]

Wow that’s a beautiful bow.  And what a stave.  What growth rings that has!

[Pat B]

I'd go down to the first good ring, the 4 or 5 down from the sapwood and make that the back. BL has good tension strength and that ring will make a good back.

[Bob Barnes]

thanks...I have made a few out of this wood and the reason I showed the picture with the back of the stave was so that you could see what it looked like... in the middle of one of those fat rings.  I actually chased a ring all of the way through one of the rings before I realized that's just what it looks like.

[Gregoryv]

My rings don’t look anything like that.  I wonder if they are too thin to chase...

[Swampman]

The rings on your wood are not too thin to chase.  That looks like some good black locust.  It looks like a lot of the stuff I have. 

[M2A]

No doubt that's  bl locust. Looks like some good rings to me, I'd use it. The compression side gets a bit tight but real good rings below them. Tension side looks good all the way out generally speaking. think it through before you split it up so you get the most/best out of your work. After you process this log into staves cut another Congrats on your find!...Oh yeah seal the ends before it starts to check on you asap
Mike       

[Jim Davis]

Gregory (the original poster) has not shown his wood. You guys are commenting on Bob's wood.

[Bob Barnes]

he posted a link to his picture- here is the OP's pic...

[Gregoryv]

Thanks for all the help guys!  I am off Wednesday so I am going to go tell probably two more of these trees.  Any hints for getting trees with other growth rings?  Other than look for straight grained healthy trees?  If anyone lives in northwest Indiana you can come and get in on this grove with me!

[Hamish]

The late great Dean Torges, mentions increment borers, in his book Hunting the Osage Bow. Its an auger that allows you to take a sample from a tree before deciding to cut it down. They come in different diameters, and if the tree is unsuitable you just put the plug back in and it heals up.

[bassman]

My first attempts of making Black Locust bows failed miserably.I was using wood with very thin growth rings. I decided to remove the bark like a white wood bow, and use late growth ring right under the bark for the back. Results were 2 broken back bows. I then found a dead log that was hollow in the middle with some very nice consistent growth rings. I chased a nice thick ring for the backs, and got 4 really nice bows from that log.9  growth rings per inch measured at the handle.  Thicker, and more consistent than Gregory's, but not as thick as Bob Barnes example.

[bownarra]

The tree thought each one of those rings was strong enough at some point
But yes just go down to the first reasonably thick ring. It's no harder to chase a thin ring than a thick ring because you are aiming to not touch your back ring at all So if you have to don't stress.