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White ash, how heavy?

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Pat B:
Thanks Graig. Interesting reading. I'll have to study it a bit to see how much will sink in.  ;D

CraigMBeckett:
Pat,

Hope you don't get infected with Alan's methods, cannot say I fancy chasing a ring with a grinder equipped with a sander attachment.  :o

Craig.

RyanY:
Craig,

You can't argue with results. But, i agree, that's something I would never try. I've used a grinder with a sander attachment and it can tear through wood like nothing. One slip would ruin a bow.

Pat,

I've never worked with ash but from, what I've seen, good wood can get you pretty high draw weight (120# as said above). You no doubt have the skills to make a warbow but in my experience I'd say one of the hardest parts is getting good starting dimensions. I was always worried I'd start out with a log and never get there or start to small and end up under weight. If you get anything from Alan's site I'd say use his dimensions unless someone else recommends some. Other than that I can't wait to see how it turns out.  ;D

Ian.:
You'd be surprised how hard it is to get our own native wood, its cheaper for us to import from america than it is to get it cut in this country, that 120 that Alan made after a while the weight went down as crysles started to form, then he planed the belly off to make that 160lb bow with a belly of Americain white oak. I remember when I first met Alan at a shoot we started talking and realised we have both done the same thing Americain white oak with white ash back. you could call it convergent evolution.

With a perfect tiller and Heat treating you may get white ash to stay as a 120 but they do like to drop lb when they start to crysle.

About the planer he did say he wouldn't have bothered to make bows as much as he did if he didn't discover you could take down growth rings with a grinder he had a hard time using hand tools.

CraigMBeckett:
Hi Ian,


--- Quote ---You'd be surprised how hard it is to get our own native wood, its cheaper for us to import from america than it is to get it cut in this country,
--- End quote ---

You can take it that I am surprised. Over here in Oz its just the reverse virtually all of our wood is Australian. We can get imported woods mainly east asian woods used for decking, plus some others but they are few and far between, you generally have to go to specialist suppliers to the furniture trade etc.

My "local" supplier of such wood (120 km away) seems to have both American white ash (Fraxinus ameracana) and American white oak (Quercus alba) so may have to look at getting some and seeing how it goes.


Craig.

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