On my way to work today, saw a farmer had cut down a row of Osage trees. I think I might be able to get some. What do I look for to get good stave material? Will limbs work as well as trunks? I know to stay away from twisted bark but what else should I stay away from. Any help appreciated

Straighter the better and seal up those ends .

Look at the ends for the growth rings. The thicker the late-wood(darker) rings are the easier they will be to chase for the back of your bow. Preferably late wood ring thickness % to early wood(lighter) rings would be greater. The cleaner the tree trunk is, the better chance you have of getting better staves. You can count on some hidden knots and such under the bark anyway, so try to find as clean as you can to minimize them. If they have already started to check/crack on the ends, I like to cut them long so I can recut the ends to try to get past the checks, then seal right away. Split as soon as possible, to aid in drying, and if you leave the bark on, spray bark heavily with some type of bug spray, to prevent wasp larvae from boring into the staves. If you remove the bark, seal the fresh back of the staves immediately. Good luck, hope you find some good yellow wood.

Is latex paint best sealer, and do you just seal ends? Should you take bark off

I would get shellac for the ends. If you take bark off and run a ring then seal the back with shellac also.

Also, if you take the bark off, be sure to remove the sapwood also. Most of the time even if you seal it the sapwood has a tendency to check anyway, carrying the check down into the heartwood. Shellac makes a good cheap sealer that’s easy to remove later, you can use thinned down wood glue, If doing ends only, i’ve used spray can poly. If you use something that dries clear, you can see what you have in the future when your ready to start working on one. A down side to using any type of paint.

If you don't have any paint on hand, wood glue such as tight bond will also do a very good job of sealing up the ends. Just look for knot free and straight grained wood. Good luck, and nice score.

Don't pass up billet length wood that is otherwise good. Almost all my bows are two piece because it's so much easier to find good wood in shorter lengths.

Like Jim said, billet wood at least 36" long will make some mighty fine bows when spliced in the handle. Often you can split out side by side sister billets out of a short piece that will be a perfect match limb to limb. I prefer these to full length staves.

splicing is easy once you get the hang of it.

If you use an power tools on it for cutting make sure you wear a respirator. That saw dust is nasty and had the consistency of gold powdered sugar.

Right on, a lot of us bow builders have built up a sensitivity to osage dust over the years, at first walnut dust made me sick, then osage dust and now any kind of wood dust. I have to use cartridge respirator to work with the stuff.

Took my 80 year old bowyer friend with me, we couldn't find anything long enough enough. Don't think I'm ready for splicing yet. Although got another line on some Osage trees at work tonite!

Thanks for all the info appreciate it!

Even if too short take and seal some. It is of value to craftsmen for other purposes. Find some of those people and give them some wood. - lbg

Even if too short take and seal some. It is of value to craftsmen for other purposes. Find some of those people and give them some wood. - lbg

Longbowguy x 2

I make jointed bows using tubing. Easy as hanging an axe handle. Don't let billets burn!

I make jointed bows using tubing. Easy as hanging an axe handle. Don't let billets burn!

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