DIYbanter - Bending Wood ?

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I`m attempting to make a 6` wide fence panel with an "arch-shaped" top and am
looking for suggestions to bend the wood for the top.

I`ve tried cutting, assembling and gluing ( plus screws ) 5mm strips of wood
with minimal success ( The ends refuse to remain bent)

Any suggestions will be most welcome

"Reteplav" wrote in message
...
I`m attempting to make a 6` wide fence panel with an "arch-shaped" top
and am
looking for suggestions to bend the wood for the top.

I`ve tried cutting, assembling and gluing ( plus screws ) 5mm strips of
wood
with minimal success ( The ends refuse to remain bent)

Any suggestions will be most welcome

This is done professionally by using steam ovens and weights. The timbers
are laid on rafters in a big oven like room and varying weights are placed
along the length with the heaviest ones in the middle. This even
distribution of weigh gives the best results in making an even uniform
shape. The oven is then filled with very hot steam for hours on end and
this causes the timber to soften and the weights then pull it into shape.

To do on a small scale in possible using buckets of boiling water and
standing in the middle of the batten while the ends are placed on piles of
bricks or something. The boiling water is then slowly poured all over it
until it softens enough for your weigh to form it into shape. This
technique may take huge amounts of time and water and heating bills though.

I'd suggest going to your local timber yard and asking them to keep any
badly warped and bent timbers they find and you may get them cost price if
no one else wants them.

Reteplav wrote:
I`m attempting to make a 6` wide fence panel with an "arch-shaped"
top and am looking for suggestions to bend the wood for the top.

I`ve tried cutting, assembling and gluing ( plus screws ) 5mm
strips of wood with minimal success ( The ends refuse to remain bent)

Any suggestions will be most welcome

FOCUS make them, less hassle.
Steve R

---
One piece, one button suit, timeless fashion. All made by the same
manufacturer, no designer label, everybody has one.

This is done professionally by using steam ovens

An easy way to "cook" a length of timber is to put it inside a length of soil
or drainpipe, stand vertically, plug the top loosely with a bit of cloth and
run the hose from a steam steamer in the bottom. Half an hour does nicely for
skirting board section.

"Peter Parry" wrote in message
...
On 22 Jul 2003 22:41:23 GMT, etition (Reteplav)
wrote:

Any suggestions will be most welcome

http://www.wcha.org/tidbits/steamfaq.html

Peter Parry.
http://www.wpp.ltd.uk/

Very interesting Peter. Thank you.

"Reteplav" wrote
| I`m attempting to make a 6` wide fence panel with an
| arch-shaped" top and am looking for suggestions to bend
| the wood for the top. I`ve tried cutting, assembling
| and gluing ( plus screws ) 5mm strips of wood with
| minimal success ( The ends refuse to remain bent)

You take one long piece of wood and, as well as steaming as described by
others, you saw-cut on the inside (concave) of the curve almost but not
quite all the way through.

-------------------------------

| | | | | | | |
| | | | | | | |
-|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|- BEND
DOWN
| |
V ^^ concave side ^^ V

You then need to support it while it 'sets' Best to bend it a little too far
and then relax it out to fit.

Owain