Primitive Archer
Main Discussion Area => Bows => Topic started by: Key on October 17, 2008, 03:58:29 pm
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A friend just gave me two real nice hornbeam staves. I have built bows from hickory and Osage but never out of hornbeam, I think some call it Ironwood.
Do I work it like Osage follow the grain or more like hickory? Any designs suggestions for hornbeam?
Thanks in advance for your the input.
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Is it hornbeam(smooth bark) or Hophornbeam(scaly bark)? Hophornbeam would be similar to hickory. I've never worked hornbeam. Pat
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The bark is scaly. No knots
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If the bark is scaly, it is most likely hop hornbeam. I had a stave of that once, but it got too twisted on me so I burned it. If you have good ones, they can be as good as osage from what I hear. There are many woods called "ironwood". Scaly bark is Hop Hornbeam, and smooth bark as Pat said is just plain Hornbeam, but both may be called "ironwood" just because they are extremely hard and strong.
So since it looks like you've got Hop Hornbeam, work it like Hickory. I've been told to just take the bark off and the first ring you come to is the back, you don't have to touch it.
What state are you in?
~~Papa Matt
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Papa Matt,
I am in Iowa.
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Ok, so then you're just a couple states over from me. I'm in Indiana. I'm 99% sure you've got Hop Hornbeam if it's scaly bark. You're lucky, around where I live, it's mostly wooded area, but there aren't that many HHB trees. I've only foudn the one like I said, and it was too twisted to mess with. I should've known when I cut it, just by the bark. The bark went around the tree in a spiral pattern from top to bottom, and after I cut and split the stave it twisted the same way.
If yours doesn't have any knots, and the bark is straight, then you've got some wood that will make killer bows to be proud of.
~~Papa Matt
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I am going to take pictures of the two staves and post them here. Will do that tomorrow. I can't find where my wife put the dig camera, grrrr
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Pappy posyed a HHB bow last month, look back and take a gander at it.
HHB is white wood so just peel the bark and thats your back, as for the grain always follow the grain regardless of the wood.
Some can handle a few run offs but always best to follow the grain.
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Hmmmmm....hophornbeam has bark that won't peel. You'll have to use sandpaper and/or a scraper. There's a lot of little gullies and crevices......it will be a challenge....but once you've removed the bark, that's it. The exposed white wood is the back of the bow.
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I made one once....that I never stripped the Bark off of....and while in the Tillering Process....it all started to crack off in pieces....turned out really cool with the part of the Cambium that stayed on it......
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"If you have good ones, they can be as good as osage from what I hear" ::)
Na, its good bow wood but its not osage. ;) Be careful not to violate the back ring as the growth rings on hophorn beam are usually small and kind of bumpy. It doesn't handle growth ring violation well at all so chase a ring carfully. ;D
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Found the camera, pic of my two new staves
[attachment deleted by admin]
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Thats looks like 4 Hornbeam Staves to me!!!!
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yeah, I should be able to get two bows out of each. No knots either
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I'd go for it....as nice as that stuff looks....I can see 4 Bows in it.....but Pappy is the Pro with the Hornbeam....maybe he wil Chime in too.........
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That stuff is way to straight to make a bow better send it to me ;D
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Looks like HHB to me,just peal the bark and work it like Hickory,It is great wood,much better
than Hickory,nothing wrong with Hickory but I like HHB much better. :) The bark will peal
off much easier than Hickory from what I have seen,green or dry. :) Just take your time
to not damage the back. :)
Pappy
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That's HHB...I've made a couple of bows from it, and am using one of them this season hunting. Pappy is also using his hhb that he recently made. Treat them like hickory, make sure the wood is good and dry before working and sealing it! It has a good looking grain, especially at the fades where the grain feathers into the belly. ;) It will respond some to dry heat if you need to straighten it, but not as well as osage.
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Thanks everyone. I won't start a bow now until the end of Nov. or so. Too many hours spend hunting right now.
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Try to get the bark off those and seal the backs as soon as you can-I lost a good HHB stave to bugs a while back from leaving the bark on too long. Borers don't seem to bother debarked staves.
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I'm with DanaM those are entirely too straight to give you a challenge,Send em to me I'm a much bigger charity case.Lol I've got an 55# HHB flatbow due any day now from Marc St.Louis. Wish I had some around here, I would be all over it like a chicken on a june bug. How long do you have to cure it before you can start working it? Danny