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I need to make some porthole liners for a barge and I was thinking of
steaming some wood strips. Size is approx 1.15m long - it is a 0.381m
diameter porthole - 60mm wide and 6 - 8 mm thick. I was thinking of
using mahogany or similar dark hard wood.

After attending a recent seminar at Lee Valley Tools conducted by Michael
Fortune and watching him bend wood, I'm convinced almost any radius within
reason can be obtained. I'm not that sure Mahogany is the best wood since
straight grained wood is the best for steam bending, but you should be able
to find something suitable. My first suggestion is that you read up a bit on
bending wood.
http://www.leevalley.com/wood/page.a...=1,45866,45867

There's also another route you might consider for these portholes. Bendable
Lauan also known as Bendable Plywood or "Wiggle Board", (information also
courtesy of Mr. Fortune) might meet your needs. You could laminate several
layers together to obtain your desired thickness. I've provided one sample
picture of it in the link below. It does come in longer lengths (at least
96") than listed on the website.

http://www.vandykes.com/product/02007822/