Riser material

[FerretWYO]

So I really like heavy bows. Not pull but mass weight. Funny thing is I dont like bulk all that much.

What is the heaviest suitable riser wood out there avalible??

[bjansen]

I would say a solid block of phenolic.

[psychmonky]

Or make it from two billets and when you splice them, hide a tungsten rod inside  

Scott

[Robertfishes]

Diamondwood and cocobolo are fairly heavy..I have started adding fiberglass to my risers for mass weight.      

[MikeW]

Originally posted by FerretWYO:
So I really like heavy bows. Not pull but mass weight. Funny thing is I dont like bulk all that much.

What is the heaviest suitable riser wood out there avalible??

Gabon Ebony is up there...do a Google search for "wood density" I've looked it up before and there are a few websites out there that list them.

[Dimondback]

x2 on the Dymondwood....I ordered a piece for a riser on my first lam bow and I was really suprised how heavy it was...not unreasonable but significantly heavier than a solid would riser block.

[MikeW]

I can't stand Dymondwood for a bow riser, It's plywood! not real wood.
 

[jess stuart]

I also like a heavy riser.  Have never tried but I suppose one could put something in the riser for weight.  Used to hav Pearson Mercury Hunter, it was heavy and very forgiving.  Hmm.

[GREG IN MALAD]

I would choose Ipe, phenolic, and glass.

[kennym]

[Note: The Guinness Book of World Records lists the South African black ironwood (Olea laurifolia) as the heaviest wood with a specific gravity of 1.49.

Not sure where you could find it or if it is even legal to possess! LOL

[wood carver 2]

Lignum Vitae and Pink Ivory. Both very hard and heavy. Sold by weight. They're probably real hard on your tools too.
Dave.

[kennym]

Yep, 2nd in the search...


Lignumvitae - also known as guayacan, palo santo, and ironwood. Scientific name: Guaiacum sanctum (GWY-uh-kum SANK-tum)
Family: Zygophyllaceae

Lignumvitae is an extremely slow-growing broadleaf evergreen, not native to North America, which ultimately reaches 30 to 40 feet in height and casts light shade, but few people have seen plants of this size because it is not grown in the trade. Most are seen 8 to 12 feet tall with a beautiful array of multiple trunks and a rounded canopy much like that of a mature Crape-Myrtle. The one to two-inch-long, leathery, dark green leaves are joined at many times throughout the year by the production of large clusters of deep blue flowers, the old flowers fading to a light silvery-blue and creating a shimmering haze over the rounded canopy. These flowers are followed by small, heart-shaped, yellow berries, appearing on the tree at the same time as the blue flowers and creating a lovely sight.

Underneath the smooth, beige/grey bark of Lignumvitae is some of the heaviest of all wood, sinking under its weight instead of floating in water. This dense wood was once popular for use in the manufacture of bowling balls and has also been used for propeller shafts on steamships, gears and for mallets.

This wood, known among carvers as "lignum", is known to be the heaviest and most dense wood in the world.

[eflanders]

Kenny mentions that Lignumvitae is also known as "ironwood".  We have lots of that stuff here in WI.  I wonder if it is the same stuff? I know first hand the stuff here is very hard on the tools.  Isn't it also well known as a good bowyer wood?

[wood carver 2]

Kenny, lignumvitae sounds like too pretty a tree to cut down....aw! who am I kidding? I'm a woodworker to the core!
Eric, it's not the same as our ironwood, unfortunately.
When used for prop shafts, it's used as a bearing. It's self lubricating and lasts longer than bronze.
Dave.