Ocean Spray Longbow Help

[UserNameTaken]

Here's an ocean spray longbow that I'm working on. It's going to be a beautiful bow, if I don't ruin it with my CHRONICALLY POOR tillering skills. I already removed the outer bark, so that's what the back is going to look like if the rest of the bark stays put. It's going to be 70 inches long, 1/2 inch tips, and symmetrically tillered. The stave started out about 1 1/2 inches diameter at the base and 1 inch in the middle. I'd like to get 60 lbs out of it.

Anyway, it's got this 1 1/2 inch crack that starts about 2 inches from center, and I feel like I should probably fill it with something. What would you guys use to fill a crack like this?

[Bryce]

From that photo it looks like a natural dip in the wood, it should be fine just watch it when your tillering. You can fill it in but I'm not sure how much good that will do. If its a check or something of that sort drop some super glue in there, doesn't take a lot.
Hope that helped

-Bryce

[UserNameTaken]

Yeah, it started out as an oval shaped knot. The crack isn't from drying.

[Badger]

  Ocean spray is exceptional wood in every respect. Looking forward to seeing this bow finished. I have never seen an ocean spray stave that long before.

[randman]

Ocean Spray is definitely one of my favorites. Ocean Spray is so tough and unbreakable that I wouldn't worry about that crack at all. You should be able to get 60lbs out of that size stave no problem (specially if you heat treat it - it takes it extremely well). I have a 76" piece (1 3/4" dia.) that I've been curing for  year now and NO SPLITS! Very rare for a full round stave to season without splits. I usually have to saw it in half at least to the pith line to prevent that. I'm envisioning a Mary Rose size warbow out of my 76" piece. I've read that success with the bark depends on when you cut it (dead of winter it stays on - summer not so much). I've had good and bad luck with that.
Looking forward to more on your build on here.

[UserNameTaken]

Badger, I would love to see it finished too, so I'm going to tiller very carefully. Unfortunately, I'm still ruining a lot of wood. Good luck with your plum bow, by the way. I'm looking forward to seeing how that one turns out also. 

[Elktracker]

Great advise givin so far!

I agree I dont think the crack will affect it, I have had worst defect than that in ocean spray bows and they didnt affect the bow at all. I think you can get 60# out of that and I also agree heat treating does wonders on this wood!

Josh

[UserNameTaken]

randman, this one was cut in the winter, so that gives me some confidence. If the bark pops off, I'm going to back it with combed flax. That 76 incher is a real find! Aren't you in the seattle area? I've heard that you can find really big pieces out toward the coast, so I'm going to do some scouting as soon as those flowers start to pop.

[randman]

Yeah I'm in Seattle. I got that big piece in the Gifford Pinchot between Mt Ranier and St Helens but I have since seen as big or bigger in some Seattle parks. I've seen so much of it in the city limits anymore that I don't have to go far to get it.

[soleca]

I'm up in Bellingham and I've wanted to work some Oceanspray and Cascara for awhile now. However I've had a hell of a time figuring out how to get the wood, legally. Can you just harvest small amounts for non-commercial use? The only rules I can find have to do with either firewood or large scale timber harvest.

[randman]

There is so much ocean spray everywhere, along roadways, between freeway overpasses, at the edges of woodlots. The only places I think you will have a problem gathering small amounts of it is if you are getting it in someones yard or a city park. Everywhere else it's like a weed. It's like scotchbroom, nobody seems to care if you take a branch or 2, there's so much of it around. I even look for the standing dead stuff that has already seasoned and split as much as it will. I've made some 1" wide 48" long 50# at 22" bows out of dead standing stuff. In every big clump of ocean spray, there are a few of those and you can work it immediately (no waiting a year for it to loose moisture slowly so it won't check). I just go get the stuff. That may be illegal but I get it so discretely that nobody even questions what I'm doing with that "walking stick" I'm carrying. LOL It's not like cutting down a yew tree that took 75 years to get to that size. Cascara I don't know about. I wouldn't even recognize it if I saw it but if someone pointed it out to me, it might not be safe anymore 

[UserNameTaken]

I believe that before I die, I will likely see everything that I enjoy doing become illegal.

[vinemaplebows]

Be carefull out there guys....the local timber companies have stepped up their efforts to keep people from removing their resources from their lands.(game wardens are looking for them) If they feel what you are taking is above a certain monetary value, you can be charged with a felony. I am fortunate, and have permits for weyerhauser....I know one of the main foresters in my region.

Brian

[sound maker]

 I've been trying to find ocean spray but mostly its on other peoples porperty but sometime soon (more like when I go with my dad to his coworkers place) I think I will find all of these but I'm not sure since we all agree that ocean spray grows better by coast and he's in Buckly.

[UserNameTaken]

Sound maker, there's plenty of ocean spray growing inland.