The bow beat me but I got even

[Eric Krewson]

I haven't messed up a bow in a long time but it happens.

I had a hinged hickory bow that a student got too agressive with while tillering, it sat in the corner for months. A couple of days ago I heat treated the belly, brought the limbs back into line and started tillering the bow, I was hoping for a very light weight ladies bow.

To me hickory is just OK, makes a decent bow but it isn't osage. As I progressed on the tillering and had almost everything in line something would change. I would exercise the limbs between scraping, get a modest change and continue scraping then it happened, a hinge, then another. It was like all the exercising was for naught and when the bow decided to register a change it did it all at once.

I was way past a light ladies bow at this point and might have been able to salvage a kiddie bow as best so I decided to feed my BBQ grill with what was left, hickory makes some nice smoke.

   

[Stringman]

That's funny. It's important to not let the wood win.   

[Pat B]

Sometimes you just gotta do what you gotta do.   At least use the scraps for your next BBQ so all is not lost. 

[PaulN/KS]

Yep, sometimes ya gotta let the wood know where it fits in the food chain... 
Osage bits and splits get used in my smoker as well. I find that it works well with beef.

[Dances with squirrels]

That works!

I have a hickory bow in the works now and it's been misbehaving. I've heated and moved the limbs a half dozen times trying to keep them aligned. Maybe I'll show her the picture of yours so she knows where she's headed if we can't soon come to an understanding.

[Bob Barnes]

too funny Eric... we've all been there.     It's good that you found a use that the wood was better suited for.   

[nakedfeet]

It was like all the exercising was for naught and when the bow decided to register a change it did it all at once.

Man, that drives me nuts. Thankfully it wasn't with any hinges, but on the bow I'm working on now I had the limbs trade places being the strong limb about four times through tillering. I'd try to even them up by taking a pass on the strong limb, no change. Another pass, minor change. Another pass, no change. One more -- woops! Now it's weaker by a lot. Switch!

Thankfully I was able to get them very close pretty much right in time, and got the tiller pretty much where I wanted it while I still had a little weight to spare.

Wood is weird.

[bradsmith2010]

the bow made food one way or the other

[Knoll]

. . . .  It's important to not let the wood win.   

that too is funny.

[osage outlaw]

When I have a bow like that I like to flex it on the ground and snap the bottom limb. 

[upstatenybowyer]

I can totally relate to how you described the tillering process. The bow registers the changes due to scraping on it's own time and on it's own terms. It's almost as if the wood is consciously trying to fight me. HHB especially likes to do that. 

I almost invariably "get even" by cutting it up and burning it. I can't just let it sit in a corner cause I feel like it's looking at me or something. I always feel better when I turn it into smoke and ash.   

[BowEd]

Know what you mean Eric.At least it was'nt shy and revealed itself sooner then later.I'm afraid the previous student just put too bad of a hinge on it and pulled it too far and just plain wrecked other parts of the limb too that had'nt had a chance to show anything.

[Mad Max]

If you can't beat it, eat it
 

[Dakota Kid]

I always feel better when I turn it into smoke and ash. 

And if the stave in question is ash to begin with? Would you end up with ash ash?  Sorry couldn't resist.

[Pappy]

Yep , that is what I do with them that want to act up, cook brats with it.
 Pappy