bow stave blues and a question for the bowyers.

**oneraindog** · 12-10-2009, 06:58 PM

phew

i have a whole new respect for bowyers. i was never under the impression that it would be easy. but you dont appreciate the level of craftsmanship until you are asked to give it a try yourself.
i only hope that one day ill have the skills to make pieces as beautiful as ive seen from others.
for now i plod through ham fisted, feeling half drunk.

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so this is the raw stave ready to be tormented by my ineptitude

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spent all day tuesday by a fire gently working it down, feeling on top of the world.

then the stave bit back:

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its not even close to finished and the bow is already drawing blood.
i had a disagreement with my draw knife. draw knife won. bob ross would say "there are no mistakes, only happy accidents". well...i guess the happy part of this is that i got a sweet blood stain on my bow. unfortunately it didnt stick around too long because i ended up having to take a *#$!-load more wood off then i would have liked.

its an ash stave and with white wood you can start your bow back with the growth ring directly under the cambium bark layer. everything was going well until i nicked a very small, unseen knot and a big rip opened up in the wood ring, right where the bow shape would lay. so, i have to shave down another ring. which wouldnt have been so bad except the wood rings on this stave are paper thin. so, of course i shaved too deep and befoer i know it one extra ring turned into like, 10

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but i think i finally nailed it. it is tricky to say the least especially when the rings are so thin. it can be mind boggling to keep track of what ring you are on and not go too deep due to confusing one ring for a ring below it. all those esoteric markings on the stave are me trying to learn how to not mess up!

and now for the bad news

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i came back to the stave the evening after i finally got the right growth ring out and SLAP! right in the face. checking!

a question for the bowyers here:

WHY ME?????!?!??

what caused this checking??? i was under the impression the stave had been properly cured and it has been stored dry (although it has gotten cold in my house. but not below 60)
it was leaning on its end over night would that do it?

i think it could be salvageable though. i dont think the shape of the bow is going to go through any of the splits. we'll see...........

**Rick** · 12-10-2009, 08:20 PM

Any wood will attract or give up moisture when moved from one environment to another. The outside of the wood looses moisture much more quickly than the inside of the log and difference causes the wood to split. If it had absorbed moisture at the same rate you would have seen it swell.

Always move your wood to the environment you intend to work on it and let it sit to acclimate. The longer the better. It doesn't matter what project you are working on. I've brought wood into the living room and left it on the floor for a week because I wanted to use it as a casement molding or some other piece of trim. Had I made the trim and then installed it there is a very good chance it would have split. By acclimating it you can find any wood that will check before you even work on it.

**oneraindog** · 12-10-2009, 09:39 PM

aarrrgh. why was i not told this?

it started out in my instructors garage and being worked on out of doors near a fire. the last week its been sitting in my house. i guess all of that is enough enviro changes to cause splitting?

bleh. what could i have done to prevent this? resealed the ends? why was i told to take the glue off in the first place???

**Batch** · 12-10-2009, 09:57 PM

Man, I sure do like them knives...

Can you tell me more about them?

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**oneraindog** · 12-10-2009, 10:40 PM

could it also be because the wood was NOT completely cured and still green?

@batch
i got the knives from this place
http://www.cloudberrymarket.com/serv...AND/Categories

they are great great knives. they came as a set in one sheath. lots of fun.

**canid** · 12-11-2009, 04:57 AM

expect at least some checking an any wood that isn't stabilized, if you bring it into a much drier environment, such as indoors. that way, you won't be taken by surprise if it does. the greater the small dimensions, the less thoroughly stabilized you should expect it to be.

any wood which was seasoned outdoors should be finished indoors if you need it dry to work it.

you can moderate checking in split staves when you do so by sealing/re-sealing their ends. i don't know why you where told to remove the sealant, but i can only assume the stave was thought to be drier than it was, or it was expected you'd be working and keeping it outdoors.

that checking doesn't look to be too bad, i'd say you'll only loose 3-3.5" on that end.

**canid** · 12-11-2009, 04:58 AM

incidentally, i've said it before, but i've fallen in love with white ash as a bow wood.

**Rick** · 12-11-2009, 08:35 AM

Be cautious how you store wood as well. If at all possible you want to store it horizontally with support under it. If you store it vertically (lean it against the wall for example) in some place like a garage the constant change in moisture will cause it to bend. The longer the material the more likely and more pronounced it will be.

**canid** · 12-12-2009, 08:44 AM

ORD: i replied to your post over at PP as well.

**oneraindog** · 12-12-2009, 03:45 PM

thanks for all the help. i slathered both ends in some linseed oil and it doent seem to have gotten any worse. the bummer is that i already chopped a bit off of one end that i thought i would need anymore so im cutting it pretty close. no pun intended. but im thinking it will come in just close enough.
argh.