Has anyone ever tried steam bending oak boards for a DIY type project?

The trim will be stained so I cannot do the typical relief cuts or other tricks sometimes used with painted wood trim. Asked by rsmike 49 months ago Similar questions: steam bending oak boards DIY type project Sports & Recreation.

Similar questions: steam bending oak boards DIY type project.

It's easy to build a homemade steam box, and steam-bending can be fun to do! There are 3 main things needed to steam-bend wood: A steam box A source of steam A bending form There are a few other things that make bending easier, clamps for example... a woodworker can NEVER have too many clamps! When it comes to bending wood, that is doubly true!

I don’t have any pictures of my steam box. (my box was lost during my last move... destroyed by a careless mover) So, the next time I have a need to bend wood for a project, I’ll just build another. Below is a picture on the Internet that is very similar to my box.

Note that it is just a very simple wooden box thrown together with some scrap wood from around the shop. (Make your box just a few inches longer than the longest piece you will need to steam) The steam source (smaller picture) is very similar to mine. I took an old pressure cooker, removed the stem the jiggler sits on, drill the hole larger (I drilled mine out to 3/4".

The one in the photo appears larger), then used a tap to cut threads to allow me to screw in a short piece of 1/2" ID black iron plumber’s pipe. I then press-fit another short section of pipe into the side of the steam box. (in the photo above, he comes in at the bottom) I then connected the 2 pieces of pipe with a 1" flexible metal tubing (found at a hardware store in Florida) than is screw-clamped to the pipes.

How long do you leave the wood in the steam box? It depends on the species of wood and how sharp a bend you want to make. See the tutorial below for more details.

The next thing you need is a good bending form! The drawing below shows my favored type of bending form - with plenty allowance for clamps! This is just a simple example of a "stacked" form.

Use OSB (oriented strand board) stacked, glued & screwed, and cut to the shape you need. Note that the form should be at least as thick as the wood to be bent is wide... this prevents warping. Also, notice all the holes, for clamping.

These are Ideal for using "Quick-Clamps". One more tip - When you remove the piece to bent from the steam box, BE READY! You only have a matter of seconds to get your piece bent!

Too slow and you run the risk of breakage or a failure to hold the desired shape. So, be ready and bend as fast as possible! An excellent tutorial can be found at: http://www.leevalley.com/wood/page.aspx?c=2&cat=1,45866,45867&p=45869 NOW, dang it, you have made me want to do a project where I "get" to do some bending!

So now, I gotta go build myself another box! Sources: http://www.leevalley.com/wood/page.aspx?c=2&cat=1,45866,45867&p=45869#forms, http://www.leevalley.com/wood/page.aspx?c=2&cat=1,45866,45867&p=45869, http://www.woodworkweb.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=106&Itemid=13 Colonel_Jimbo's Recommendations STEAM BENDING BASICS VIDEO WITH LON SCHLEINING Amazon List Price: $15.99 Average Customer Rating: 3.0 out of 5 (based on 1 reviews) MAKING RUSTIC FURNITURE - DVD - With Paul Ruhlmann Amazon List Price: $17.99 Gunlocke bends the rules; with a core set of values, a knack for steam bending developed over 97-years and a high-tech vision of the future, Gunlocke has ... An article from: Wood & Wood Products Amazon List Price: $5.95 You don't find many books about steam-bending, but here are two excellent videos, plus a pretty good article.

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