Primitive Archer

Main Discussion Area => Bows => Topic started by: DC on August 17, 2019, 02:50:43 pm

Title: Hawthorn
Post by: DC on August 17, 2019, 02:50:43 pm

My sister just removed her Crataegus oxyacantha and I got a half dozen nice straight billets. What do we know about this tree? Drying etc.

Title: Re: Hawthorn
Post by: Marc St Louis on August 17, 2019, 02:56:38 pm

Splitting can be a problem with Hawthorn

Title: Re: Hawthorn
Post by: DC on August 17, 2019, 03:07:35 pm

It took a lot of work to get it started but it went really well. I was using two hatchets and I could set one on the first hit but then it would bounce out on the second. After about a half hour of this I dug out the 8# sledge. One wack did it. Then just worked my way down with a couple of wedges. I tried to get a belly split off one but it just ran off. I'll saw the rest. One or two are big enough to get two billets I think.

Title: Re: Hawthorn
Post by: DC on August 17, 2019, 06:44:40 pm

About 5 hours later. Nine billets approx 2"x 1.5"x 40". The nine is good as it gives me one discard. A couple are going to take some creative splicing to give a decent length.

Title: Re: Hawthorn
Post by: Pat B on August 18, 2019, 09:41:44 am

I've seen some pretty cool hawthorn bows over the years. Finding appropriate hawthorn for bows is the trick and it looks like you've found that.

Title: Re: Hawthorn
Post by: Russ on August 18, 2019, 02:16:49 pm

Ill be looking forward to hearing what you do with those!