I love livin here

[gstoneberg]

Just answered this add in the Craig's List Free adds:

Old cut, fresh cut and still to be cut Bois D' Arc (horse apple, osage orange , etc) trees looking for a good home.

I'm clearing some pasture land and hate to see anything go to waste. If you know of ANYONE that has ANY use for this fine, hard wood, please contact me.

I couldn't contact him fast enough.  I'm looking at it tomorrow, turns out it's 6 miles from my house.

George

[mullet]

 Lucky you!

[gstoneberg]

Lucky you!

I hope so, but I've looked at a lot of crooked osage over the years.  Should know tomorrow.  Thanks.

George

[mullet]

 You can still saw it into boards.

[gstoneberg]

I just tried with my Jet 14" band saw and if the osage is more than about 2" thick it won't cut through it.  My cheap table saw cut it, but I don't think the blade is gonna cut anything else now.  What are you using to saw it up?  I actually looked at one of the portable band saw mills the other day but it was pricey.

George

[mullet]

 If we had Osage here I'd take it to a Saw mill and have it cut. I do the same with Eastern Red Cedar.

[Eric Krewson]

If you get a 3 tpi, skip tooth blade for your bandsaw, it will walk through your osage like it was butter.

Osage is much better split than cut anyway.

[gstoneberg]

The blade I have now is a 4tpi skip tooth 1/2" blade.  I expected it to do better than it does.  I'll have to look for a 3tpi blade, and probably should spend a little more than I did at Lowes.

I agree, I split this log before I started sawing it.  I don't have much choice when I'm making (or more accurately, trying to make) boards.

George

[gstoneberg]

I'm back from looking at bow wood.  I took the camera.

The first clump of osage had a hackberry tree growing right at the edge of it:


Some other possibilities:



Finally selected this clump to cut.  Will take the furthest right "branch" (it is about 12" in diameter) first.  I also took a picture looking up away from the tree:




There was another younger couple looking at wood for furniture.  Turns out he makes glass laminated bows and has wanted to build self bows.  He and I will work together cutting part of the tree this week and then he'll come over to the shop and build a bow with some seasoned osage I have.  Best of all he's a flint knapper.  We'll cut more wood over time.  That will please the owner and keep me from getting too sore.

What a great day.  Found some bow wood and made some new friends, hard to beat that.

George

[mullet]

 Sounds like you had a great day, George.

[woodstick]

we got more osage here in oklahoma than we could cut in 10 years all over the place, good wood.

[Thwackaddict]

George I envy you buddy!Hard to beat a day like that!LOl now if we can jus get him to knock out some heads for us

[gstoneberg]

we got more osage here in oklahoma than we could cut in 10 years all over the place, good wood.

Yes, I think Oklahoma and Kansas are osage central.  Not sure why there's a band of it down here around Dallas.

George

[crumrw]

George, I'm really looking forward to building a bow with you!  It is something I have been wanting to do a long time.  You are right about this band of osage in Texas.  It seems only to be prevelent here in this area.  If I could find flint in Dallas as easily as I can osage, I would be a lot better knapper.  I have an osage at my house that at the base (2 trunks) has got to be almost 5 ft. thick with each trunk being about 2 ft. thick.  Crazy stuff...

Thwackaddict, we might be able to work something out with points...

Rickey

[HatchA]

Thanks to Mike Allstock, Ireland will hopefully have it's own osage growth in years to come...  starting with my garden, when I try my hand at germinating the seeds he gave me