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Bird Cherry also known as Hackberry as bowmaterial

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Hrothgar:
Martin, I believe there are 2 different tree families called hackberry. Your Bird Cherry is classified as a 'prunus padus', along with other common cherry trees. The common hackberry is hard wood, and until recently was classified with the elms. However a few years back it was reclassifed in the hemp family 'cannabaceae', and genus 'celtis occidentalis' ( at least here in the middle part of the USA). This second mentioned hackberry is the tree often used in bow making, with characteristics similiar to elm--i.e. interlocking grain. It is fairly light in weight like a light weight ash; the trunk is usually very straight, and can reach 90 feet in height. This wood is creamy white with yellow streaks on occasion.

Martin Wallgren:
The wood I´m trying is from the tree that is called Prunus padus in Latin. In swedish it is Hägg. It can grow to around 60 feet here in Sweden and is covered in white flowers in the spring. The flowers looks like white Lilacs but it´s a tree not a bush like the Lilac.

So far I just had it roughcut and have started to shape it a little bit. Have like a million projects going this week getting ready for the competition in Söderköping next weekwend with the CoSS. But after that I´ll get on with the bow and I will take pictures of the process!

kurogane_84:
Too many knots roughed out a stave for me from hack berry and it lookto work on it till i have any s beautiful,  im waiting to get more experience then work on the big piece

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