After Heating Tips, How long?

[bigcountry]

I straightened out an osage with heat gun and oil by moving the tips.

How long would wait to go back to tillering?  I have had it to a low brace (before straighting) of 3".  Tillered on the long string to make sure no hinges or major flat spots.  Would you start immediately or give the wood time to soak up moisture?

[adb]

With a heat gun and oil, you should be good to go almost right away. If I boil or steam, I usually wait a day or two. Even then, it doesn't take long for the wood to return to it's stable moisture content. With things like rawhide or especially sinew, you need to wait days or weeks for the moisture to drop back.

[George Tsoukalas]

I usually wait about a day or even less. Jawge

[makenzie71]

By the time you've read this post, the stave is as ready as it was before you heated it.

[Josh]

I usually wait an hour or two to cool before I take it off the form, then I wait a day to re-hydrate... probably a little long but better safe than sorry I think.  Also if i am heat treating the belly--i.e. scorching/toasting the belly--then I wait a week until I start tillering again.   

[bigcountry]

Many thanks guys. 

I found a good way to move my tips side to side.  Before when i did it, the limb would want to bow out instead of moving the tips.  But I did what Pat B said and made an L-shapped form and clamped down the tip, hung a weight in the handle and let the wood tell me when it was ready to move.  All this time clamping the back to the wood making sure it didn't twist or bow out.

[Pat B]

When I do any heat straightening I wait over night before stressing it. Even if the outside feels cool the inside can still be warm and the wood may bend if stressed.

[Hillbilly]

Let it rehydrate at least overnight. I learned my lesson on this the hard way by breaking a really nice osage bow.  I flipped the tips and strung it about an hour later. It popped at about half-draw. I've gotten away with it too in the past, but I'll never take that chance again after runing one of the straightest, cleanest osage staves I've ever worked.

[Jmilbrandt]

I have only had a couple break on me from not waiting but it's not a good feeling wasting all that time and effort. I would just wait a day.