Artificial seasoning of wood

[Badger]

  Jim, I think seasoning does give bows with slightly less mass but I see the biggest gains in less hysteresis. I have no idea if seasoning could be sped up with heat or not but I think it might be worth a try.

[BowEd]

It is a question I think to ponder though.This is assuming all wood of a species is the same before.With no enviornmental influences during it's growing period.

[DC]

Would the difference between what you want to do and kiln drying be temperature or time or?

[Mesophilic]

Could you use a solvent?  I've leached resins out of birch bark using alcohol, evaporated it off, and been left with quite a bit of tar.  Could the sap, resins, and volitiles be simply removed with acetone or alcohol?  And how would that affect the integrity and final product of the wood?

[George Tsoukalas]

The process of kiln drying has improved over the years. I made lots of very fine bows from kiln dried lumber. I don't own a chrono but board bows seem to have some giddy-up. Jawge

[Ryan Jacob]

Well, at first I thought this was supposed to be in the cooking forum but now I wonder, is it really the volatiles stabilizing or evaporating? They seem like dead weight to me and if they evaporated off, then it could explain why they’re snappier.

[Badger]

Ryan, I doubt they would account for enough weight to barely be measurable. Osage has latex in it.

[bradsmith2010]

heres my 2 cents,, I was talking to a farmer that used osage for fence,, he said when fresh he can drive a staple in it,, but if it gets dry,, then he cant,, so its getting harder as it dries for sure,, ok at some point in curing it not gonna get harder very fast,, example,, gets alot harder the first 5 years,, then the next 5 years not so much, then after that there is a point of very little change,, like not much difference between a stave 25 years old and 50 years old,, but probably some, and not sure if that difference would translate into a better bow,, but not discounting that it might either,,,

[Badger]

  When you stop to think about it all wood is dead wood except the cambium layer. The only difference is that after it dries out it starts to season. I don't think it is a matter of forcing out the volatiles as much as it is just let them do their thing and harden up or whatever it is they do over time. Curious if a little added heat might speed that up. 

[bjrogg]

Badger. Anything I say here is just a guess since most of the staves your talking about have been it cut longer than I've been making bows. Could it be that the wood keeps shrinking?
Bjrogg

[Danzn Bar]

Wow Brad …...Don't think I could have said it better...
DBar

[BowEd]

Locals here use osage for posts and fence line.I've fixed many old fence lines here.1 year of seasoning and staples or nails won't go in.Some posts in the ground I'm told for over 80 years.Use posts for structure in ponds for fish too.Locals say they turn to iron in 50 years.

[Jim Davis]

It's clear that something changes when sap wood becomes heart wood. It seems from peeling off sapwood on Osage that the change takes a couple or three years. But does it keep on slowly changing after the color change?

I know one compound you don't want to go away is lignin. You'd be left with wood pulp.

[RyanY]

Osage outlaw gave me a small stave at Marshall that was split from wood supposedly drying for at least 25 years. I accidentally left it in my vehicle for the next few days where it was 90+ outside and it checked like crazy. I’d be cautious with nice staves and that high heat.

[lonbow]

In my opinion, there should be a noticeable difference between seasoned and not seasoned wood.


I once made a longbow of yew wood, that I cut half a year before. The wood was definitely dry when I built the bow as it didnīt loose weight anymore. The bow had 50 lbs @ 28". I didnīt use the bow for almost two years after that. When I shot it again, it felt stronger and faster then before. I measured 55 lbs @ 28"! Thatīs a gain in draw weight of 10 percent.

I also read that someone tested arrow spines of dried and seasoned arrow shafts. The spines of the seasond shafts were also about 10 percent higher. Thatīs about the same number!

Some years ago, I had a discussion with a guitar maker who seasons the woods for twelve years in general. He told me that well seasoned woods donīt respond to changes in humidity as much as shortly seasoned woods.

Longbow makers from the 19th and early 20th century seasoned their woods for about five years. They did so, because well seasoned wood doesnīt crystal as easily, as not well seasoned woods.


Here is my conclusion: Bows from well seasoned woods can be made lighter because they need almost 10 percent less wood for the same draw weight. In addition to that, higher cross sections can be made, because the wood doesnīt crystal as easily. And I do also think that bows from well seasoned woods donīt take as much set during high humidity, because the seasoned wood doesnīt respond so much to changes in weather.

I thought about making bows from short seasoned woods some time ago. From my present standpoint, I will definitely give it some time to season.

Greetings,
lonbow