Following White Ash growth rings?

[CrazyHorse1969]

From what I understand, it is not necessary to follow growth rings when making a Hickory self bow. However, is it necessary to follow growth rings when making a White Ash self bow? If it is, how? Because I cannot seem to really differentiate one growth ring from another using the White Ash I have used and have been using.

Thanks for your help,

CrazyHorse1969

[huisme]

Should be able to remove the bark and cambium and use the back of the wood as is. I haven't tried chasing an ash ring but it seems Oregon ash would be easy.

[PEARL DRUMS]

Ive chased white ash, its not impossible, but no fun either. Like Marc said, peel the bark and cambium off and that's your back. My question is, where did you find live ash in Michigan? I haven't seen a healthy ash tree in years. All are at one degree of dying or another.

[PatM]

I've found that Ash is no different than the Osage I've seen. Large growth rings with pithy early growth. It must vary.

[CrazyHorse1969]

Thanks, guys.

The White Ash I used was a 7-foot plus seasoned log that my uncle bought to cut up for firewood. It yielded my first two self bows and one stave I mucked up and one stave I cracked (just last week) trying to straighten a limb twist.

[Bloodhound]

I have used ash I cut in northern wi, I found the rings very easy to chase.

[CustomArcher15]

I heard you can take liquid beeswax and put it on there to see rings better. (Props to colindemo)

[Hamish]

It is commonly thought that ash early wood is not as strong as hickory, and that ash won't take as much deviation off straight when used as a backing.  That being said most sawn ash will handle the tension of being used as a backing or as a board bow providing the limb is wide enough, and the grain is straight. Wood with a higher amount of early wood on the back is going to be weaker.

For narrow bows old time European bowyers used a single growth ring of ash to back laminations of tropical hardwood.

[half eye]

I live in the northern lower (a troll,eh?) we have a fair amount of ash. I never did chase a ring on any ash, just debarked and made a bow Most of the wood around here is really tight ringed and the ash is no exception.
rich

[Buckeye Guy]

The ash we had around here was easy
just drive a wedge in the end and it popped right off , sometimes there was a wee bit of scrapping ,But usually not.

[CrazyHorse1969]

Thanks, again, guys. It is interesting to hear all of the different takes on ash. I am thinking that the White Ash I am using is pretty close to what Half Eye and Buckeye Guy are describing. Wood is a fascinating thing, and I wish I would have gotten into all of this when I was younger because I feel like I have a lot of catching up to do. But, as they say, better late than never.

[PatM]

The Ash types we have up here are virtually identical in wood properties. White Ash is supposed to be strongest but the Green Ash I have cut up here disputes that. Particularly the stuff I have cut in Nova Scotia.
 Growth rings tend to be very even and fairly thick and hence easy to chase.
 Obviously there is no need to chase a ring if you just peel the bark but the discussion is more about what it is like to chase if there is a reason to do so.

[nakedfeet]

Thanks, guys.

The White Ash I used was a 7-foot plus seasoned log that my uncle bought to cut up for firewood. It yielded my first two self bows and one stave I mucked up and one stave I cracked (just last week) trying to straighten a limb twist.

It doesn't have borer marks all over it?

My grandpa tried to tell me he had some ash he could cut and give me for building bows. I saw the particular trees he was talking about and the ash borers had already gotten to them.

If your uncle bought this as firewood, it is very likely that it was cut standing-dead and already had ash borers in it.

If the last ring is marred up it's not going to work. Chasing a ring might work, but frankly, I wouldn't even mess with it.

If it was alive and unaffected by the bugs when cut, well, then that's a different story.

I've made an ash bow from a sapling, and have a few others that I'll do the same with.

[CrazyHorse1969]

Yes, I am thinking that it was a standing-dead White Ash (and it was a bit marked up). I sort of understood what that meant as far as building a bow before I started working with it, but I wanted to cut my teeth on something just to get started. It was A LOT of work, but I got two functional self bows out of it so far. When I say functional, I mean that I have shot them both hundreds of times at this point and they both shoot great and look pretty darn good for my first two attempts. Here is a picture of one of them, the second one (64" White Ash 45# @ 25").