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Tramp
| | Posted on Wednesday, December 14, 2005 - 05:44 pm: | 
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I have heard of spreading them around the inside of the house to keep insects away.
I recall my neighbors from Arkansas doing that when they moved here back in the late '60s.
Blake- that french name for the Osage Orange is cool. I'm gonn ause that name form now on. "bois d'arc, a smoky, full-bodied blend of cab franc and osage orange..."
This spring I'll ("we'll"...me and z-Girl) be taking groups of kids out to make bows, so I'll post some pics. |
Johnnylunchbox
| | Posted on Wednesday, December 14, 2005 - 06:45 pm: |
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"Bois d'arc" - means literally "wood of bow" Sister Mary Frightwig of Perpetual Intolerance would be proud of my French language prowess. |
Jackbequick
| | Posted on Wednesday, December 14, 2005 - 07:34 pm: |
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Here's a quick lesson on bow types and making.
http://www.student.utwente.nl/~sagi/faq/trad.shtml
North American trees good for making bows include Hickory, Osage Orange, Lancewood, Dagame (Lemonwood), Yew, Ash, Juniper, Chokeberry, Maple, and Locust.
The English longbow was made from a section of yew that had both heartwood and sapwood. That was a key factor in the strength and power of that bow.
At one point in time, there was not a single surviving specimen of an original English longbow dating back to Henry VIII's time. Some original bows and yew staves (material for making more bows) were found when the ship The Mary Rose was found and excavated.
Jack |
Tramp
| | Posted on Wednesday, December 14, 2005 - 08:01 pm: |
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nice intel, Depeche-Jaques!
I'm pretty sure that, in order of preference, it'll go: osage orange, yew, hathorn, locust, hickory, maple, etc.
there are a few really good, less-common or ornamental trees for bows, such as the japanbese maple, the striped maple and the ironwood, as well. when you can find osage orange or yew, however, use 'em.
That's very cool info about the olde british longbows combining heart & sap wood. This is where the practice of laminating dark & light woods (you can actually use nice green & gray stains for camo-laminating) originated, as well.
eastern red-cedar, which is a juniper, is something my friends and I sometimes fashioned bows from, but it loses a lot of life over time, while an osage orange bow should go for generations with very ittle maintenance. |
Jackbequick
| | Posted on Thursday, December 15, 2005 - 12:23 pm: |
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I just watched an interesting program on the History Channel. It seems that Otzi (aka Frozen Fritz), the 5,300 year old frozen corpse found in the Alps, was armed with a yew bow. The program today did an interesting demo on the power of the bow using a deer carcass.
It seems like the theory now is that Otzi was in a fight awhile before his death and that he may have died from a combination of his wounds and exposure. He had an arrowhead in one shoulder and a wound on his hand. Lots of support details for the theory.
Pretty interesting stuff, look for "Digging for the Truth" on the History Channel.
I'm not really a couch potato, I was in warming my hands and got caught up in the story. It was 11F here this morning, we've got a storm in bound that may put a foot of snow on the ground over the weekend. I finished prepping my ATV/plow and my snow blower earlier this morning, I'm ready for it!
Jack |
Ceejay
| | Posted on Thursday, December 15, 2005 - 12:47 pm: |
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Read in my little tree book, that Ozarks may have actually come from your french word "Bois d'arc" |
U4euh
| | Posted on Sunday, December 18, 2005 - 11:13 pm: |
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Tramp- did you get my PM? Havn't heard anything, just wondering.
JIM |
Tramp
| | Posted on Monday, December 19, 2005 - 12:24 am: |
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Jim- Lemme check my overactive 'bulk' mail program, my apologies. I can send that pup out tomorrow. I assume your address is in the PM.
Jackbequick-
When they found the iceman, I was actually staying in the Silvretta region of the Austria-Italia border, at Ischgl, im Osterreich, training.
There were all these helicopters out over the southern range (the true Silvretta), and word got back to us in the tiny resort town of Ischgl that they'd found a 'hiker's body', which was odd, as hikers' and skiers bodies were found regularly, up there.
a few days later, we learned that it was a very, very, very old body....albeit a hiker nonetheless. |
Jackbequick
| | Posted on Monday, December 19, 2005 - 05:29 pm: |
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The Iceman's story is fascinating. By analyzing his last meal, intestinal tract, and some plant and moss residue found in his clothing they have him localized to a pretty small area, like one specific valley.
The details about his wounds and last hours are highly speculative but the story the forensic pathologists and other scientists have come up with a pretty credible.
From his weapons they think he was equipped and armed more for self defense, that he was not just a hunter.
I think this guy was something like a free spirited warrior type, maybe the Rambo of his day, and he finally bit off a little more than he could chew.
Jack |
Tramp
| | Posted on Monday, December 19, 2005 - 05:31 pm: |
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I think the Rambos far outnumbered the Costanzas in those days |
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