The Color of Osage

The questions often arise: “Why is Osage so yellow?” or “I want that deep orange color, not yellow.”
Osage orange is an exceptionally beautiful wood. When fresh, Osage is normally bright yellow in color. In time, it will get darker and darker with age. So, if you are wondering how you can get a deep colored osage bow, you simply get it fresh and yellow and it will age naturally all on its own! You don’t need to do anything.  Likewise, you cannot preserve the bright yellow color either. Aside from keeping it totally out of the light of day, there is nothing you can do to keep it from getting darker. That is just the nature of the wood. The color change is caused by the oxidization of the wood. It changes nothing about the bow expect for the color. Just like a fine wine, it takes time. There are ways to actually accelerate it, but in doing so, the final product is actually not going to look at good as if you’d have let it age naturally to that rich, bronze-like orange color. Basically, if you want that rich color, just be patient and it will come.  Below are some pictures of bows at various stages in color. Not all bows will age the same. It all depends on how much time it is in the sunlight.