hackberry

[tah-gah-jute]

1st attempt at using hackberry for selfbow.almost floor tillered.has a bit of natural reflex,not sure if i'll use a form on it.but wondering if heat tempering the belly would be beneficial?if so would the best time to heat belly be as soon as it's floor tillered before moving ahead?thanks

[Dan Landis]

I have a few hackberry staves drying and plan to temper the bellies also.  From what I have read, hackberry should be handled the same as elm.  In the Traditional Boyers Bible, vol. 4 there is a section on tempering bows and a lot of references to using elm and how much it improves the performance.  Try to get your hands on a copy of it, should have all the info you need to proceed.    Dan