Osage Orange wood

Mr. Bond

Mr. Bond

Orbis Non Sufficit
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In the south we called them 'horse-apple' trees, (because of the big green fruits they make) but i guess a more proper name is Osage Orange.

Osage Orange wood is one of the hardest and most decay resistant woods in the U.S. It was regularly used by natives for bows, and the early settlers (before barbed-wire) planted them all over the country as living fences.

In fact, this tree can now be found growing wild in many states because of the early settlers, otherwise it is only native to the Oklahoma area.

As hard a wood as it is, I'm wondering if anyone has ever experimented with it for making cues?
 
Here is an example, aged Osage Orange that was rare and prized for it's characteristics of super straight grain and free from any knots.



001-13.jpg
 
I've used it for a front and points. I like it, as it cuts nice and has a nice grain structure to it.
 
Mr. Bond said:
In the south we called them 'horse-apple' trees, (because of the big green fruits they make) but i guess a more proper name is Osage Orange.

Osage Orange wood is one of the hardest and most decay resistant woods in the U.S. It was regularly used by natives for bows, and the early settlers (before barbed-wire) planted them all over the country as living fences.

In fact, this tree can now be found growing wild in many states because of the early settlers, otherwise it is only native to the Oklahoma area.

As hard a wood as it is, I'm wondering if anyone has ever experimented with it for making cues?
Click to expand...



They are called bois d' arc's to , we called the fruit horse apples , think in the Midwest they are called hedge apples , or something like that . In the late 1800 's you couldn't get a loan to build a house in North Texas unless it was built on bois d' arc stumps because of their resistance to moisture .

Osage Orange i believe only grew in a small area at one time , Northeast Texas , Arkansas , North Louisiana and parts of Oklahoma . When people started settling these areas some would take back the seeds to where they were from and plant them for fence rows or wind breaks . Hope that wasn't to much info.:lol:
 
hangemhigh said:
Here is an example, aged Osage Orange that was rare and prized for it's characteristics of super straight grain and free from any knots.



001-13.jpg
Click to expand...
It could just be the screen, but I have never seen osage orange that dark orange color before. It is most often just amber like the caution lights are in color. I have seen the surface turn almost gray like a old barn.

To answer the original question, Yes it has been used in many cues. I only use it for inlays and or sleeves myself, but if cored it would probably be fine for forearms also.
 
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well what do you know - thats not a bad lookin cue.

I assume it performs well?

Is there any major tone difference in the hit?

I found some big old fence-line Osage trees outside Chicago and was shocked to see them this far north...now I think I'm gonna go cut me a few pieces to play with....

Maybe its just me, but it seems like it distorts pretty bad if it dries too fast, how does one cure a piece of Osage for use ?
 
hangemhigh said:
Here is an example, aged Osage Orange that was rare and prized for it's characteristics of super straight grain and free from any knots.



001-13.jpg
Click to expand...

I've built several cues using Osage Orange but none of it looked anything like that. Mine is almost yellow in color and has a grain structure something like Ash or Hickory only harder. It actually makes a great playing cue and can be used for coring also. It has tonal properties that make it one of the only woods that grows locally that I'd even consider using in a cue. In fact I rescued a couple of logs that were destined to go in my wood stove and have cut them up & had them air drying for about 15 years. I just recently turned one of the pieces to use to test fit some ringwork and checked the moisture content and it's about ready to use.
 
I turned two squares yesterday and I didn't think it was difficult to work with at all. I made two really big rough cuts and it ribboned off beautifully.

This is my first time working with it. Mine is from Argentina but that doesn't really make a huge difference. I like it so far.
 
cuesmith said:
I've built several cues using Osage Orange but none of it looked anything like that. Mine is almost yellow in color and has a grain structure something like Ash or Hickory only harder. It actually makes a great playing cue and can be used for coring also. It has tonal properties that make it one of the only woods that grows locally that I'd even consider using in a cue. In fact I rescued a couple of logs that were destined to go in my wood stove and have cut them up & had them air drying for about 15 years. I just recently turned one of the pieces to use to test fit some ringwork and checked the moisture content and it's about ready to use.
Click to expand...


Same here, any of It that I've had was more yellow or possibly orange-ish with finish applied. I don't know if I've seen it that red in color. The tone of color in that picture reminds me of blond wood.
 
Is Osage Orange heavier than other woods or does it depend on the individual piece of wood?
 
cueman said:
It is usually heavier than Maple or Oak, but not as heavy as Ebony or Cocobolo.
Click to expand...

Thanks. There used to be an ancient Osage Orange in front of a historic house not far from where I lived in St Louis. The tree was in front of a mansion visited by historic figures like Lews & Clark and Daniel Boone. The tree was well over 200 years old.

When they cut it down and loaded the trunk on a flatbed truck it tipped the truck over. I tried to get the parks department to give me some of the wood but they wouldn't do it. Probably ended up as fire wood.
 
Osage orange will continue to darken over time....i have an osage riser recurve and when i got it 3 years ago it was a bright golden yellow....kindof like a pilsner beer....now its toned down and has become quite a few shades darker... more of a dark honey color. ive been told that will turn more and more amber/ reddish brown over the years....ive seen osage bows that were more red/brown/yellow ....than just yellow...they were from the mid 50's... i dont know that if you had a old peice of osage thats been sitting in the barn for 75 years if it would finish to a red color or not???

the cue pictured seems awfully red. but it could still very well be osage....
he could have tinted it.??? or it might not be osage?




new cut and dried osage is very yellow when newly finished

i just Realized the origional Post says "Aged osage orange" do you use a torch or oven....or just an old peice that been sitting around??
 
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RDeca said:
Osage orange will continue to darken over time....i have an osage riser recurve and when i got it 3 years ago it was a bright golden yellow....kindof like a pilsner beer....now its toned down and has become quite a few shades darker... more of a dark honey color. ive been told that will turn more and more amber/ reddish brown over the years....ive seen osage bows that were more red/brown/yellow ....than just yellow...they were from the mid 50's... i dont know that if you had a old peice of osage thats been sitting in the barn for 75 years if it would finish to a red color or not???\
the cue pictured seems awfully red. but it could still very well be osage....
he could have tinted it.??? or it might not be osage?
new cut and dried osage is very yellow when newly finished
I just Realized the origional Post says "Aged osage orange" do you use a torch or oven....or just an old peice that been sitting around??
Click to expand...

If not finished over with a really good UV protective clear coat, the color your bow may eventually turn is almost the same gray color old barns turn to. I bought a bunch of Osage Orange logs and had them cut up into turning squares and kiln dried. After setting for a few years the exposed sides turned almost gray with just a hint of yellow left if you looked real hard. This may not be the case with all varieties, but it was the case with the Southern Missouri variety.
 
Mr. Bond said:
In the south we called them 'horse-apple' trees, (because of the big green fruits they make) but i guess a more proper name is Osage Orange.

Osage Orange wood is one of the hardest and most decay resistant woods in the U.S. It was regularly used by natives for bows, and the early settlers (before barbed-wire) planted them all over the country as living fences.

In fact, this tree can now be found growing wild in many states because of the early settlers, otherwise it is only native to the Oklahoma area.

As hard a wood as it is, I'm wondering if anyone has ever experimented with it for making cues?
Click to expand...


I have a SW with Osage Orange wood points, Mickey didnt like working with it at all, the cue has a ebony forearm and he was having a very hard time keeping the black sawdust out of the OS prongs. He dosent want to use it again, he will he said "But not for a long time, it was a pain in the ass". There are a few black dots on the prongs but they are 99.9% clean and are with in acceptable standards. Its a beautiful color wood. I call it sausage orange.


best
Eric
 
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