Elm Tree Advice

[BrokenArrow]

I have an elm tree which I have cut and pealed down to the sapwood.
Should I use the sapwood as a back or should I take it off and follow a hardwood ring as a back?

[Pat B]

Use what's under the bark as your back.

[DarkSoul]

Yup, what Pat said.
You could, however, chase a few rings down and make a bow that consists of sapwood on the back and heartwood on the belly. That'll be looking really cool, but there is no advantage apart from the coolness factor. It's no fun, ring chasing elm, though.
Did you split the tree as well? Or did you only remove the bark?

[BrokenArrow]

I removed the bark and layer below it and have the sapwood exposed.
I have not split yet.
Moisture is 33%

[DarkSoul]

SPLIT IT ASAP OR IT WILL CHECK!

And make sure to seal the ends, if you haven't done so already. What diameter is the log?

[BrokenArrow]

12-14 inches in diameter.

[DarkSoul]

I would prefer if you could use the public forum and not send me personal messages

Split the log as soon as possible. (Easier said than done with elm...) The only time I would recommend to keep the bark on a log, is with small diameter (<3") saplings. Otherwise I recommend to remove the bark. But, if you do remove the bark, you must split the log within days, preferably hours, after removing the bark. The exposed surface will dry really quickly and will check very quickly as well. Split the log into stave sized pieces, probably about eight staves from a log that size. Then you can put them aside for several months so they can dry.

[BrokenArrow]

Thanks I will split tomorrow.

[DarkSoul]

Make sure you have plenty of wooden wedges at hand and that you're not in a hurry. You're gonna need both wedges and time tomorrow...

[John D]

The exposed surface will dry really quickly and will check very quickly as well.

Quick side question related to this:

I've seen many of you recommend sealing the backs of certain species of tree to avoid the checking described above.  Is there any species that I would not want to seal the back after debarking/splitting?  I try to keep things as simple as possible and it would be easy to just seal the back of every stave, regardless of species.  What do you [the experienced] say?  Would I be setting myself up for trouble?  Thanks for any advice. 

John D.

Boise

[Pat B]

John, hickory and some other whitewood aren't apt to check(but they can) but I seal any back wood that I expose no matter what species or how long it has been seasoning. It's too cheap and easy and not worth ruining good bow wood.

[John D]

John, hickory and some other whitewood aren't apt to check(but they can) but I seal any back wood that I expose no matter what species or how long it has been seasoning. It's too cheap and easy and not worth ruining good bow wood.

I like that line of reasoning; That's what I'm going to do.

Thanks Pat!

John D.

Boise

[Pat B]

I keep can of spray shellac on my work bench all the time. It takes about 30 seconds to seal the back of a stave. If you are doing a lot of staves at one time, watered down carpenters glue and a cheap paint brush works well.