Straightening bowed ply
 

Hi All,

I have built the base units for my study out of 18mm ply and when I went to fit them today one of the sides has bowed (i.e. top and bottom are fine but the centre goes into the cupboard more than it should - if you see what I mean). There is another cupboard next to this side (which is fine) so was wondering how best to connect the 2 together to straighten the dodgy one rather than pull the good one into the bowed shape?

Thanks

Lee.

Straightening bowed ply
 

wrote

I have built the base units for my study out of 18mm ply
and when I went to fit them today one of the sides has
bowed (i.e. top and bottom are fine but the centre goes
into the cupboard more than it should - if you see what
I mean). There is another cupboard next to this side
(which is fine) so was wondering how best to connect
the 2 together to straighten the dodgy one rather than
pull the good one into the bowed shape?

There are things often called barrel bolts or furniture bolts
that can be used to pull the two vertical sides together and
which have heads which dont intrude into the body
of the base units.

https://www.ebay.com.au/itm/143481548452?

Straightening bowed ply
 

On 01/05/2021 21:42, Rod Speed wrote:
wrote

I have built the base units for my study out of 18mm ply
and when I went to fit them today one of the sides has
bowed (i.e. top and bottom are fine but the centre goes
into the cupboard more than it should - if you see what
I mean).Â* There is another cupboard next to this side
(which is fine) so was wondering how best to connect
the 2 together to straighten the dodgy one rather than
pull the good one into the bowed shape?

There are things often called barrel bolts or furniture bolts
that can be used to pull the two vertical sides together and
which have heads which dont intrude into the body
of the base units.

https://www.ebay.com.au/itm/143481548452?

This is the standard (and very effective) way to connect together
individual kitchen units. But do I take it from the OP's description
that these units are backless? It's normal to have a back on units like
this because this provides bracing to prevent it going into a
parallelogram, if you see what I mean. So that should also stop bowing,
at least at the back.

How much is this bow? 18mm ply does not normally bow very much. If it is
just a millimetre or two then these bolts should sort it out fine.

Lonely Obnoxious Cantankerous Auto-contradicting Senile Ozzie Troll Alert!
 

On Sun, 2 May 2021 06:42:15 +1000, cantankerous trolling geezer Rodent
Speed, the auto-contradicting senile sociopath, blabbered, again:


There are things often called barrel bolts

Shooting a bolt through your thick senile head would solve many a problem
....for you AND your neighbours, you abnormal sociopathic senile pest!

--
Website (from 2007) dedicated to the 86-year-old senile Australian
cretin's pathological trolling:
https://www.pcreview.co.uk/threads/r...d-faq.2973853/

Straightening bowed ply
 

On Saturday, 1 May 2021 at 22:28:03 UTC+1, newshound wrote:
On 01/05/2021 21:42, Rod Speed wrote:
wrote

I have built the base units for my study out of 18mm ply
and when I went to fit them today one of the sides has
bowed (i.e. top and bottom are fine but the centre goes
into the cupboard more than it should - if you see what
I mean). There is another cupboard next to this side
(which is fine) so was wondering how best to connect
the 2 together to straighten the dodgy one rather than
pull the good one into the bowed shape?

There are things often called barrel bolts or furniture bolts
that can be used to pull the two vertical sides together and
which have heads which dont intrude into the body
of the base units.

https://www.ebay.com.au/itm/143481548452?
This is the standard (and very effective) way to connect together
individual kitchen units. But do I take it from the OP's description
that these units are backless? It's normal to have a back on units like
this because this provides bracing to prevent it going into a
parallelogram, if you see what I mean. So that should also stop bowing,
at least at the back.

How much is this bow? 18mm ply does not normally bow very much. If it is
just a millimetre or two then these bolts should sort it out fine.

The cupboards are made from 18mm ply but for some reason that side seems of have bowed. If I used the bolts suggested (or even screw the 2 x 18mm sides together) how do I ensure that the bowed one goes straight as opposed to the straight one going bowed?

Straightening bowed ply
 

" wrote in message
...
On Saturday, 1 May 2021 at 22:28:03 UTC+1, newshound wrote:
On 01/05/2021 21:42, Rod Speed wrote:
wrote

I have built the base units for my study out of 18mm ply
and when I went to fit them today one of the sides has
bowed (i.e. top and bottom are fine but the centre goes
into the cupboard more than it should - if you see what
I mean). There is another cupboard next to this side
(which is fine) so was wondering how best to connect
the 2 together to straighten the dodgy one rather than
pull the good one into the bowed shape?

There are things often called barrel bolts or furniture bolts
that can be used to pull the two vertical sides together and
which have heads which dont intrude into the body
of the base units.

https://www.ebay.com.au/itm/143481548452?
This is the standard (and very effective) way to connect together
individual kitchen units. But do I take it from the OP's description
that these units are backless? It's normal to have a back on units like
this because this provides bracing to prevent it going into a
parallelogram, if you see what I mean. So that should also stop bowing,
at least at the back.

How much is this bow? 18mm ply does not normally bow very much. If it is
just a millimetre or two then these bolts should sort it out fine.

The cupboards are made from 18mm ply but
for some reason that side seems of have bowed.

If I used the bolts suggested (or even screw the 2 x 18mm
sides together) how do I ensure that the bowed one goes
straight as opposed to the straight one going bowed?

Try it and see what happens. If the unbowed one is pulled
into the bowed one, replace the bowed side under warranty
or at your own expense.

Lonely Obnoxious Cantankerous Auto-contradicting Senile Ozzie Troll Alert!
 

On Sun, 2 May 2021 08:30:44 +1000, cantankerous trolling geezer Rodent
Speed, the auto-contradicting senile sociopath, blabbered, again:

FLUSH the trolling senile asshole's latest troll****

--
addressing nym-shifting senile Rodent:
"You on the other hand are a heavyweight bull****ter who demonstrates
his particular prowess at it every day."
MID:

Straightening bowed ply
 

On Sat, 01 May 2021 14:57:59 -0700, wrote:

On Saturday, 1 May 2021 at 22:28:03 UTC+1, newshound wrote:
On 01/05/2021 21:42, Rod Speed wrote:
wrote

I have built the base units for my study out of 18mm ply and when I
went to fit them today one of the sides has bowed (i.e. top and
bottom are fine but the centre goes into the cupboard more than it
should - if you see what I mean). There is another cupboard next to
this side (which is fine) so was wondering how best to connect the 2
together to straighten the dodgy one rather than pull the good one
into the bowed shape?

There are things often called barrel bolts or furniture bolts that
can be used to pull the two vertical sides together and which have
heads which dont intrude into the body of the base units.

https://www.ebay.com.au/itm/143481548452?
This is the standard (and very effective) way to connect together
individual kitchen units. But do I take it from the OP's description
that these units are backless? It's normal to have a back on units like
this because this provides bracing to prevent it going into a
parallelogram, if you see what I mean. So that should also stop bowing,
at least at the back.

How much is this bow? 18mm ply does not normally bow very much. If it
is just a millimetre or two then these bolts should sort it out fine.

The cupboards are made from 18mm ply but for some reason that side
seems of have bowed. If I used the bolts suggested (or even screw the 2
x 18mm sides together) how do I ensure that the bowed one goes straight
as opposed to the straight one going bowed?


Clamp it first and see if it has the desired effect.

Straightening bowed ply
 

On Sunday, 2 May 2021 at 05:23:45 UTC+1, jon wrote:
On Sat, 01 May 2021 14:57:59 -0700, wrote:

On Saturday, 1 May 2021 at 22:28:03 UTC+1, newshound wrote:
On 01/05/2021 21:42, Rod Speed wrote:
wrote

I have built the base units for my study out of 18mm ply and when I
went to fit them today one of the sides has bowed (i.e. top and
bottom are fine but the centre goes into the cupboard more than it
should - if you see what I mean). There is another cupboard next to
this side (which is fine) so was wondering how best to connect the 2
together to straighten the dodgy one rather than pull the good one
into the bowed shape?

There are things often called barrel bolts or furniture bolts that
can be used to pull the two vertical sides together and which have
heads which dont intrude into the body of the base units.

https://www.ebay.com.au/itm/143481548452?
This is the standard (and very effective) way to connect together
individual kitchen units. But do I take it from the OP's description
that these units are backless? It's normal to have a back on units like
this because this provides bracing to prevent it going into a
parallelogram, if you see what I mean. So that should also stop bowing,
at least at the back.

How much is this bow? 18mm ply does not normally bow very much. If it
is just a millimetre or two then these bolts should sort it out fine.

The cupboards are made from 18mm ply but for some reason that side
seems of have bowed. If I used the bolts suggested (or even screw the 2
x 18mm sides together) how do I ensure that the bowed one goes straight
as opposed to the straight one going bowed?
Clamp it first and see if it has the desired effect.

The cupboard I have made and only noticed the box once I have glued and screwed it all together!! It is about 5mm out at the centre so can't see how I didn't notice it!

It will have a back once I can get the bow out of it. As suggested above, maybe if I can clamp it somehow from the front and get the bow out, maybe gluing and pinning the back onto it (12mm ply) will fix it? Or will it break the glue and return once the clamps are removed?

Straightening bowed ply
 

On 02/05/2021 08:22, wrote:


The cupboard I have made and only noticed the box once I have glued
and screwed it all together!! It is about 5mm out at the centre so
can't see how I didn't notice it!

It will have a back once I can get the bow out of it. As suggested
above, maybe if I can clamp it somehow from the front and get the bow
out, maybe gluing and pinning the back onto it (12mm ply) will fix
it? Or will it break the glue and return once the clamps are
removed?

What I would do is roughly as follows.
Cut some struts to make a V shape going from the opposite corners to the
center of the bowed panel,. then use a car jack and a bit of strut to
push the bow out long enough to fit the struts - a pair should lock into
place without fixing.

spray water all over the bent panel and leave it a day or so. Fit the
square back with the struts in place.

--
Gun Control: The law that ensures that only criminals have guns.

Straightening bowed ply
 

Might one ask the question as to what made it bow, if one assumes it was not
that whey to start with?
Damp, heat, being held in a bowed state for some months?

Can it be reversed?
IE bowed out rather than in then be sure its well secured and the two bits
of ply may then reach a king of agreement over time!

Brian

--

This newsgroup posting comes to you directly from...
The Sofa of Brian Gaff...

Blind user, so no pictures please
Note this Signature is meaningless.!
" wrote in message
...
Hi All,

I have built the base units for my study out of 18mm ply and when I went to
fit them today one of the sides has bowed (i.e. top and bottom are fine but
the centre goes into the cupboard more than it should - if you see what I
mean). There is another cupboard next to this side (which is fine) so was
wondering how best to connect the 2 together to straighten the dodgy one
rather than pull the good one into the bowed shape?

Thanks

Lee.

Straightening bowed ply
 

On 01/05/2021 20:41, wrote:
Hi All,

I have built the base units for my study out of 18mm ply and when I
went to fit them today one of the sides has bowed (i.e. top and
bottom are fine but the centre goes into the cupboard more than it
should - if you see what I mean). There is another cupboard next to
this side (which is fine) so was wondering how best to connect the 2
together to straighten the dodgy one rather than pull the good one
into the bowed shape?

With the one that bows in be braced by anything in the space (shelf,
drawer etc)? (and if not, could it be?)

If joining to an adjacent one, then again if that can be restrained,
that may also do the job.

--
Cheers,

John.

/================================================== ===============\
| Internode Ltd - http://www.internode.co.uk |
|-----------------------------------------------------------------|
| John Rumm - john(at)internode(dot)co(dot)uk |
\================================================= ================/

Straightening bowed ply
 

On 02/05/2021 09:36, The Natural Philosopher wrote:
On 02/05/2021 08:22, wrote:


The cupboard I have made and only noticed the box once I have glued
and screwed it all together!!Â* It is about 5mm out at the centre so
can't see how I didn't notice it!

It will have a back once I can get the bow out of it.Â* As suggested
above, maybe if I can clamp it somehow from the front and get the bow
out, maybe gluing and pinning the back onto it (12mm ply) will fix
it? Or will it break the glue and return once the clamps are
removed?

What I would do is roughly as follows.
Cut some struts to make a V shape going from the opposite corners to the
center of the bowed panel,. then use a car jack andÂ*Â* a bit of strut to
push the bow out long enough to fit the struts - a pair should lock into
place without fixing.

spray water all over the bent panel and leave it a day or so. Fit the
square back with the struts in place.

I was going to suggest something very similar. Another thing you could
consider is to temporarily close off the front and back e.g. by taping
or pinning polyethylene over it, then filling the inside with steam from
a wallpaper stripper for perhaps an hour. That adds heat as well as
damp. Ideally you would steam the outside at the same time. If you get
it reasonably straight when internally braced, you could put wood glue
all over the outside surface of the dodgy panel and fix it to the "good"
box with those furniture bolts, waiting until the glue has dried
properly before removing the internal braces.

Straightening bowed ply
 

On 02/05/2021 17:46, newshound wrote:

I was going to suggest something very similar. Another thing you could
consider is to temporarily close off the front and back e.g. by taping
or pinning polyethylene over it, then filling the inside with steam from
a wallpaper stripper for perhaps an hour. That adds heat as well as
damp.


It's plywood - it may delaminate.

--
mailto : news {at} admac {dot} myzen {dot} co {dot} uk

Straightening bowed ply
 

On 02/05/2021 18:12, alan_m wrote:
On 02/05/2021 17:46, newshound wrote:

I was going to suggest something very similar. Another thing you could
consider is to temporarily close off the front and back e.g. by taping
or pinning polyethylene over it, then filling the inside with steam
from a wallpaper stripper for perhaps an hour. That adds heat as well
as damp.


It's plywood - it may delaminate.

not if its proper WBP or quality birch ply


and it isn't steamed for a long time


--
Gun Control: The law that ensures that only criminals have guns.

Straightening bowed ply
 

Thanks very much all for your suggestions. I have managed to screw the back edge temporarily to a piece of 4x2 which has taken the bow out of the back and enabled me to screw and glue the 12mm ply back to it. Hoping that once the glue has dried to full strength (it says 24 hours) and I remove the screws it will stay in place or at least be better than it was. Luckily the other side is ok so have been able to position this one next to a good unit so hoping I can then screw/ bolt it to the good one and keep the bow under control.

Thanks

Lee.