Primitive Archer
Main Discussion Area => Bows => Topic started by: goomba on March 03, 2019, 12:30:06 pm
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A friend of mine keeps me supplied with bow wood
that he cuts in Ohio. This is one that he thought was
Elm but I split it very easily. I'm pretty sure that it
is not Elm. I don't know what kind of wood it is.
It is 5" in diameter with late growth rings that average 1/4".
Any ideas what it might be?
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Looks like Black Walnut to me.
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Just a wild guess Poplar or Cottonwood... ???
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That is elm.
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Looks like Poplar to me.
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Looks like walnut to me. What does the pith look like?
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Bark sure looks like elm.
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Doesn't look like our Elm.
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Thanks guys.
The reason I don't think it is elm is because there
is no interlocking grain. I can run my hand down
the wood without getting a splinter. Is there an
elm without interlocking grain?
The pith is medium dark flaky stuff.
I've read that poplar is not a good bow wood.
I guess I could try using it later...nothing to loose but time.
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It looks nice and straight. If it's Poplar make arrows, maybe :)
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If it's poplar it makes good arrows.
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Walnut had a specific smell to it, sapwood or hartwood. If you have ever worked with the stuff you should understand. Nothing else like it imo. Of course so does elm but I don't think its as pronounced or as pleasant. I'd suggest taking a few swipes with some sandpaper and maybe that could tell you something or rule something out.
Mike
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Looks like a young Black walnut to me, pretty sure it's not Elm.
Pappy
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could be hickory... if pith has greenish color.. could say popular but bark doesnt match popular IMO... popular is too brittle for bow... maybe walnut... thats a lot of sapwood for walnut though..Im going with hickory on this one...gut
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Black walnut, young trees have a lot o f sapwood like that.
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Thanks Mike - I haven't worked with black walnut yet. It does have a faint
pleasant odor to it though.
Thanks Pappy.
Thanks Bassman - Just want to make sure I understand what you're saying:
You floor tiller when it is green and put it on a backset form until dry and
heat treat before removing from form.
How much backset do you loose after final tillering?
Do you heat treat during final tillering and after?
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Thanks gutpile - The pith is brown. I looked on the internet
for hickory barks and it is similar to bitternut hickory.
Thanks dylanholderman.
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Thanks gutpile - The pith is brown. I looked on the internet
for hickory barks and it is similar to bitternut hickory.
Thanks dylanholderman.
Not that similar to bitternut, certainly not young bitternut.
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Thanks bassman.
After looking again I agree PatM,
The first one is bitternut (mature I guess)
The second is my wood.
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I've heat treated 5 bows. The first two were with a heat gun but that
got busted when it fell on the floor. The last three bows I used a butane
torch. It's a little tricky but as long as you keep in moving fairly fast
you don't get any burnt areas. It only takes about 2 or three minutes
on each limb. A lot quicker than the heat gun.
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You're probably not heat treating it well that way.
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Can you explain why not?
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It seems to take longer for the heat to penetrate deep enough into the limb to make the most difference. Wood insulates pretty well.
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You know more about this heat treating stuff than I do so you're
probably correct. When I do it the belly gets very hot to the touch
and shortly after the back of the limb gets hot but not as hot
as the belly. So the heat appears to be traveling through the wood.
My limbs are usually around 3/8" thick or a little less.
It appears to make the limbs a little stiffer but maybe it's
just my imagination.
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Looks like red elm to me. The bark and the Heartwood
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Looks like red elm to me. The bark and the Heartwood
Good to see I'm not the only one who sees that :).
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after further observation I agree not hickory.. the heartwood would need to be almost 5 sided to be hickory... gut
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I usually don't get into these wood ID posts, as they usually devolve into arguments and we never find out the real answer. Leaves are the best way to identify wood. On these pieces, the bark says elm, maybe walnut, definitely not any hickory I've seen in WI. The inside says walnut to me, the heart wood is a tad darker than our red elm.
That said, let it season a year or so, then hit it with a draw knife. You'll figure out in less than a half a second if it's elm or walnut. Walnut will work like warm butter, the elm will laugh in your face.
Kyle
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Walnut
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Pearl drums, Blackhawk and I cut some several years back. The Heartwood was blood red but when it dried it turned brown like Walnut. I still have a piece, if I make it to the wood shed this weekend I'll take a picture of it.
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Might take the stave to the County Extension office, there is usually a forester attached to them, or to the state forest service, if it isn't too far.
Hawkdancer
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I'm fairly certain that is a young walnut. The inner bark will be chocolate colored. A hickory or elm would have tan inner bark. Just slice the bark with a knife, it will reveal..
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I saw my friend today, the one who gave me the wood. and I told him
about this website and that a number of people here seem to
think that it is black walnut. He said he is positive it is not
black walnut but he doesn't know what else it might be.
I don't know how red elm splits but the other elm that
I split was a real bugger. This stuff was a piece of cake.
I'll make one bow from it and see what happens.
I'll make it long and wide.
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Its elm, like I said all along :). I've cut enough to know. Not all elm is stringy and pain in the azz to split. Not to mention, walnut doesn't grow sporadically like elm does. It grows in patches in very specific areas, well drained and full sun.
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An Elm with these thick growth rings should be good bow wood I think.
I'm anxious to give it a go. Do you think this flatbow design would be OK?
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That is good for a 26" draw, add 4" for a 28" draw.
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Thanks.