drying wood

[brandycr]

My grandpa use to do those when I was a kid.I remember us walking around looking for branches that had wrapped around other branches or had vines grow around them so he could get that cool twist in it.He use to put something on the ends of the sticks and stand them in the closet till they dried out.Remember more than once grandma fussing because of them da** sticks getting her coats dirty lol.I dont remember him taking the bark off but he could of we are talking about a few years ago lol .

[Tartan Hiker]

Yes, keep the bark on and paint or wax the ends of the stave to slow the drying process as much as possible. Figure on waiting at least a year before you can safely use the stave. Put it up somewhere that it won't be in the way and will be subjected to moderate temperatures.

This is exactly the procedure used when making self bows of single pieces of wood.