Primitive Archer
Main Discussion Area => Bows => Topic started by: kid bow on November 23, 2014, 08:35:55 pm
-
Ok so my buddy sends me this picture pf a tree amd asks if its shagbark hickory. Mind helping me out idk if it is
-
looks more like sycamore to me, cant see the top of tree, but if the bark is peeling off, and the bark really white ,that's a good indication
-
It would be helpful to see more of the tree but this image just does not look typical of a shagbark hickory.
-
Looks kinda like silver maple. Where are you located and do you have more pictures? Twigs, leaf litter, picture of entire tree...
-
Based on the evidence so far I'd say sycamore
-
Will it still make a good hunting bow
-
Any wood with a specific gravity of less than .50 is not normally considered bow quality wood, Sycamore comes in at between .40 and .45.
-
Well its always a possibility it could be something different
-
You cannot possibly tell the species of a tree through a picture of the bark alone.
In winter ,as it is now in the northern hemisphere, you will need to examine the twigs and buds. Other considerations are the area and country the tree is growing in, its general shape and location are pivotal as well. Obviously in summer the leaves come into play as well. However, you can't rely on leaves found beneath a tree at this time of year as they may just have blown there, especially in a woodland situation.
Here in the UK we have many great field guides to trees with keys to provide positive identification. I would recommend 'The Collins Field Guide to the Trees of Britain and Europe' to anyone on this side of the Atlantic. I am sure there are equally good publications in the USA and elsewhere.
Anyone interested in using wood from native trees and shrubs would be wise to invest and learn to use one of these guides.
-
You are probably right Keef , but if I was a betting man I would bet on that being a sycamore. ;) :) :)
Pappy
-
Not like sycamore we have around here. Are the top limbs of the tree white?
-
Looks too dark for the Sycamore we have here as well. I am no expert though.
-
I live in kentucky so its within the realm of possibilities
-
The bark on sycamores around here almost look like a camo pattern where the bark is peeling. There is usually 3 different collors from the color in pic to green and white. Im pretty certain thats not silver maple
-
Looks like Hop Hornbeam to me. A lot like it.
-
Looks like Hop Hornbeam to me. A lot like it.
What are some characteristics of hop horn beam
-
Asymmetrical leaves, very similar to elm or beech with jagged edges. Even dead and brown leaves on the ground will show you their shape. Bark just like you see. The limbs have a tendency to grow horizontally off the trunk to.
-
I agree, it's sycamore.
-
Well, this little mystery has gotten my curiosity aroused. After doing a bit of research, I found this image of an American Smoke Tree......which is native to Kentucky. It's a smallish tree reaching 30'.
(http://i1169.photobucket.com/albums/r509/drewsumrell/3f38f4_zps012aca8e.jpg) (http://s1169.photobucket.com/user/drewsumrell/media/3f38f4_zps012aca8e.jpg.html)
Kid bow, can you find out a bit more for us about this tree. More info would be a big help.
The environment this tree appears to be growing in looks like an upland woodland. Sycamore would typically be growing in a moist environment, often along creeks, rivers and areas with very moist ground.
This Smoke Tree looks very close and I found images of a northern pecan which had a very similar bark. The northern pecan can vary a great deal in appearance, so that's a possibility.
Pearly, I have never identified hop hornbeam growing in NW North Carolina, but images I've seen of the bark looks like the platelets are more squarish than the bark in the image here. BUT, bark can certainly vary considerably on different age trees of the same species.
Maybe someone will give us a firm ID before long.
-
Well when i harvest some staves of it tomorrow ill let you know. Hopefully this stuff holds up to the stres and strain of a bow
-
Look for the large leaves on the ground. It's growing near water too... The leaf buds will be conical and alternate. I'm 99.9 percent sure that's sycamore.. I see them every day.
Trees growing off site can have weird appearances sometimes.. The upper branches will be smooth and have a greenish or white appearance. That tree looks young, and does have a hophornbeam flake to it, but it looks like a 10-12" dbh sycamore to me. They grow straight but have somewhat spiral grain.
-
Just realized you were in Kentucky, after looking through your native trees I think american hophornbeam is most likely like PD said. No way is it american sycamore.
http://www.uky.edu/hort/?q=American-Hophornbeam
If not, go through this list http://www.uky.edu/hort/Native-Trees-of-Kentucky but it looks a hell of a lot like the hop hornbeam we get here in missouri.
-
Its sycamore, 99.999999% sure. If you peel some of those flakes off it will reveal the white bark underneath.
-
Ill let yu know in a couple hours
-
I wouldn't personally cut sycamore for bows....you have dozens of better options in Kentucky kid. And it ain't gonna be a forgiving wood for a novice.
-
How big is that tree ? looks just like the bottom of Sycamore we have, looked at one just yesterday, is it more white and slicker at the top ?
-
Wouldnt know pappy. My buddy sent that picture to me from his phone. If i cut it and it doesn't work its fire wood lol >:D
-
I would expect it to be like silver maple for bow wood.. not good firewood other than kindling..
-
If you guys think that is sycamore from the picture then your sycamore must be very different to ours >:D
Keef is 100% right. >:D Get a good tree id book. Leaves,bark,twigs and buds are what you need for proper id. Otherwise just looking at one picture of the bark...we are just guessing and bark varies massively even in the same area.
-
I will take a picture of ours this weekend ,looks just like the lower section of the big Sycamore
we have. :) :)
Pappy
-
That helps me out alot
-
I looked at the Audubon Field Guide Tree book and saw no bark that looked like the pics shown. Definitely need more info for an ID.
-
Sycamore has two different bark phases...the younger trunks,or upper sections will have the unmistakeable white which phases to having green n grey splotches(like a camo pattern) before it matures to the grey flaky/scaly bark down low on the trunk.
-
Agreed with the previous need more info. I Espescially say this after seeing only the Bark of that kentucky Smoke tree. If youd have asked me what that was Id have bet my life it was a cherry. The Wild Black Cherry tree Bark around here looks EXACTLY like that! Hard to tell whats what from just a pic of bark
-
I have only seen smoke trees planted as ornamentals around here. I've never encountered them in the woods. The bark of the one pictured looks more like KY coffeetree to me. I've worked in the woods for the last 25 years, winter dendrology is one of my strengths. That is sycamore kid bow posted...
-
Sycamore base. http://www.carolinanature.com/trees/ploc.html
-
Yep, went and took a couple of pictures myself this weekend. :) What Chris said on the upper trunk.
Pappy