Jump to content

Steam tool for bending wood model ship planks?


Recommended Posts

I use my wife's discarded hair curler.  It is stuck on High so she can't use it.  I soak the wood for 10-15 mins.   Open the jaws stick the wood in and close the jaws .  The heat helps with the bend.  The diameter is perfect for every curve I have needed so far (15 or so ships), and can be bent in any direction.

Brand new the curling iron is less than $10 USD.

post-30-0-82162300-1445817924.jpg

post-30-0-75072100-1445817925.jpg

Link to comment
Share on other sites

This is what I have:

42826-01-1000.jpg

I have used it for woodworking and guitar building and it steams the wood well.  The kit includes instructions on making the wood box but would have to be modified for model making.

 

I also have one of these:

Bending_Iron.jpg

When bending guitar sides, you need to back up the wood with a bending strap to keep the fibers from breaking.  This may not be an issue with model making though.

 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • 2 weeks later...

Hi

 

I find soaking wood in container of boiling water is the most convenient method. For anything up to 1/8 inch a few minutes soak will do the job. You can vary the size of the container to match the piece of wood you want to bend and any water left in the kettle can be used for coffee (or tea in my case). When bending long strips I use a steam wallpaper stripper and push the strips down the steam outlet tube.

 

Keith

Edited by KeithAug
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Join the conversation

You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.

Guest
Reply to this topic...

×   Pasted as rich text.   Paste as plain text instead

  Only 75 emoji are allowed.

×   Your link has been automatically embedded.   Display as a link instead

×   Your previous content has been restored.   Clear editor

×   You cannot paste images directly. Upload or insert images from URL.

  • Recently Browsing   0 members

    • No registered users viewing this page.
×
×
  • Create New...