Design for 2" Lilac (pics added)

[jandersson]

Howdy folks,
So far I've only made board bows but my neighbor is cutting down his Lilac and I'm hoping I could make a bow out of it. I don't know exactly what kind of lilac it is but they're 2" in diameter and about 60-70 inches long. What can I make out of this?

[Joec123able]

I've heard good things about lilac never tryed it, hopefully someone will comment and help you out

[wizardgoat]

Same as any sapling bow.
Cut them and seal the ends right away.
There's for sure some sapling bow build alongs on here

[DC]

Apparently it checks real bad.

[Blaflair2]

I'd leave the bark on cut em long as u can and seal the snot outta the ends

[Holten101]

Cut, seal, leave bark on, store cold or in moderat to high humidity, cross your fingers and wait, wait, wait.....wait some more, pray and wait.

Good luck with Lilac;-)

[mikekeswick]

Cut, seal, leave bark on, store cold or in moderat to high humidity, cross your fingers and wait, wait, wait.....wait some more, pray and wait.

Good luck with Lilac;-)

Dead on advice.
Lilac is amazing wood...but don't expect to make a bow out of it anytime soon. If you try to reduce it green and dry it quick it will almost certainly check beyond belief!

[PatM]

I have had no trouble with  lilac checking with a rapid, controlled drop in moisture. You just need to control things for about  7-10 days.

[jandersson]

In my basement it's about 55 deg and probably 50% humidity if I don't run my dehumidifier. Is consistency important?  I'm thinking I can keep it like that for another week or two but it's getting cold here and I'm gonna have to turn on the heat soon. And as I'm writing this I realize this is exactly what PatM is saying

[PatM]

Last year I cut a lilac at the same time of year. I split it in half immediately and removed the outer bark leaving a thin layer on the back. I dipped all ends in Epoxy and then stuck the billets in a plastic garbage bag  for a few days. I then punched some small holes in the bags a few days later. After 10 days I took them out. The heat then started coming on sporadically and then more consistently all winter. I removed the last layer of bark after about a month.
 The billets did not check at all.

[jandersson]

So I went to get some of it and this is what was the best of it.

The smallest one is probably 60"x 1.5" then you get an idea of how big the others are. Lots of branches, knots and twists. would you guys give any of these a try?  also I have a question about this:


Should I make this side the belly and  try to cut it off?

[Zion]

if the smallest ones that big i'd say you got a lot to work with

[mikekeswick]

Pat - That is exactly how I treated my last piece and it still checked. Lilac can be a real pain. I'm glad your experience was different to mine. Lilac needs to be well looked after to dry correctly.

[Joec123able]

Every one of those pieces are gonna be pretty difficult it looks like