sapling splitting

[Fulldraw]

Hello all,
I'm a brand new member in need of a helping hand. I've been a primitive bow shooter for most of my nearly 60 decades. Recently I had the idea to try to build my own bow. I've read a number of guides which outline the process, but my first attempt didnt' get past step one. I ruined a beautiful Hickory stave because I was not able to get it to split cleanly. Can someone please help me know the best way, including needed tools, to split a newly cut sapling. I have my eye on another beautiful sapling, but don't want to ruin a second one. Thanks for your help.

[Crabapple Plum]

When we did this, we used a drawknife and a spoke shave from my Grandpa's workshop. Perhaps someone else knows a lot more about it than I.

[Rick]

I'm surprised no one jumped on this. Fulldraw, there are a lot of threads on bow building and quite a few builders on here. Try a search on bow building. You should find a bunch of how to threads. I don't build them so I can't help you.

[crashdive123]

We've got a few bow makers (I'm not one of them) that will hopefully see this and be able to offer some advice.

Also......60 decades? Good golly Miss Molly - you've been around for a while.

[oldtrap59]

Fulldraw. Best way to split a sapling to my way of thinking is to use a froe and hickory mallet. I'm not sure why you were splitting a stave in the first place. A stave is the last stage before you start forming your bow. I'm guessing you meant sapling not stave? Remember to dry that stave down to at least 12% before you start to form the bow.

BTW hope I can pull a hickory bow to full draw when I'm 600 yrs old. jk Sure you meant 6 not 60. :>)

Oldtrap

[randyt]

when you say sapling I think of a stick bow.


generally when splitting if one side starts to run thick, that side is bent away from the thinner side causing it to thin back out..... A bow sapling is likely too stout for this method. Instead of splitting the sapling another way is to hew the back side off (the side that will be towards you when shooting the bow) this way you won't have to be concerned with run out.

[kyratshooter]

Randy is onto something here, the definition of "sapling".

To me a sapling is a single sprout less than 3-4" in diameter.

A stave, as used for bowmaking, is a section of a larger tree trunk that has already been split. I generally use wedges for that heavy work and trim down excess with a hatchet before settling in with the drawknife.

If you are making a stickbow from a sapling it should not be that much problem to split the "sapling". This is the one place where "batoning" is premitted and expected. I have an ancient tool called a "froe" that is made specifically for this use. My son made one from a lawn mower blade that worked fine. I have also used a simple hatchet and large butcher knife for the job. You have to change your preasure application to make the split run the way you want it too. That means you have to work slowly and anticipate the direction of the split from what the wood is prone to doing as soon as you start the split. There was a time when I could tell if a sapling was going to split well as soon as I tapped the froe into the wood and gave it a crank.

I have one bow made from a single sapling that began life as a 3" diameter hickory sprout I cut out of the thicket in my back field down in TN about 10 years ago. I left the sapwood on for a backing and it has cured well still shoots pretty good.

Just go cut another sapling. That is the beauty of a whitewood bow. You make them out of whatever you find in the thicket and have little or no money invested in the raw materials. Get past the tree hugging media hype and cut another bow out of that brushpatch. It is probably a fire hazzard anyway!