William Black wrote:

Chilla wrote:

William Black wrote:

A lot of woods will cause a nasty reaction in particle form (sawdust),
however if you wear a filter mask things will be fine.

Yew is no worse than any other if you take precautions.

If we're talking about Taxus baccata, I get a rash just handling the
stuff, and I do use it to make longbows out of, but I wear latex gloves.

I've seen it used for knife handles and didn't like the idea.

No.

It's noted by foresters for being toxic.

It's nasty stuff, so take care.

When you make your long bows, do you coat the staves in anything?

Just found this :-
http://woodturningblog.wordpress.com/2009/11/10/is-yew-wood-toxic/

It appears the the leaves and seed will make you very sick and have the
potential to kill you.

The saw dust is a problem, as is any saw dust.

The author is waiting for a reply from a toxicologist.

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Had a quick look at the species you were talking about on Wiki, and
apparently the berries aren't toxic, allowing distribution of the seeds
by bird.

If you eat the leaves, bark or wood, or chew the seeds you will
definitely get very sick, however fatality in humans is very rare.

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So what do we know for sure :-

* Yew has been used for bows since ancient times.

* You get a rash from handling the wood, although I don't (*** side
note: do you get sweaty hands when you work? Because this would
facilitate the taxane getting onto your skin... can't imagine you using
green wood).

* Saw dust particles aren't good for you, and yew sawdust would be real
nasty due to the taxane. Poisons and lungs never go well together.

* It's not a good wood for jewelry or a knife grip, as it's very plain
and marks easily, you can dent it with a fingernail. (It can be made
safe by using very hard resins/eposies, but why would you?)


Regards Charles