Oddly enough,a guy named Marcel started working with us about the time
this thread started and if it's the same guy, he's not worth getting
too excited about.I'll whack him with a 2x4 tomorrow just in case he
is the same person.
I've bent up to 1/4" thick pieces of wood with just heat only
useing water to keep it from scorching.With a piece of pipe in a vise
and a torch to heat it up,then rocking or sliding the wood back and
forth under as much pressure as feels like just short of breaking,a
point is reach where the wood becomes elastic and will bend very
easily.
What I wanted to post though about bending wood was an article I
remember seeing in Fine Woodworking a loooong time ago(+ or - a
decade) about useing anhydrous ammonia to bend wood and they had a
picture of something like a 2x2 oak stick tied in an amazingly tight
knot.I'm sure it would have an application for wooden boat building (I
like fiberglass) especially where bigger chunks of wood are used.As
far as the ammonia goes,it's the kind farmers use to fertilize their
fields by injecting it as a liquid.If you happen to inhale it you
immediately wonder who took your lungs and when are they going to
bring them back as you need them RIGHT NOW! A respirater with the
correct cartridges is handy to have.

wrote:

I recall seeing plans for a steamer that was basically a long piece of
copper pipe connected to a tea kettle. It was probably in a strip canoe
book. I'll look around and see if I can find it again.

My first steam generator was a tea kettle on a hot plate. It had several
downsides: limited water capacity, modest steam production, it was too
easily kicked over and it could pose a fire hazard if the kettle ran dry
(don't ask me how I know this).

These days, I use a Wagner wallpaper steamer. It holds a gallon,
produces lots of steam, runs for over an hour on one fill, has an
overheat shutoff and the self contained unit (the size of a car battery)
can be positioned well away from the steam box where it's less prone to
be knocked around (it has an 11' hose). It's fine for steaming the parts
I use in kayaks, but something larger would be needed for parts for
bigger boats that require extended steaming times.

I've seen some similarly amazing examples of ammonia bending, too. But
as you say, it's hazardous to work with. In a commercial operation, I
imagine there would be all kinds of OSHA and EPA regs to deal with if
you were going to use ammonia. One major advantage of steam is that it
only requires heat and water and produces no pollutants...though some
woods really reek when steamed.

Brian Nystrom wrote in message ...
I've seen some similarly amazing examples of ammonia bending, too. But
as you say, it's hazardous to work with. In a commercial operation, I
imagine there would be all kinds of OSHA and EPA regs to deal with if
you were going to use ammonia. One major advantage of steam is that it
only requires heat and water and produces no pollutants...though some
woods really reek when steamed.

Sawing red oak I've often checked my pants to try and find where
the stench is coming from.I suppose in a commercial(huge) operation
the Federalis would have to be involved but I don't think too much
even then, as any farmer can get ahold of a 2000 gallon tank of the
stuff just by paying cash,and for the most part, if you don't tell
them, how are they going to know? I think it worked different from
steam and heat, in that it chemically plastisized the wood
way past the steam bending phase and placed it in the 'circus freak'
realm of possibilities.