Storing Black Locust

[Tim P]

I found a nice piece of black locust that I want to cut some staves from. It has been lying in the woods for some time, but the wood under the bark still looks ok.  I 'd like to remove the bark because there are already quite a bit of bugs inside.

Can I just debark it, split and seal the ends with wood glue? I heard black locust will check easily.

I was thinking of dimensioning the staves to about 3inch, and immediately take them down to the heartwood before storing them in a dry place.

Tim

[Dances with squirrels]

Cut it to length and seal the ends. Split it into staves 3 to 3.5" wide. Remove the bark and seal the back, that is, the sapwood that is exposed when the bark is removed. Then you can work at removing all the sapwood from each piece  and take it to one heartwood growth ring, below any bug damage if there is some. Seal the new back after each one is brought to a single heartwood growth ring. That's about it.

[Tim P]

Thanks! I know what I will do tomorrow then 

[bentstick54]

If there is visible bug damage I would take it down past the damage now, then seal the back. I have lost some Osage staves that had some bug damage that I sprayed with insecticide then sealed only to still have some larvae bore deeper into the heartwood. Also if the are any larvae left they can spread to some of your other staves. It’s not worth the risk.

[Pat B]

Split the log into staves, take each stave down to a good heartwood back ring, seal the back and ends and store in a sheltered place. It will have a pretty high M/C from being on the ground so let it dry out slowly.

[Tim P]

Hm, it looks (and smells) far worse under the bark than I thought. 



Still usable after taking off the softwood and sealing it up or is it all firewood?

[Pat B]

Locust has kind of a cat pee smell to me.
 You won't know how usable it is until you remove the sapwood and see how much heartwood you have to work with and what condition it is in.

[GlisGlis]

BL is tough wood
give it a try

[Zugul]

just make sure to let it dry well and slowly

[M2A]

Looks like enough hart wood there to make a bow(s) from the pic. The black mold on the inner bark is nasty and I would think not very good to be breathing in. When I get a log like that I make sure I remove that stuff outside anymore. All good advice above. Give it a go.
Mike

[Tim P]

I just took the staves out to finally remove the sapwood (Should have done it earlier maybe). And noticed that they developed a bend as I  suspended them on some nails on the wall the ends. It seems like they sagged while drying.

Is this a good thing (since its a reflex curve) or should it be avoided?
How do you guys store your staves to keep them in a good shape for bowmaking? (upright, on wooden blocks, strapped down,....)

[Tim P]

I'm starting to wonder if this stave is worth it.

It seems to have developed some kind of rot "nerves" between the sapwood and the hearthwood.
And I see a few other dodge spots in the middle of the hearthwood....





Should I just burn it and look for another log? 

[Pat B]

Locust discolors some. It is pretty rot resistant. Most staves pull into reflex as they dry. On real wet wood I try to let it dry for a while first before splitting into staves so they don't draw up too much or twist while drying.
You still have plenty of good wood for a bow.

[Tim P]

Thanks for the advice Pat.

I sawed off 1" of the end and the spots in in de middle of the hardwood became quite clear. But when split open, it doesn't look too concerning. Some discolouration but no soft spots. 

I 'll keep up my efforts then to clean the stave and prepare it further for drying.




between hardwood and sapwood: