[Ansteorra-archery] Bowyerthon materials, Step 1: the bowstave

[Sylvrfalcn at aol.com]

Friends,
  "Proper" bowstaves are wood that's split out from a tree in such a way as 
to take maximum advantage of the wood's grain and growth ring orientation. Such 
staves are more expensive and take a bit more work than building bows out of 
board "staves". So, for our purposes, I'll focus on the latter. I'll keep my 
terminology simple, if you're a techno-geek, please refer to chapter one, of 
volume two, of the Traditional Bowyer's Bible. So, without further ado;
- What wood?: Oak, Hickory, Ash, and Maple are considered "inferior" to the 
classics like Yew and Osage, but I can tell you from experience they work just 
fine. Of them, Oak (Red Oak) is the most commonly available (Lowe's or Home 
Depot), but decently priced hickory staves can be ordered off the internet (I'll 
list suppliers at the end).
- What size?: 2" wide x 1" thick x 6' long is a good basic starting point. 
It's fine if it's longer than you think you need, you can always trim it down. 
By the way, that brings up a good tip; if you're down at Lowe's and can't find 
a six foot board that's just right, take a look at what they've got in the 
eight and ten foot lengths. Might cost you a couple extra bucks, but you can 
often find a nice six foot bowstave lurking in a ten foot board that's less than 
perfect on one or both ends.
- How do I pick out a board?: Start by looking for the "plainest" looking 
board you can spot. It's plain looking because it lacks all the pretty ripple and 
swirl patterns that result from cutting through growth rings, and cutting 
across grain. Now, even if you don't understand what grain or growth rings are, 
you do know what lines are. Scope out all four sides of the board. Are all the 
lines pretty much straight, and running side by side?(good board) Or, do they 
make a lot of bends and wiggles, maybe even running off the edge of the board 
at a slant?(bad board) We're not looking for absolute perfection of so called 
"parallel grain" (well we are, but you ain't going to find it) so don't drive 
yourself nuts with it. At eight bucks a pop for six feet of Red Oak, you can 
afford to learn from mistakes and avoid them on your next try ;-)

  Okay, where and how much?:
Red Oak: Lowe's or Home Depot, between eight to twelve bucks
Hickory: www.buildabow.com ~or~ www.rudderbows.com, twenty to thirty five 
bucks plus shipping *Note: both sell "foor tillered" staves that are already cut 
to shape if you're in a hurry, or lacking in woodworking skills. They're an 
excellent bargain, since most of the hard work's done for you. I highly 
recommend them ;-)

  Questions? No? Then go forth and gather staves my friends, your bowmaking 
journey has begun.

Cheers for now,
Robert of Yorkshire