Hickory wood for 1st bow

[shackleton]

How is hickory to work with?
Scott

[George Tsoukalas]

I love hickory. Take off the bark and make a bow. Jawge

[Danzn Bar]

+1 what Jawge says............
DBar

[bushboy]

Stave or board?

[shackleton]

Not sure of stave or board...haven't decided.

[osage outlaw]

Hickory likes to be very dry.  Keep that in mind when you build your bow.

[Danzn Bar]

+1 what OO said and ...I personally like staves only because I have access to staves. And it gives good experience for other woods that you cant regularly find in boards.
DBar

[ksnow]

I'm with all of the above. Hickory is nice to work. Careful with a drawknife or spokeshave, the grain is somewhat interlocking and can tear out. Keep the stave dry as you work it. Also, heat treating will only help hickory. Have fun.

Kyle

[Danzn Bar]

good point Kyle.....keep your stave dry while your working it.  I use a 6 ft long piece of aluminum dryer vent hose and hang it from the floor joist or rafters. and put a 60 watt light blub on the floor in the hose.  I put the stave or bow in the hose between sessions working on it. works real good and is a cheap and easy dry box.
DBar

[High-Desert]

Hickory is one of my favorites to work. If you go with a board, I think it's the only way to go. It's easy to work, it's forgiving. Like everyone else said, Get it dry and keep it that way.

[shackleton]

Thanks guys.

[Springbuck]

Hickory doesn't grow where I live, unfortunately, but I'd basically take all of it I can get.  It worksvery nicely with all kinds of tools and makes a great bow.

[RatherBinTheWoods]

Hickory makes great bows. Agree with all that’s been said already. Needs to be dry. You can make really thin elegant bows of a good draw weight still with Hickory. I have acces to boards and use many with the rings running back to belly ie. quarter sawn

[Eric Krewson]

I don't really like hickory except for my students first bow for which it is wonderful,  it is hard to goof up a hickory bow.

Performance wise it comes up short compared to osage for me because the average wood M/C where I live is 12%, this makes for a sluggish hickory bow.

On the plus side; it is easy to get, cut it in the spring and summer and the bark pulls right off establishing the bows back and it will make an OK bow.

[George Tsoukalas]

I prefer hickory staves. If you want to start with a board then try red oak. More on my site. Jawge
http://traditionalarchery101.com