Desert ash

[timbo]

Is the Australia desert ash any good for making archery related items?

Cheers Tim

[longbowinfected]

No such timber hardwood listed in Bootle by that name. Probably closely related to Eoropean Ash and deciduous. Genus Fraxinus. Used for sporting goods nice figure glues wel but needs to be weighted when seasoning as will warp MID weight mass 700 kg/cubic metre Air Dried Density resists sudden impact good for steam bending tough and flexible for sporting handles
not native. In some places a weed.

Now if you are talking about the Australian species they are not deciduous and probably belong to the Genuses Eucalyptus and Flindersia which are used in joinery and are more dense and very susceptible to borers, termites and do not glue that well with a few exceptions.

Best I can do from timber technology angle but remember I am not a horticulturist nor arborist.

Kev

[muntries]

bloody feral weed!! Not sure about the timber but the tree when I see them always seem to be falling apart.

[greybeard]

Tim,

The following link may be a starting point.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fraxinus_angustifolia

If you have a supply of this material make archery related items from it and see what happens.

Muntries, Just read your reply

http://search.weeds.org.au/query.html?c ... desert+ash

Daryl.

[longbowinfected]

Ask in this place and you will but receive.
Wrap debarked timber in clingwrap with a few holes in butt end.
Store in cool stable but not wet area.
Weigh the staves down with heavy weights.
Make some small scale little person bows first perhaps.

Kev

[timbo]

Thanks for the feedback.

I have access to a very old tree of the fraxinus variety that will be removed as part of a redevelopment so was giving some thought to saving some of the timber. But am not so sure now.

Cheers Tim

[Dennis La Varenne]

Tim,

Is the Australia desert ash any good for making archery related items?

I tried looking up some mechanical specs to get some kind of idea of what kind of density and MoR it has but can't find any because it isn't a commercial timber. However, I agree with Daryl -

If you have a supply of this material make archery related items from it and see what happens.

Dry it by the usual methods and just make a bow and see what happens. Perhaps leave a bit of thickness compared it to what you would usually make a bow to see what happens. If it is going to fret, it will do so sooner with a heavy bow long before it will in a light bow because of the the back and belly surfaces are further away from the neutral axis. If you catch it early, when chrysals develop, you can always sink it to a lighter bow which won't fret.

Also it is native to the Western Mediterranean and Portugal and goes by the botanical handle of Fraxinus augustifolia augustifolia and grows to around 10m in height on average. It is often used as a garden and nature strip tree which is where it probably escaped from and became naturalised as 'Australian' Desert Ash. See -
http://www.weeds.org.au/cgi-bin/weedide ... l&card=E15

[longbowinfected]

really important that you weigh it down as I posted before hand.

Kev