Butterfly Bush Bow

[Del the cat]

I pruned some Buddleia (aka Butterfly bush) back in 2014, a straight but knotty length seemed worth saving but not very promising.
Anyhow I made it up into a quick bow to see what it would do. It has coarse bark a central pith and regular big knobbly knots (looks a bit like Elder)
Target weight 40# at about 24-15"
Well I got it to 40# at 23" , I'd been working to reduce the right limb and it still needed easing off a bit more when... it exploded, breaking at a lumpy knot where bunches of leaves sprout out.
The tiller was still work in progress, the grip could have bent a bit more and the right limb needed easing off a tad.
Here's a link to the video with slo mo at the point of breakage, you can hear it go and see the limb bulge up (left limb) at about 1:13 if you are impatient! .
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dfrpNkQME04
AROOGAH ARROOOGAH sarcasm alert:-
I think this is conclusive proof that Budleia is sutable for 100# Warbows  (baaaad kitty  )
Del

[Pat B]

You are braver than I am, Del.   

[osage outlaw]

I kept waiting for your feet to pop up in the air like your other bow breaking video.

[Del the cat]

I kept waiting for your feet to pop up in the air like your other bow breaking video.

I was waiting for this one to go as it was just a bit of fun 
Del

[Pat B]

Simple pleasures!   

[DC]

For 51" inches it actually took a heck of a bend. Stretch that out 80" who knows? Good fun

[bjrogg]

Del sure glad to see your staying busy and enjoying your retirement. I love how you cheered at the end. Thanks for posting
Bjrogg

[stuckinthemud]

What do you reckon if it hadn't had the knot? It was all looking good for a while and I love the idea of a budleja bow.

[willie]

given the way it humped up before it let go, do you think that the belly gave out first in spite of the knot on the back?

and yes, some days you might be a bad kitty

[Del the cat]

given the way it humped up before it let go, do you think that the belly gave out first in spite of the knot on the back?

and yes, some days you might be a bad kitty

I have pics! I think the back popped open, you can hear it break.
You can see where I plugged the knot on the belly, it was very porous bark like stuff with a small hole going right through to the back.
Del

[turtle]

I remember seeing you chase a butterfly one other time. You were chasing that one with a camera instead of a scraper though.   

[stuckinthemud]

So what is your opinion on it as a wooden spring? If you'd have had a nasty knot like that in yew it'd have gone bang  too...with a finished tiller and no knots, would it have made a half decent bow?

[upstatenybowyer]

Fantastic, but does it compare to an ERC explosion? 

[BowEd]

Golly it sure looked like a really nice bend though before she went boom.Just one too many knots heh???Good try though.
I know I'll never forget how a red cedar blew on me at 26" once.Back in my experimental days with red cedar.It was a R/D bow with 6" of reflex overall sinewed heavy on 1.75" wide limbs 64" long but still blew.Very violently and loud on the tillering tree luckily.Broke my poundage tester or at least screwed up the electronic components of it.It was a digital.The sinew held nicely but delaminated the bow right through the handle....lol.I should of recorded that one.
I imagine yours did'nt make a terribly big bang did it?

[Del the cat]

@Stuckinthemud
Yew doesn't have knots like these, these are weird, more like a burr than an ordinary knot.I think bunches of leaves rather than branches sprout from these knots.
It would probably be ok as a bow wood if you could get a long enough bit with no knots, but I don't think it grows with long clean lengths.
here's a pic of a knot with the outer bark wire brushed off.
@Beadman
No not a very big bang    !
@Turtle, yes I remember that! Damn things wouldn't settle for me LOL 
Del