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Osage moisture content
mmattockx:
--- Quote from: Jim Davis on February 15, 2024, 12:34:41 pm ---Incandescent bulbs are near impossible to find in stores. I've got a few I horded. LED bulbs only get slightly warm...
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Farm supply stores have heat lamp bulbs for raising chicks, those should be a solid substitute since the powers that be decided incandescent bulbs are verboten for us peons.
Mark
superdav95:
--- Quote from: mmattockx on February 15, 2024, 02:33:57 pm ---
--- Quote from: Jim Davis on February 15, 2024, 12:34:41 pm ---Incandescent bulbs are near impossible to find in stores. I've got a few I horded. LED bulbs only get slightly warm...
--- End quote ---
Farm supply stores have heat lamp bulbs for raising chicks, those should be a solid substitute since the powers that be decided incandescent bulbs are verboten for us peons.
Mark
--- End quote ---
These are the same bulbs I use. They are red heat lamp bulbs. They seem to last long tiMe too
superdav95:
--- Quote from: Pat B on February 15, 2024, 12:11:11 pm ---With hickory, 5% to 6% is where it preforms best. With osage and most other woods 9% to 11% is the optimum M/C. Like Hamish said you can take any bow wood down to floor tiller stage with no harm. The wood will dry quicker at that stage but be sure the back and ends are sealed to prevent checking. Also, steaming a wet stave will aid in the drying process and if you put that stave on a caul you can induce some backset at the same time.
IMO, a heat box is good for reducing the last little bit of moisture and maintaining the optimal M/C as you work the stave into a bow. Putting wet wood in a hot box can cause checking because you are forcing the moisture out at too fast of a rate.
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Everything they said about mc. Also I’ve noticed if I get it down to floor tiller And then let it get little dryer before adding any recurves with steam I’m safer. It seems counterintuitive but steam will rapidly remove mc from those tips as it cools and it has potential to check with the rapid loss of mc still hidden deep in the wood if not adequately dry. You’ll only know as you reduce down to floor tiller and take more readings to see. Not an exact indicator but pretty good anyway. Generally below 10% mc on a recently floor tillered bow is pretty safe to steam bend in your recurves. Ever since following this I’ve had less checks when using steam. Fwiw
JW_Halverson:
It is hard to keep wood drier or wetter than your relative humidity. It takes tightly sealed temperature and moisture controlled storage containers and, frankly, it's beyond most people's control. Really, the best you can hope for is to reach stasis with your conditions.
That's why I traded off my moisture meter and went with an inexpensive digital kitchen scale that I can weigh in grams. I weigh my staves regularly until they stop losing weight for a few months. At that point you are done, really. Moisture meters can only measure the moisture at the depth in the wood that the pins have penetrated. Ok, what's the moisture PAST THAT POINT??? With the scale you are weighing all the wood; surface, subsurface, and even into the very middle.
Selfbowman:
JW I agree with you about y’our post . I like Osage between 7-9% after the build closer to 7%. Lower than 7 your taking risk of getting to dry. Over 9% you are inviting set. After 300 Osage bows that’s been my observation. I like flight bows at about 5-6%.
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