That's some good splitting! "Bodark" is a challenge! My suggestion is to always take the bark/sapwood off, and seal the back/ends with Titebond. I like to use two of the Estwing heavy wedges, a hatchet to start and a big sledge. If you use plastic wedges, they will die quickly! I split the log into 2, 4 and hopefully 8 staves. Splitting in halves seems to work better, doesn't wander. Sometimes on the bigger logs, you get really nice inside splits, especially with larger growth rings. The most important thing I've learned, is don't cut an Osage that looks "OK". Keep looking for that great log!
I was shown how to use a circular saw with a ripping blade to cut down both sides of the stave to cut the belly stave. You can set the depth of the blade to cut to the middle and have both cuts meet in the middle. This allow you to cut more with the curve of thr growth rings and keep from having the splits run wild.
I'm going this weekend to two different properties to look for and cut osage to start drying for a bow I hope to start in the spring or summer of 2023. Just to clarify, though, after the initial cut, do you immediately quarter it and seal the ends to dry, or seal the ends and wait to quarter it after it dries?
If Olney all staves behaved like this one lol! I have never worked Osage, my question is, what is the best pice? I've heard it's the Heartwood but I love the color of the sapwood. And the Heartwood has been he best reflex.
The heartwood does all the work you need on both the back and belly of the bow. That being said you can leave the sapwood on the back of the bow and it will be fine as long as the sapwood is in good condition. (it has a tendency to decay and or crack) nice thick rings like this are easy to chase, thin rings can be tricky. I have another video showing how I chase a ring on Osage if that would be helpful.
With a wood like osage it's better to allow it to follow the grain. Also, I don't think it would have been as easy to get three viable staves out of this with the bandsaw. It would be so easy to ruin it on the bandsaw. Splitting a stave like this it almost chases a ring for you. I sometimes band saw yew or hickory but never osage. It's more dependent on having perfect or near perfect grain orientation.
Weylin is right...the only thing I might add is that if you have a stave that's wide enough for two bows, but you don't know if it'll split well, you can bandsaw it if you carefully follow the grain. Obviously, this would be best on a straight, clean stave.
A lot of guys recommend going from small end to big end when splitting, but I do the opposite for belly staves. 90 percent of the time, if you go small to big, it does that dive towards the bark like it started to do in your first split. If you go the other way, it's a lot less likely to happen. Splitting staves can be a back and forth of "Oh, yea! That's a beauty!" to "S#$t, F*@%, Mother...." Lol
Yes! I think you're right. I noticed that trend half way through this stack and started doing like you're saying. This actually was the big end of this stave. It wasn't diving towards the bark on this one, it just wasn't following the ring along the edge because of the curvature of the ring, I just had to give it a little incentive to split where I wanted along the edge too. Otherwise it traveled down the stave really nicely. But you have a good point, I should have mentioned that in the video.
@@SwiftwoodBows Usually, when I'm doing belly splits, I tend to err toward the belly. Meaning that I leave more meat on the sapwood/bark staves than the belly split. Though, if you've got some really nice rings on the belly split, I'll let it go thinner on the top portion instead. Personally, as long as it leaves an inch of meat or so at one end of the split, I don't mind. I just keep those for myself instead of selling them. It seems like it's often a game of sacrifice when splitting wood.
I'm super new to this all.. but I've heard if ur splitting wood like fire wood go small end to big. But splitting long staves always go big to small.. tho I've just collected that thru dif videos on here..
That's some good splitting! "Bodark" is a challenge! My suggestion is to always take the bark/sapwood off, and seal the back/ends with Titebond. I like to use two of the Estwing heavy wedges, a hatchet to start and a big sledge. If you use plastic wedges, they will die quickly! I split the log into 2, 4 and hopefully 8 staves. Splitting in halves seems to work better, doesn't wander. Sometimes on the bigger logs, you get really nice inside splits, especially with larger growth rings. The most important thing I've learned, is don't cut an Osage that looks "OK". Keep looking for that great log!
Mustard yellow wood with dark brown grain. Beautiful.
Ya that looks great to me, what would a stave that big go for? I need one for me and my two grandsons. Do you sell those?
Verrryyy good channel, thank you for sharing All these tips
You're welcome!
Just what I was looking for, thanks!
Great job, my friend. Do you sale staves. Can’t find any Osage ing northern South Carolina?
I used 3 railroad spikes to split , works pretty good
Idk why two piece bows are not more popular. The take down feature is nice and you don't get your heart broken with sketchy splits
I was shown how to use a circular saw with a ripping blade to cut down both sides of the stave to cut the belly stave. You can set the depth of the blade to cut to the middle and have both cuts meet in the middle. This allow you to cut more with the curve of thr growth rings and keep from having the splits run wild.
Are you opposed to using two or three smaller sharp chisels to contour the line of the ring?
Thanks for the information 😊
Wow splits easier than hhb! Thanks for sharing.
most straight grained osage of reasonable size is a pleasure to split. HHB is a bear. I hear elm is terrible too.
Hi, thaks for sharing.
I Wonder, what whould happened if you were done that in the green stave?
Does it would Worth it??
Damn that’s a premium stave
Yeah, it was a nice one. wish I had more like that one. :)
I'm going this weekend to two different properties to look for and cut osage to start drying for a bow I hope to start in the spring or summer of 2023. Just to clarify, though, after the initial cut, do you immediately quarter it and seal the ends to dry, or seal the ends and wait to quarter it after it dries?
I would split it, remove the bark and sapwood then seal the back and ends right away.
@@SwiftwoodBows thanks for the quick reply!!!
That's awesome man thanks for the tip
You bet
If Olney all staves behaved like this one lol! I have never worked Osage, my question is, what is the best pice? I've heard it's the Heartwood but I love the color of the sapwood. And the Heartwood has been he best reflex.
Also how easy it is to fowl the back of an Osage stave? Those are pretty big growth rings than most woods I've worked.
The heartwood does all the work you need on both the back and belly of the bow. That being said you can leave the sapwood on the back of the bow and it will be fine as long as the sapwood is in good condition. (it has a tendency to decay and or crack) nice thick rings like this are easy to chase, thin rings can be tricky. I have another video showing how I chase a ring on Osage if that would be helpful.
Good info Sir
Great job
Do you ever use a froe?
Do you have to use trunk pieces? Or will branches work too?
Dont know abouth osage(because osage has weird branches with spikes) but if the branch is big enought u should be able to make bow out of branch
Haz un arco piramidal de corazón de Mesquite la mejor madera para hacer arcos.
What wood can I use?
Too bad that band saw is broken.
why didn't you just cut your stave up with your bandsaw?
With a wood like osage it's better to allow it to follow the grain. Also, I don't think it would have been as easy to get three viable staves out of this with the bandsaw. It would be so easy to ruin it on the bandsaw. Splitting a stave like this it almost chases a ring for you. I sometimes band saw yew or hickory but never osage. It's more dependent on having perfect or near perfect grain orientation.
Weylin is right...the only thing I might add is that if you have a stave that's wide enough for two bows, but you don't know if it'll split well, you can bandsaw it if you carefully follow the grain. Obviously, this would be best on a straight, clean stave.
That's what I was thinking,but I guess for demonstration purposes if the average guy who didn't have a band. Myself I would always use the saw
Woodprix scripts contain most of the woodworking plans you can find.
A lot of guys recommend going from small end to big end when splitting, but I do the opposite for belly staves. 90 percent of the time, if you go small to big, it does that dive towards the bark like it started to do in your first split. If you go the other way, it's a lot less likely to happen.
Splitting staves can be a back and forth of "Oh, yea! That's a beauty!" to "S#$t, F*@%, Mother...." Lol
Yes! I think you're right. I noticed that trend half way through this stack and started doing like you're saying. This actually was the big end of this stave. It wasn't diving towards the bark on this one, it just wasn't following the ring along the edge because of the curvature of the ring, I just had to give it a little incentive to split where I wanted along the edge too. Otherwise it traveled down the stave really nicely. But you have a good point, I should have mentioned that in the video.
@@SwiftwoodBows Usually, when I'm doing belly splits, I tend to err toward the belly. Meaning that I leave more meat on the sapwood/bark staves than the belly split. Though, if you've got some really nice rings on the belly split, I'll let it go thinner on the top portion instead. Personally, as long as it leaves an inch of meat or so at one end of the split, I don't mind. I just keep those for myself instead of selling them.
It seems like it's often a game of sacrifice when splitting wood.
@@CloudfeatherRusticWorks yes, I'm learning this as well. If one of them has to be ruined I guess I'd rather sacrifice the belly split.
I'm super new to this all.. but I've heard if ur splitting wood like fire wood go small end to big. But splitting long staves always go big to small.. tho I've just collected that thru dif videos on here..
You sell osage staves james rocco? I been dieing to go find one but I don't think they grow as far north as I am.. in massachusetts.