Brian Nystrom ) writes:
William R. Watt wrote:

Old dry wood has to soak up moisture before it can be heated to bend.

Not in my experience. I've seen no difference in bending between dry
stock and the same stock that's been soaked in water for days or even
weeks. It's the heat that makes the wood bend-able, not the moisture.
Steaming is simply a way of heating the wood rapidly to the correct
temperature for bending, which - luckily for us - happens to be around
the boiling point of water.


I have no experience. Just quoting what I've read, eg. TF Jones who soaks
old wood before steam bending.

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William R. Watt wrote:
Brian Nystrom ) writes:

William R. Watt wrote:


Old dry wood has to soak up moisture before it can be heated to bend.

Not in my experience. I've seen no difference in bending between dry
stock and the same stock that's been soaked in water for days or even
weeks. It's the heat that makes the wood bend-able, not the moisture.
Steaming is simply a way of heating the wood rapidly to the correct
temperature for bending, which - luckily for us - happens to be around
the boiling point of water.



I have no experience. Just quoting what I've read, eg. TF Jones who soaks
old wood before steam bending.

When I've soaked wood, all it did was make is swell so it no longer fit
where it was supposed to, such as in a mortise. Either that, or if it
was trimmed to fit after steaming, it shrank as it dried and became
loose. Soaking didn't seem to make any difference in the bend-ability of
the wood.

Brian Nystrom says:

Soaking didn't seem to make any difference in the bend-ability of
the wood.

The old man always used to soak white oak before bending (24 hrs in the
bathtub), whether to see if it had a natural inclination to bend in a
particular direction, to help with bending, or some other reason I am not sure.
He was the builder, and I didn't question it.
He bent a lot of white oak ribs in his day.

Steve

Brian Nystrom ) writes:

When I've soaked wood, all it did was make is swell so it no longer fit
where it was supposed to, such as in a mortise. Either that, or if it
was trimmed to fit after steaming, it shrank as it dried and became
loose. Soaking didn't seem to make any difference in the bend-ability of
the wood.

softwoods would have more of a tendancy to swell. TF Jones writes that a
nice piece of 15-20 year old oak needs soaking before steam bending.

A 1"x1" piece of clear oak properly steamed can be tied in a knot. Not
something I've ever tried.

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On Sat, 06 Mar 2004 14:58:04 GMT, Brian Nystrom
vaguely proposed a theory
.......and in reply I say!:

I have only done it once, to bend a piece of wood. But I understood
that if you met your sort of trouble, you soaked/steamed, then placed
the wood either in situ, but not installed, or on a former. Getting
the wood close to its final shape is enough. You then at worst need a
bit of force to finish it off.

When I've soaked wood, all it did was make is swell so it no longer fit
where it was supposed to, such as in a mortise. Either that, or if it
was trimmed to fit after steaming, it shrank as it dried and became
loose. Soaking didn't seem to make any difference in the bend-ability of
the wood.

************************************************** ** sorry

..........no I'm not!
remove ns from my header address to reply via email

Spike....Spike? Hello?

I wonder if the idea of soaking wood before steam bending comes from
trying to bend kiln dried wood by introducing some moisture back into
it. Certainly green wood bends easier than kiln dried. But I agree, it's
the heat, not the water that allows wood to bend. I've seen dry wood
bent with only heat. Water was used only to keep the wood from scorching.

Brian Nystrom wrote:


William R. Watt wrote:

Brian Nystrom ) writes:

William R. Watt wrote:


Old dry wood has to soak up moisture before it can be heated to bend.


Not in my experience. I've seen no difference in bending between dry
stock and the same stock that's been soaked in water for days or even
weeks. It's the heat that makes the wood bend-able, not the moisture.
Steaming is simply a way of heating the wood rapidly to the correct
temperature for bending, which - luckily for us - happens to be
around the boiling point of water.



I have no experience. Just quoting what I've read, eg. TF Jones who soaks
old wood before steam bending.


When I've soaked wood, all it did was make is swell so it no longer fit
where it was supposed to, such as in a mortise. Either that, or if it
was trimmed to fit after steaming, it shrank as it dried and became
loose. Soaking didn't seem to make any difference in the bend-ability of
the wood.

It all depends on exactly how the wood needs to be when it it done.
How tight is the bend?
There are several ways to bend wood.
1.Flex it into the shape desired and hold in place with screws, nails,
glue or lashings.
2. Steam bend the wood using a form to hold the wood until it is cool.
3. Laminate with glue two or more pieces that are flexible so that they
hold their shape went glue is set.

If you tell us exactly what you are doing we can suggest a way.


Marcel wrote:
The problem is how do you bend wood on a yet to built boat.
I am using wood 7mm thick and 50mm wide.

"Marcel" wrote in message
...
The problem is how do you bend wood on a yet to built boat.
I am using wood 7mm thick and 50mm wide.


7mm is not thick, bending that in a simple curve will not be a problem.

50mm wide will be a different problem if the curves will compound ones - ie
bend in 3 axis. Usually that width will require soaking in water or steaming
to enable bending without splitting the wood.

The internal frame or the mould will enable you to bend the wood and clamp
or staple it in position.

For some good photos and an explanation of various strip methods have a look
at www.oneoceankayaks.com

"Marcel" wrote in message ...
The problem is how do you bend wood on a yet to built boat.
I am using wood 7mm thick and 50mm wide.

Gregg Germain had these posted with pics, but the link does not work
so I will direct you to one of his posts on steambending he
http://groups.google.com/groups?hl=e...edu%26rnum%3D5
You will find a lot of info here.
I can put up photos of my steamboxes and setup if you need me to let
me know.
Scotty from SmallBoats.com

"Marcel" wrote in message ...
The problem is how do you bend wood on a yet to built boat.
I am using wood 7mm thick and 50mm wide.

Sorry, just noticed that Greg is still around and still has a working
website, glitch on my end, Scotty
Glitch = user head malfunction...