Primitive Archer
Main Discussion Area => Bows => Topic started by: billmac on April 12, 2007, 12:02:49 am
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Crazy question. For thin barked trees like birch, I wonder if you could actually leave the bark on the stave?
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I read about leaving some bark as a backing on hickory bows(Primitive Archer Vol1 Issue2, I think). The otter bark was removed and the inner bark was left. I believe the outer bark on most trees would be too brittle and could crack under tension and that would be desaster for a bow. Which kind of birch are you talking about? Paper (canoe) birch would probably be flexable enough but sweet birch would crack. Pat
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........LIke Pat said....bob
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I tried leaving it on a Hickory limb bow and it looked cool for a while then it started cracking as it seasoned, so now I take it off.Never tried Birch. :)
Pappy
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Pappy, even the canoe birch bark after 3 or 4 years dries out and becomes brittle as to tearing it horizontally. I remember my birch bark canoe 25 years ago was very tough and flexable but after some time it was not. Tough yes, flexable not so much. I guess what I am saying is eventually it will dry to the point on the bow it would develop horizontal cracks in it. I have a couple of sheets (4ft x 4ft) that are 5 years old that crack when you look at them. Are you trying to make a bow from Birch? If so why not take the bark off and then glue a thin section back on. I've seen Vinson do something similar. I am going to do something similar on a long bow with birch bark and another bark or stain job.
Dick
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I have grey, white (paper), and yellow birches around me. I never read about anyone using grey birch for bows but that is by far the most numerous birch in my area. Most everyone mistakenly calls it white birch because it is, well, white.
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Strunk did an article on building a survival bow for PA about ten years ago. He said he thought green wood was stronger with some bark left on and seasoned wood was stronger with the bark off. I do know you can leave some bark on thin-skinned plants like serviceberry and oceanspray.
J. D. Duff
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I've seen pics of plum branch bows with the bark left on.
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ive left it on hickory and elm but wouldnt reccomend it. especially if you hunt. it cracks like a firecracker sometimes. just about stopped my heart the first time i heard it and im pretty sure the deer i was pointin it at left a pile of pellets where he was standing. lol peace
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Don,t have any dealings with birch but i left the sapwood on a hickory pyrimid. I used it all one season but the next season it made the click noise that we all dread and the sapwood had dryed and seperated. I retillered which dropped the# to a level that retired it for deer hunting. I sure miss that bow. Now i clean off everything and back with suede leather.
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I've got a couple of what I call swamp birches in my front yard. Went out while ago and pealed some bark off. I think it would look good on the back of a bow (possibly osage) if you could get it to lay flat enough and sealed in. I'm afraid that it might crack and cause problems unless you put a hundred or so coats of tru-oil on it. ;D
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I have used paper birch bark as a backing but it was a single, paper thin layer. I used it to cover a sinew backing. I believe it was used on Asiatic composit bows as a limb covering for moisture protection.
When I read about leaving the inner bark of hickory on as a backing was just a short while ago. Now, I will have to wait until the trees go dormant again to collect a stave.
Greg, Your swamp birch is probably River Birct(Betula niger). It has paper like bark but it only flakes off in small pieces. Paper birch is simular but is in continuous sheets. Pat
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That sounds right Pat, I wouldn't be able to get one section long enough to place on one entire limb...would take multiple sections. I thought if you could get it to lay down and really pour on the tru-oil to the back you might could get it to work. Just didn't know about it potentially cracking over time.
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Greg, I've been thinking about the river birch bark lately, too. It peels off in really thin layers, should work.
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I take the inner bark of usually but depending on my mood I'll leave bits here and there for decoration. The stuff is very stringy and doesn't want to be there really. In time, if the pieces are too large, it peels off on its own. Jawge
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I wonder if the timing matters when the stave is cut as to weather the bark will stick permanrntly or not. Like early in the dormant season as compared to during the middle of the dormant season to late in the dormant season before the new wood beging to grow. I will reread the article in the old PA and see if that is explaned.
I have made a few bows with small amounts of inner bark left on for camo and like Jawge said, eventually some or all of these pieces of this will peel off. Pat
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Like Hillbilly said, the river birch peals off in thin layers. What you see curling on the tree, if you pull a piece of that bark off it is made up of 3-4 thin layers. The outer layer has the white-gray color, the inner layers are a reddish brown more solid color.
I was thinking of separating the layers and only using the outer layer, then gluing that down to the back and wrapping it like you would a snake skin until the glue drys. I'm not sure if it would need to be soaked first or not. I've got a bow in the works that I might try it on. Would that thin layer hold up to years of shooting when it's sealed?
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Greg, I think that after it is sealed, you should hasve no problem with the duribility of birch bark. I may have a few longer pieces that I will bring to the Classis and you can have them if you want them. Pat
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I don't think there's much of a problem with bark that's glued on to a bow as a backing, (as opposed to leaving naturally attached bark on). I've seen lots of bows backed with birch bark, cherry bark, and such. There are some really old Asian composite bows with birch bark over the sinew.