bradford pear?

[bowmunky13]

hey all... i got to cut some bradford pear this afternoon and got a log that seems to be pretty decent for staves... i have four staves right now and may be able to split one or two again.... was wondering if it would be good for bow wood... i also have two logs that i can use for riser and handle materials... let me know i am excited to be able to get this started....

[El Destructo]

                                                If it bears Fruit .....it will make a Bow......dats it...........

[Andrea S]

Even a raspberry bramble??? 

[El Destructo]

                                                  Dont cha Have a Term Paper to write??

                                                                           

[Andrea S]

Yeah...it's about the nature of imagination and the effects of those who are imaginative (the 'creators') on their audience. My assertion is that the nature of imagination is not a dictated or even didactic one, but is rather a contagion, such that the work of an imaginative individual, in its highest purpose, inspires and fertilizes the minds of those who will thusly create, rather than dictation what or even how they will go about creating.

 

[Eric Krewson]

Don't know about Bradford pear for bow wood. Almost every one in my former neighborhood would snap off in a good windstorm, They didn't appear to have much strength.

[Canoe]

Yes....  in an environ where creativity is nurtured, creativity begets creativity.

...and do those pear trees scream when they are broken off "in a good windstorm?"

Now, get back to work!!

Canoe
(lack of sleep..)

[Sparrow]

 Is that that pear tree that grows in the south and makes that round woody pear ? People use it for canning ?
I think your on to something there Andrea,My wife and I went to Juneau a couple of weeks ago for the annual "Folk Fest" spent three days there listening to folk music(Mostly bluegrass and cajun) and after a couple of days,even I started coming up with song lyrics and tunes. Frank

[El Destructo]

Andrea...now that gave me a Headache....and it's too early on a Sunday Morning for that!!!! Now be a Good Girl.....and Have a Cup of Coffee....and try to act like a Normal Child....not the Genius Minded One you are!!! I already raised one with a 192 IQ...He is now a Chemical Engineer with B.P. ...............and finally got off all of the Medications I needed to survive Him!!!!!!!!

[Hrothgar]

I think Bradford pear is just an ornamental tree not a true fruit tree, and yep, its usually the first to break and snap in a storm.

[bowmunky13]

well.... as far as the wood itself goes.... the log i split into staves was 13 inches in diameteri think i may be able to get a total of 6 or eight staves out of it... its a b!^(# to split... it has pin knots like an osage and the wood... when it has been cut or peeled turns a reddish orange... the tree itself was five trunks from one root system and has very little dead wood or other problems in the tree... the only odd thing is that toward the center... the heart wood is like an inch and a half wide and paler than the rest of the wood... i gonna try it... if anyone else wants to try it and can offer some feathers for trade....( a dozen or so... i dont want too much in case it turns out to be bad wood) i will send it to you

[jamie]

dont think it will work. bradford is a fruitless ornemental tree. like mentioned before. it breaks very easy in wind and heavy snow. very brittle. give it a shot though. we may learn something. peace

[welch2]

I think it will work .  I thought a bradford pear was a real pear . It's just a cultivar grafted on rootstock , like most fruit trees .This one has been selected for being fruitless is all....  .The problem with them dropping branches ,I think is because pears want to grow tall and thin ,and in pear orchards they tie ropes on the branches and pull them over and down ,in order to encourage the tree to bush out .Bradford pears are Topped ,and so they sprout many weak side branches.

But I may be wrong.

Ralph 

[bowmunky13]

got it sealed... gonna finish splitting it tonight and start roughing to floor tiller so it can dry and stabalize... going to try a flat bow at about 35 first to see if it will hold up... and depending on results i am going to build a couple of take downs at 50 to see if it can stand up to it.... and if all comes out well.... the lady i got the log from still has four trunks she wants gone... thinking about making a backed bow... red oak and bradford pear.... reflex deflex or maybe a long bow variation i saw at my grandfathers shop before it got cleaned out........

[Pat B]

Bradford pear is in the Prunus genera and like the others(pears, plums, etc), it should make good bow wood.
  Eric, The problem with Bradford pears is not the wood but the trees structure. With the steep angle that the branches come off the trunk there is a lot of included wood that looks strong but is only the bark that is attached. If you look at a broken Bradford pear tree you will see that most of the wood is not broken but the limb and trunk grow close together but are not actually attached. Most Bradford pears break down where the branches attach to the trunk but generally not across the wood itself.
  I have never made a bow from Bradford pear but I would give it a try if I had some.    Pat