Crepe Myrtle Bow

[BeePrimitive]

Hello! Thank you all for letting me be a part of this forum!

I tried to build a bow for my brother this past Christmas and got it almost to where he wanted it but it broke. I am a total noob and didn’t pay attention to the grain of the red oak board I got from HD.

Anyway, it’s a new year and I am at home with a back injury and thought it would be nice to start on a new bow. My brother and I cut 5 straightish Crepe Myrtles and we are wondering how long to let them dry? I will post pics of a couple of the staves that I stripped yesterday!

Thank you!

Kenly

[bradsmith2010]

Well..that's a tricky question,.and can vary depending on results desired..from quick survival bow...to well cured stave bow,.up to u

[BeePrimitive]

Thank you for your response! I want this to last. I also want to hunt with something homemade this year. Maybe I should do one fully cured and a survival bow.

[BowEd]

Crepe myrtle is pretty hard stuff.The harder the longer usually.That also depends on how thick your piece is your wanting dry or to 9% or so.

[BeePrimitive]

One of them is not very straight so I am not sure what can be done about that. The other one is fairly straight and has a wonderful bend in the center that feels really good! I might use that as my handle!
I’m trying to upload the pictures but it’s taking forever!

[Pat B]

If you reduce the staves to floor tiller stage they will dry quicker. Bee( )sure to seal the back and ends well. I've never worked crepe myrtle but I've seen some pretty nice ones. The first one I saw was made by a guy that went by Thimbo(or something like that) and he was building 90# bows with it.

[BeePrimitive]

Awesome!  I didn’t know if floor tillering now would hurt it. I just want to do something towards it! I have read a lot of threads from Thimbo and Ken75 who do crepe myrtles bows. Ken75 makes beautiful CM bows!

🐝

[BeePrimitive]

Also, I cut these with a metal cut off blade and burned the ends. It is actually very smooth and seems to be sealed by the burnt sap. I wonder if that is an actual seal? What should I use to seal?

[TimBo]

I like cheap wood glue (even something like Elmer's) for ends.  A can of spray shellac is handy for sealing backs (and can work on ends as well).

[BeePrimitive]

So there are tiny little knots running down the center of each side. Should I just scrap this stick? I am having trouble uploading a picture.

[bradsmith2010]

work on your fast cure bow,, and shoot it until the other stave is dry,,, sounds like a plan

[BeePrimitive]

Here are a few pictures of the CM I chose. I cut it Saturday, stripped it Sunday, and roughed it out today. I am a little concerned about the tiny knots running down the centerline of the bow. They are landing about where I have roughed to. Some of them may be gone by the time I am done but some won't be and I think that would cause some weakness.

[Pat B]

Try to get below the pith(center ring) or it may check there as it dries. Just burnishing the end with a dull saw won't seal it enough. Thinned wood glue, melted wax, shellac or even a couple of layers of paint will seal it, anything that will slow down the drying in that area should work.

[BeePrimitive]

Pat, thank you! I sealed it last night with wood glue. I will work on getting below that center ring tonight. Am I correct in my understanding that the ends and back should be sealed but not the belly? I know moisture has to escape somehow.

[BeePrimitive]

Well, that didn’t go as planned! I tried to get below the pith, as Pat had advised, and I ended up with a really flimsy stick  Oh well! I think I started with a tree that was too small anyway.

What size tree should I look at cutting to get the appropriate size stave?

P.S.- I ended up shortening the one I started and made into a small bow for my daughters! I don’t expect it to last but they are having fun with it!