Red Elm Sapwood ?'s

[ajbruggink]

Heh guys, I just wanted to ask if you need to thin Red Elm sapwood to make bows like you sometimes have to do with yew or can I just leave it? I'm posting a picture of the end of the stave I have so you guys can get a look of the amount of sapwood to heartwood. The sapwood is about 3/8" thick on both ends and its thickness is the same throughout its length. Your replies are greatly appreciated.

Thanks,
Aaron

[wizardgoat]

Ive only made 1 red elm bow, and I chased a heart wood ring for my back.
Ive seen sapwood backed bows too, but it seemed a little too soft to me.

[Pat B]

I would use the wood right under the bark for the bows back. That's all I've used and it makes great bows.

[Springbuck]

  Elm sapwood is as tough as the rest of the wood in tension, but it isn't as HARD as the heartwood in compression.  I never chase a ring on it, let the belly fall where it lies, and heat treat it.

On small diameter red elms, I often even find the very middle to be very vascular, almost punky, so lay out bows to be thin enoughn to avoid it.

I would be interested to know what specie you have there.  It's quite pretty, but less dark in the heartwood than I am used to on a slippery elm, and the sapwood seems very thick to me for the red elms I am used to, which tend to have thin rings, and only a few of them, before I hit heartwood.

[Pat B]

Look at my post on the "Archives" thread, 60" elm static recurve. I go through the whole process from a 60", half round elm stave to the finished static recurve.