Just cut a small locust tree. It is 7'11" long and 8" around at the base tapering to 7" at the top.I want to try to make a bow out of it.Now I know to seal the ends and have done so. should I remove the bark or leave it on? Also how long should it take to season before I start to work on it? It will be in my garage which right now is about 60 degrees.I think the temp might drop to about 50 during the coldest parts of the winter.

Personally I would split, and seal the ends. Actually, if it were me I would split in quarters. Then I would tie 3 of the splits down to a straight 2x4 to dry. The 4t I would start to work on right now. Get it to floor tiller dimensions left full width, then give it the same treatment on a 2x4 for about 30 days, then finish it.

I remove the bark from Locust because I have had an issue with borers getting in the wood 2 or 3 times and I'm not fond of spraying them down with pesticide.

Ftp you can use 20 mule team borax mixed with water it will keep the boarers away. Rick

FDP Its only 8inches around at the base and 7inches at the top. To small to split in quarters No?

Split it into two staves. Debark it. Seal the back and ends with spray poly or shellac. You can rough one out to floor tiller and then let it dry til it stops losing weight from moisture loss for a couple of weeks. Weigh it every couple of days. Leave it indoors and check it - when it stops losing weight for a while it is dry enough to work. With that said, I will say that “seasoned” wood is better to work with than “dry enough” wood.

8" may be big enough for four staves if everything goes well. It's tough to say how many bows are in it without seeing it in person. You just want to be sure to have enough wood toward the center to shape the handles the way you want.

Generally, the sapwood is removed on locust selfbows, so you'll lose a little material there too... which pushes the handle deeper into the bottom of the V of the splits, if split into quarters.

It needs to be opened up to lose moisture. I'd split it in half and take note of how it splits, i.e. how the grain runs. If it splits clean and straight, in half, without tearing out or twist/propellor, that's good and will allow the most material and options.

Study the small ends of the halves to see if you'll have enough wood for four bow's handles if you split them again. If so, split it again, and as time permits, remove the bark and sapwood from the staves, bringing them to a single heartwood ring, and seal the backs. It's easier to do this when they're full of moisture.

At this time, I also bring them down to about 2" wide end to end, and 3/4 - 1" thick in the limbs, leaving them 2" thick in the handle/dip area if possible. This keeps them pretty stable laterally, but removes a good bit of excess wood so they dry faster. It's also reduces them enough that they can be steamed and straightened if necessary.

H Rhodes stated exactly what I would have said! X2

Thanks for the guidance.So are the borers in the bark?taking it off will eliminate this problem?

The borers, or their eggs can be in the bark, or the adults can find it after you cut it and lay eggs in there. When they hatch, the larvae tunnel down into the wood. Depending on the type of borer and wood, they may stay within the sapwood, or they might go deep enough into the heartwood to ruin it too, or at least cause you a lot more work. I find cutting live, healthy, standing trees is a good start. I have taken whole logs from folks who had cut them and left them that way for months to a year, and they quite often had borers in them. I've never had that problem with live trees i cut, split, and removed the bark right away. The sooner you get the wood split open and drying, the less borers will want anything to do with it.

Split, remove bark, sapwood too if you like (it's a lot easier now), seal the back and ends. If you do this right away, bug spray probably isn't necessarily, but it's good insurance.

Thank you for the advice. I just split and sealed the ends with tightbond II.I have not removed the bark yet. Can I use tight bond to seal the back after bark removal? or is that not a good Idea?

I would think that shellac is a cheaper sealer and been used for a long time, by many a bowyer. Shellac is also easier to deal with and will seal it well.

BL is a heartwood. That means the best scenario is to chase down to a heartwood ring. If there is not enough heartwood you can leave a layer or 2 of sapwood.

I usually don't bother to remove the bark and chase to a heartwood ring for the back of the bow. But if I do I seal it with spar urethane spray.

Jawge

Thanks again guys.

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