Primitive Archer

Main Discussion Area => Bows => Topic started by: Jacob1 on January 23, 2021, 10:13:39 am

Title: What woods are good in compression
Post by: Jacob1 on January 23, 2021, 10:13:39 am: :BB I want to build a rattan bow with reinforcements on the belly and am curious as to what woods are good in compression and would ipe work and where to find rattan
Title: Re: What woods are good in compression
Post by: mmattockx on January 23, 2021, 11:02:02 am: The best compression woods are osage, yew, ERC, juniper and ipe.

Mark
Title: Re: What woods are good in compression
Post by: Jacob1 on January 23, 2021, 11:26:54 am: Thanks I knew about t ipe but not the others
Title: Re: What woods are good in compression
Post by: Pat B on January 23, 2021, 11:36:25 am: You probably don't need a real strong compression wood with rattan.
Title: Re: What woods are good in compression
Post by: Jacob1 on January 23, 2021, 11:41:57 am: Ok I just heard that rattan takes set really bad and that a belly lamination of a wood with high compression strength would help alleviate it
Title: Re: What woods are good in compression
Post by: Pat B on January 23, 2021, 11:52:18 am: As weak as rattan is you could use almost any wood as a belly lam. Maple, hickory, ash, elm. I think the reason the rattan takes set is because the fibers stretch.
Title: Re: What woods are good in compression
Post by: Jim Davis on January 23, 2021, 12:06:19 pm: Pat B is right about compression woods for a rattan back.

Red cedar and juniper may be better in compression than in tension, but both are much weaker than almost all hardwoods.
Title: Re: What woods are good in compression
Post by: Tom Dulaney on January 27, 2021, 09:38:13 pm: Quote from: Jim Davis on January 23, 2021, 12:06:19 pm
Pat B is right about compression woods for a rattan back.

Red cedar and juniper may be better in compression than in tension, but both are much weaker than almost all hardwoods.

Yes, almost all hardwoods have better compression strength than juniper or eastern red cedar -- except for the compression wood specimens of juniper or ERC, which have even more compression strength than most hardwoods.

However, as you know, non-compression juniper and ERC are lighter than almost all hardwoods, and have better elasticity and flexibility, as well.

I don't even consider sinew-backed juniper bows to be wooden bows -- they are in a special grey area somewhere between wood bows and horn bows. Juniper's properties are very dissimilar to wood in some ways.

Juniper and eastern red cedar also steam bend better than most hardwoods, including maple.

Incense cedar has even better properties than red cedar and even Juniper, and is often found straighter grained and knot-free.

Another wood to try out, if you kind find any, would be tamarack.
Title: Re: What woods are good in compression
Post by: loefflerchuck on January 27, 2021, 10:35:59 pm: well said Tom!
Title: Re: What woods are good in compression
Post by: mmattockx on January 28, 2021, 09:27:36 am: Quote from: Tom Dulaney on January 27, 2021, 09:38:13 pm
However, as you know, non-compression juniper and ERC are lighter than almost all hardwoods, and have better elasticity and flexibility, as well.

Indeed, that's why I mentioned them. OP asked for the best compression woods, not the strongest.

Mark
Title: Re: What woods are good in compression
Post by: Jim Davis on January 28, 2021, 09:44:04 am: Amazing that none of the recognized testing facilities have ever found an example of any of those "non-compression" woods.