Snaky Osage

[Muskyman]

That naturally was from the side. Fat fingers aside.
Back of it.

[Muskyman]

It’s got a lot going on   
Question, would you guys try and flatten it out or keep the reflex and maybe try and get it equal on both sides?  I have no clue to be honest. In my head I’m thinking that reflex might make it more likely to go boom. But as I said I have no clue.

[superdav95]

Ya that’s a tricky one for sure.  Your ready for this though!  It’s hard to say just looking at pictures. But if I were to say anything I may use steam on this piece.  Just to get the limbs looking more even a little as far as reflex bend goes.  You could likley build yourself a side correction jig to get the tips aligned pretty close at the same time.  You could use a wallpaper steamer connected with a section of 4”pvc piping to get the whole thing steamed at once or at least one half of it.  Have your jig ready to go so you can work quickly.  You could try this with dry heat too but you got lots to correct there.   Best of luck mike. 

[Muskyman]

I’ve got a wallpaper steamer. The tips and the handle are not bad. When I pull a string down it it crosses over the handle. I might try steaming it over the next few days and see if I can get it to straighten up some. Probably need to slow down on it because I’m getting ready to go on vacation   
Don’t want to get in a hurry and turn it into firewood. Might try and do a little bit more work on it then let it sit till I get back home.
The handle is about where the pencil is
What ever happened to your snaky bow you started?

[Pat B]

You're not going to know how the string tracks until you get to low brace. When you get there you'll see what you need to do.
 So far you've done a great job with this difficult stave. 

[superdav95]

Ya the string alignment might be pretty good then.  Just work on getting it flatter then and will be a little more predictable as far as tillering it.  I just use rags on the ends of my pipe after sticking the end of the bow in there.  With clamps and side clapping you should be able to get it to hold where you want.   As far as my snaky elm I’m working on it as we speak.  I just had to finish up the boo backed and bellied bow first and get it posted. 

Cheers. 

[Muskyman]

Can’t wait to see it Dave. Thanks Pat. To be honest I’m a little bit intimidated by it but, hey I’ll keep going until I either get it done or it turns into firewood.

[Pat B]

If you allow it this stave can teach you a lot about building wood bows and learning the characteristics of wood. Just take it slow and steady and put it aside if you get frustrated or agitated with it.

[Muskyman]

Today I didn’t have much time to work on this bow but, got a hour or 2. Got it bending some and have it to where I’m used a card scraper. It has a crack in the handle and I noticed it goes out into both fades. I’m going to put CA glue in the crack. Probably, if I get it that far, I plan on putting a jute handle on it with the epox n denatured alcohol to thin it.. I forgot what that’s called. I’m hoping that it’ll be okay.

[Muskyman]

Couple pictures. Also cut some knocks into it today

[Muskyman]

Belly

[Muskyman]

Side profile

[superdav95]

Looking like a bow in there. 

[Pat B]

Yeah, I see one too. 

[Muskyman]

Thanks gentlemen but, I’m not sure I’m seeing it yet. Got it bending a little more today and put a string on it and it’s pretty wonky looking. Got to try and bend it some, well a lot , for me anyway. Pulled it about 6 inches and it was 40 lbs. been thinking about how I’m going to do it but not 100 percent yet it’s got twists and bends all over the place.
I’m going to post a picture but it probably won’t show much of what I was seeing. I might have to put it on hold for a while and think it through for a while. Probably steam it and clamp it some and see what happens. Little here little there. We’ll see what happens.