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Osage sapling

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Muskyman:
Got permission to harvest a nice Osage tree from a neighbor’s property. Also there is a small sapling shooting out of the same trunk.. how small is to small with a sapling. This one is probably 3 to 4 inches across.. they want it all removed. Just wondering if it would make a bow..

Pat B:
I've made 45# to 55# bows with a 2" diameter Osage "pole". I would saw them in half, lengthwise and bound the halves back together with small spacers between them to allow for air circulation. Once dry I remove the bark and use the sapwood as the back. These are somewhat bendy handle bows so I use thick shoe leather(or other flexible materials) for the handle riser so it bends slightly.
 If I can find a pic I'll post them here.

Pat B:
I found these pics of "Pole Cat"...






...one other thing I did with these pole bows was to add a rawhide backing just for insurance.

BowEd:
From a 3 to 4 inch sapling it's possible to get a couple stiff handled bows.Depending on how much sapwood you want to remove.Some saplings have more than others and it does'nt hurt to leave the sapwood on either.Most people who make bows have a lot of respect for a sapling bow being very resilient and perform well.If dried out properly.
Here's a couple from a sapling such as yours.Both rawhide backed but not really necessary.I just wanted to have a blank rawhide face to stain on.Both bows around 48#'s@ 28".One completely center shot and a joy to shoot with many different arrows.0 heat treatment on either bows.1 with a rounded belly and 1 with a flat belly showing the versatility of hedge.

bownarra:
Nah...far too small...don't bother....send it to me instead ;)



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Nice bows above :)

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