Primitive Archer

Main Discussion Area => Bows => Topic started by: Ncsnipe on June 19, 2011, 04:48:35 pm

Title: Bow wood? tree ID.
Post by: Ncsnipe on June 19, 2011, 04:48:35 pm

I think this is cherry, not sure what type. If it is should I leave the bark and sapwood on or take it off after splitting into staves? I would be grateful for any help.

Title: Re: Bow wood? tree ID.
Post by: Ncsnipe on June 19, 2011, 04:50:50 pm

Shot of the bark.

Title: Re: Bow wood? tree ID.
Post by: stone-over on June 19, 2011, 04:51:47 pm

looks like chokecherry, it'll work from what I've read, no personal experience though.

Title: Re: Bow wood? tree ID.
Post by: Pat B on June 19, 2011, 05:35:52 pm

I'd say it was black cherry being that you are from NC. Treat it like any other whitewood. Peel the bark and make the bow from what's under.

Title: Re: Bow wood? tree ID.
Post by: mullet on June 19, 2011, 06:28:37 pm

 Black cherry is right. It will make a bow, but I haven't seen many that made it past 45#, unbacked.

Title: Re: Bow wood? tree ID.
Post by: blackhawk on June 19, 2011, 10:36:04 pm

I wont ever say don't try something new....but that being said I don't think ill be making a bow anytime soon with any cherries. There's just a whole lot of other wood around me that's way better so why even try it. I've never tried it,but this weekend I was curious walking thru the woods and did some green limb bend tests on some species of wood. I tried pin cherry,chokecherry,black cherry,a wild plum. I then wanted to compare them to woods I have used like hickory,hophormbeam,oak, and a couple others. And all the cherries we have here were awful and broke with a snap before bending to far. The hickory n HHB were the best and most elastic. And when they did break it wasn't a snap and come apart like the cherries. They just folded over with some grain still holding together and bent over prob 3-4 times further before even breaking. Due to my crude but yet justifiable testing I wont think ill ever use cherry when I have WAY better wood available. Just my longwinded humble opinion. And a "few" folks have made sweet shooting cherry bows and will disagree with me.

Title: Re: Bow wood? tree ID.
Post by: ken75 on June 20, 2011, 12:42:58 am

rawhide back it , cherry is brittle and tension weak , but compression is good. im sure it can be made unbacked but like cedar its a chance

Title: Re: Bow wood? tree ID.
Post by: mainehunt on June 20, 2011, 09:04:55 am

You must have a different black cherry down there than we have here in Maine. Our black cherry's bark has a dark gray to black colored bark. I've never seen a black cherry with such a light colored bark.

Very cool. Thanks for posting the photos.

Kev
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Title: Re: Bow wood? tree ID.
Post by: crooketarrow on June 20, 2011, 10:25:34 am

   I'm like maine here in WV the only light colored cherry bark we have is the orchard cherry type all all the wild had a lot darker bark.

Title: Re: Bow wood? tree ID.
Post by: blackhawk on June 20, 2011, 02:10:51 pm

Ok...I need to put a sock in my mouth for what I said earlier bashing cherry. Here's a 70# unbacked cherry that was just posted on another forum. This thing is frickin awesome. That being said tho...the guy who made it lives in eastern europe and not sure what species of cherry it is. And this guy makes some awesome bows/character bows too tho. Let's just say he's good at building a bow.


http://paleoplanet69529.yuku.com/topic/45061/Wild-cherry-longbow#.Tf9pJGfEbj4



Still not too convinced of using any cherry in my area tho