Russian Olive

[WhistlingBadger]

Hi, guys.  It's probably been asked before, but has anybody done russian olive bows?  Would RO be a suitable wood for a newbie?  I have a friend with some 5-10' trunks he wants taken away, but he lives a ways off, and I'm wondering if they're worth checking out.

[Pat B]

It seems to me that there have been a few RO bows here before. Give it a try and report back.

[WhistlingBadger]

It seems to me that there have been a few RO bows here before. Give it a try and report back.

Yeah, I did a search but it didn't turn up anything.  I'll see if they have any that would make good staves.  If so, I'll keep you posted. 

[Kidder]

The primitive archer golden treasure series on “bow woods” volume 3 has a write up on Russian Olive. The author, Neal Ritter describes building green sapling, d style bows with a group of young students with successful results. He does describe them as “quickie bows.” But noted that all 10 held up and were surprisingly heavy and fast. He noted they were treated similar to yew. These were saplings and not staves but he also noted his belief that with the right care and design a hunting weight bow could be made.
On a side note, although it’s not the highest quality printing, this series is an absolute treasure trove of information, on par with the bowyers bibles. Yes, I went there...

[WhistlingBadger]

The primitive archer golden treasure series on “bow woods” volume 3 has a write up on Russian Olive. The author, Neal Ritter describes building green sapling, d style bows with a group of young students with successful results. He does describe them as “quickie bows.” But noted that all 10 held up and were surprisingly heavy and fast. He noted they were treated similar to yew. These were saplings and not staves but he also noted his belief that with the right care and design a hunting weight bow could be made.
On a side note, although it’s not the highest quality printing, this series is an absolute treasure trove of information, on par with the bowyers bibles. Yes, I went there...

Good to know.  Yeah, I need to get more of the GT series; I have the one on quivers and it's great.

[ssrhythm]

To me, they seem like the “Osage of Wyoming” in that they grow in tangled hedgerows and such.  I’ve used the branch wood to make pressure flakers and walking sticks, and it seems to be a really tough wood.  That said, I’ve looked at thousands of them, and Ive yet to see a 6’ trunk that wasn’t remotely straight and not twisted like a pretzel, and the branches are very easy to snap off...wood seems very brittle.  Maybe it’s just because I’m looking at trees that get battered with 35-70mph wind for most of the year in a relative desert.  Give it a try and let us know, because I’d love to figure out a way to get a bow out of the gazillion we have here in my town.

[Hawkdancer]

If you can find some fairly uncrowded trees, they can get bigger and straighter.  They are an invasive species, not sure if they make good firewood.  Arrows, maybe.  I have seen some fairly large RO trees.  Don't know how they are for lumber.
Hawkdancer

[bradsmith2010]

just a suggestion and not to discourage you from exporing that wood,, but maybe get a white oak or hickory thats pretty clean and straight to start with,, and experiement with the olive later when they cure,,, if the wood is not so good for bows, you might blame your experience level and get discouraged,,,start with a wood thats pretty consistant with success,, I would even suggest a board,, you can always crown it a bit and make it look like a stave bow,, just dont make it complicated for yourself at first,,

[WhistlingBadger]

just a suggestion and not to discourage you from exporing that wood,, but maybe get a white oak or hickory thats pretty clean and straight to start with,, and experiement with the olive later when they cure,,, if the wood is not so good for bows, you might blame your experience level and get discouraged,,,start with a wood thats pretty consistant with success,, I would even suggest a board,, you can always crown it a bit and make it look like a stave bow,, just dont make it complicated for yourself at first,,

That's kind of what I was thinking, too.  I am really, really new at this.  I'm going to run out after school and see what they have.  If there are any good looking ones, I'll bring them home, let them cure for a few months, and maybe by then I'll have more of a clue what I'm doing.