Another Wood ID help? (sourwood!)

[Ringeck85]

Hello folks!

I cut these (and three other smaller logs) and split them, and debarked them since taking these pictures.  I live in Northern Florida, near a spring so it's quite damp where I look for bow wood.  I cut these in mid-march; the leaves weren't quite on the tree yet, but they looked to be narrow, and 5-7 leaflets shaped like either hickory or ash. The bark and wood looks sorta like Hickory, but I didn't see any nuts on the ground.  The trunk had some moss on it.  The bark is smooth on the branches, and on the trunk sections has fissures/almost a diamond ridge pattern, and peels off relatively easily, which is also why I was thinking hickory or related.

I might be able to find some leaves from a similar tree but I will have to go into the woods a ways and get pictures again.

So, if anyone might be sure of what this is, let me know

http://i1359.photobucket.com/albums/q797/VisarFalmaien/DSCN9843_zps8832ccd7.jpg

http://i1359.photobucket.com/albums/q797/VisarFalmaien/DSCN9842_zps9f031243.jpg

http://i1359.photobucket.com/albums/q797/VisarFalmaien/DSCN9837_zps3f943394.jpg

So, it's not oak (no oak-like leaves or acorns), it's not maple or anything smooth-barked.  It's not sweetgum those leaves are already out and that bark is more scaly.  I'm thinking some sorta Hickory (Mockernut, Pignut, and Bitternut grow here I think?) or Ash (Green and White Ash grow here according to the tree id book I have), but what do you think?

[DarkSoul]

Judging from the picture of the end grain, the wood does not appear to be ring porous (like hickory and ash would be), but diffuse porous. Am I correct? It can be hard to see from such pictures. Please inspect the end grain yourself; it's very easy to see the difference between ring- and diffuse porous woods and rules out a lot of options.

And leaves would be handy too............

[Hrothgar]

Looks like some kind of elm.

[okie64]

I cant see the end grain in the pics well enough to tell a whole lot about it. If you think its hickory or ash it should be easy to tell which one it is by looking at the end grain. Hickory earlywood will be really thin and sometimes almost nonexistent(sometimes it just looks like a little dotted line between latewood rings). Ash earlywood will usually be fairly thick and easy to see. Heres an endgrain pic of a hickory and ash stave to help you out. Hickory is on the left and ash on the right.

[autologus]

Looks like hickory to me.

Grady

[lostarrow]

Always good to know what you are looking at before you cut. These should be good , but some trees make better trees than bows . The twigs tell a great deal of the story when trying to I.D. wood in the winter. If you get some of them , the I.D. will come pretty quick!

[Ringeck85]

lostarrow
I think I might have had an "this is bow wood!" impulse when I cut it lol.  In hindsight it wasn't the best decision in the world, both for the uncertainty of the wood and for the amount of time it took to carry it back (not to mention the potential for waste, but I'm using every bit of it). I had cut down a tuliptree thinking it was maple of all things; well when life doesn't give you bow wood, it gives you arrow wood but you're not always going to be that lucky.

 Shouldn't be a problem now that the leaves are out in force.

I will get back to you guys on the leaves/twigs if I can find it; another thing I learned from these staves is I'm not going so far into the woods that it takes me two hours to get back carrying five logs.

It looks more like the hickory picture than the ash, so it is definitely not ash.  I've seen some ash trees at a park a few miles east, but alas, I don't have permission on public property.

   I also don't think these are elm, and I would have noticed the leaves on the ground as distinctive.  I have definitely looked for elm (found some beech, which has similar looking leaves, but totally different bark) as I would love to make a warbow out of a good elm stave.

I Think the wood is ring porous but I'm not good at judging that.  I will provide more pictures including leaves/twigs if/when I find the same kind of tree next foray.  Thank you guys

[wapiti1997]

It is tough without the buds and twigs, but it does look like hickory or pecan to me.

[Thesquirrelslinger]

I think I have some elm... It has nice, 1/2 inch rings. Very, very strong and a $()(#&$! to split. a single 6 inch log 65" long took me around 2 hours with a sledgehammer(10 pound) hatchet and dual wedges...
I am going to say... that is probably hickory.. that sure don't look like ash or elm. but I do not know. I have little experiance...
Try taking a small piece of it(thin, like a 12 inch sample, 1/2 inch diameter) and bend it. if you can bend it insanely far, it is probably hickory. Elm tends to have a lighter colored bark, and much different end grain. Ill take pics of the elm I have.

[Squirrelslayer]

Looks like hickory to me   

[blackhawk]

Well I know it ain't osage...so its prob not any good for bows....you can only make great bows from osage,and that's all you need to know 

[Ringeck85]

Blackhawk what kind of monotreeistic attitude is that?    you might as well try to make a bow out of the devil's walkingstick lol

Me, i love polytreeism it's more fun, challenging, and you get more variety, and no excuse for boredom. All trees of divine bow spirit deserve a chance hehe

And hey, if you offer a sample of your osage deity i might consider converting  to the one true 'Sage 

Erm more seriously (like i'm ever serious...)

I'm pretty sure it's some kinda hickory too, it was relatively easy to split (though not as straight as i'd like on some pieces) and while it has some bends and knobs, it will at best have character and at worse give me some excellent lessons for the future whether it makes the string or no. I suspect that the rings aren't as pronounced both because my hand sawing sucks so it makes it harder to see than a clean cut, and the fact that it's in Florida with such puny winters might make the ring growths less pronounced? Seems like the colder you get the more ring porous than diffuse porous hardwood trees you find. Am i onto something or is this old news?

[blackhawk]

Ha...my buddy bill and I once played with a devils walkingstick stave he had and it didn't work out so well  ...I'd like to give that one another go,but its about the same as Willow... need to go real loooooong

And I know it ain't devils walkingstick so it can't be that bad either..lol

Why not dry a sample piece out and do a specific gravity test...that'll give you some good info to go off of for starting dimensions?

[Squirrelslayer]

Well I know it ain't osage...so its prob not any good for bows....you can only make great bows from osage,and that's all you need to know 

How about Yew SS

[H Rhodes]

Hickory.