Traditional archery and primitive archery
bow making projects simplified.

Remove the bark from a stave and reduce it to near finished bow width dimensions, leaving the stave full width the entire length including tips and grip.

Place the stave in a location that is relatively cool and without much air circulation for a few days. This will allow the wood to stabilize and avoid the possibility of drying checks appearing on the back.

Begin tillering this uniform width hickory stave until it just starts to bend when the tip is placed on the floor and pressure applied to the grip (i.e. floor tillering).

Make sure the sides are square and the belly flat.

With a stave in this form, it can now be dried safely without too much worry about warping or twisting. If it should twist slightly, you have full width limbs to readjust the limb layout.

When exposing the wood to rapid drying with heat and moving air, start out with low heat and no air circulation and gradually increase these over a period of several days.

Temperature of 70 degrees and 50% relative humidity will dry a stave in about two weeks. Temperature of 100 degrees and 40% relative humidity will cut drying time to about a week. A flow of air to all parts of the stave will ensure uniform drying.

Where you live will dictate how much effort it will take to dry the hickory stave. Many parts of the country have constantly high relative humidity (60-90%) and other places experience relatively low humidity levels. The higher humidity levels will require greater efforts in reducing wood to acceptable levels.

Once stabilized, you can then continue working on your stave. In between working sessions, it is a good idea to place your staves back in the dryer as untreated wood can pick up moisture very quickly.

Once your bow is finished, put on a protective finish to waterproof it. Even with a waterproof finish, wood will still slowly pick up moisture. Finished bows can be put back in the dryer occasionally to make sure the moisture content stays low and protect them from developing string follow.

Good luck with your next bow building project,

Jim Balyszak.