do you recognize this bow?

[sadiejane]

pretty sure its osage. 46" ntn
nice wide limbs. sweet native north american design
bought it at an antique store in the country north of cincinnatti just before ya reach fort ancient
never strung nor drawn it. dont wanna break it
as you can see in one of the pix, the maker didnt follow a ring. close but not quite
and i dont wanna work on it, its someone elses work...
just wondered if anyone here recognizes or what ya think otherwise
maybe it was just made for a wall hanger but it came with a b50 reverse twist string....

[Shaun]

Looks like a shooter to me. For sure osage. The back has what looks like "islands" of one extra ring which would likely hold. Have you flexed it like floor tillering to see how it bends? Only design concern I'd have is the short fades and stiff handle area - might pop the handle off if did overstress at this point.

[sadiejane]

the rings are really pretty thin. the island at bottom of last pic on the right is actually below the ring
have floor bent it. feels pretty stiff but appears to bend evenly
had it for two years now and keep pulling it down and wanting to string it and shoot it
but sure would hate to bust it
reckon i could just mend and put it back ot he wall since its only been a wallhanger up til now...

[toomanyknots]

If that were my bow, I would definitely back it before stringing it. Ya never know with ring violations like that. The bowyer could of only drawn it to 15 or so inches. The wood is very pretty. It does like like osage grain to me. You could always sand just a tad somewhere to make sure it's not a stain, but that does look like osage to me. If it was mine, I would back it with linen, and put a couple more coats of tb on top of the linen to make painting it later easier. Than re-tiler it. Than paint it, poly over the paint, add some wraps on the ends of the backing, maybe add a handle, and than call er done,  . I understand though about not messing with someone elses work, there might be a history with the bow? I am the same way with everything like that though. Like, people (or I guess collectors) will pay more for an older guitar with all the older rusty gears on it, the worn down frets, unplayable high action, etc. Where I think that is just a waste. If I come across a 40 or 50 year old guitar, that has aged like a wine fine, made with better grade wood than available on lesser priced instruments today (due to de-forestation and good spruce/rosewood becoming rarer), and made better than today before said company out sourced all their labor to china, what is the point in just looking at it if it is unplayable? I will always op to set it up proper and get it playing. Some of these guitars have the most beautiful voice, and the mature sound of aged wood is something you cannot buy at a store. Might be a little off topic, but what I mean is if that were my bow, and I loved that bow, I would get it shooting, because that is what a bow is made to do,  . Btw, I happen to live in the county right above cincinnati's county (I live in butler county). Did you perchance pick that up at the antique mall up here? That place is a gold mine for cheap older hand tools.

[sadiejane]

toomanyknots-well i was thinking there might be some story behind the bow.
the antique store was not a mall, but a run down/falling down shed like place right on the road fort ancient is on.
350 i believe. before you cross the little miami river. it too was a treasure trove,  artifacts from the area,
several bows made by the same guy who made the bow i bought. lots of tools. packed floor to ceiling.
my bad for not getting the name of the man who made the bow while there. rushed by inlaws who rolled their eyes when i wanted to stop...

[Josh Shuck]

Although I can't say with any certainty...it almost looks like some sort of Native American ceremornial bow.  Maybe someone with more knowledge can confirm.

[Pat B]

Could it be locust? If it is old it doesn't look dark enough to be osage and locust is what I first thought when I saw it. A little scraping in an inconspicuous area would reveal if it was osage or locust.  Even though it is all one piece the handle riser doesn't seem like a NA bow style at least not an old one. It is a cool little bow though. 

[twilightandmist]

osage, not a doubt in my mind. osage, and probably at least 15 to 20 years old.

[Bryce]

How can you guess the age?

[twilightandmist]

the color of the wood is identical to the outside color of the 15 year old osage splits i have in my garage. and very close to the color of a slightly older bow i have. so its a bit of a comparison, and i could be wrong, but thats my guess. kind of like rigor mortis, just judging by the progression of oxidation on the exterior of the wood.

[Bryce]

Your going off color? Seems a bit silly. I'm not trying to offend you but, it's probably not wise to make assumptions like that.
Could have been made 2yrs. ago and sat outside or in a shed and look like that.
If we do find the owner and it was made in 1994 or something feel free to rub my face in it 

[twilightandmist]

i see your point completely. however, i used the bow wood as a basis of comparison because it was left in conditions exactly like what you stated, out in a shed with no humidity or temperature control. so i used the worst case scenario

[nclonghunter]

Osage for sure and I agree with what looks like maybe one ring difference on the back causing the islands.

Was the string purchased with it? That looks like a new style string.

I don't know how much you got in it, but I would be temped to shoot it. I do not believe it's an Indian artifact. I also could not see any file or sandpaper marks in the wood, which is interesting since the back is considered unfinished to me, but has been nicely smoothed otherwise.

Cool post and find

[randman]

Don't know why it couldn't be made into a snappy little shooter (outside of being a sacred artifact which consensus feels it isn't). Just finish the ring scrapin on the back, narrow down the tips, and thin and round the handle so it'll bend a tiny bit getting the whole length bending and you got yourself a nice little shorty.

[sadiejane]

yeah, knew it wasnt that old. the fella who owned the antiquey place knew the guy who made it.
as mentioned previously, i didnt take the time to get his name as i was being frowned at by in-laws to get moving along.....

the handle is sorta odd and i may very well just make it into a shooter
i paid $40 for it if that matters
it is a modern b50 string and puts the bow at proper brace(i have braced it)
and there is not one sign of a tool mark anywheres-super smooth but no finish that i can tell

so i may just back it and do as yall suggested, get that silly handle whittled down
and see how it shoots.
seems silly to have a bow that is not an artifact just hanging around afraid to pull it back n shoot it

if yr in that area ya might stop in that little shack, there were a cupla bows made by the same guy
iirc the fella told me the bow maker comes in and trades his bows for other stuff he wants
if i could recall the name of the palce id call the owner and get the bow makers name

as for calculating age by color-ive seen osage bows 10 yrs old nearly black and others just as old still showing their color
individual wood, how often its been outside and for how long, how its stored etc etc etc all play roles in how osage turns
ive had this particular bow two yrs


heres the map
https://maps.google.com/maps?oe=utf-8&client=firefox-a&ie=UTF-8&q=fort+ancient&fb=1&gl=us&hq=fort+ancient&cid=0,0,9578649138181919839&ei=WIbGUKroN4XXqAGCw4HABg&ved=0CK8BEPwSMAE

the antique store is west of the little miami river and just west of that hairpin curve at left side of map on 350
interesting place, lots of old tools and artifacts from the area