hi everyone ,someone try steam bend macassar ebony?

[jerryyanpu]

this is my first time to build a classical guitar ,,,i bought some macassar ebony sides firstly,, ,,,then i found it is seens very hard to steam bend it ..,,, but i dont have iron pipe ...
so ,it is anyone know how can i steam bend the macassar ebony sides?
cheers！
jerry yan

[kiwigeo]

this is my first time to build a classical guitar ,,,i bought some macassar ebony sides firstly,, ,,,then i found it is seens very hard to steam bend it ..,,, but i dont have iron pipe ...
so ,it is anyone know how can i steam bend the macassar ebony sides?
cheers！
jerry yan

Welcome to the forum Jerry,

My first question is are you using a book to guide you through your build?

Bending guitar sides is a matter of using heat rather than steam to get the wood to bend. The easiest way to bend sides is using a heat pipe of some sort of alternately a heat blanket and form. I recommend you either buy yourself an electric bending iron or if you're tight for money make a gas powered pipe. There are plenty of instructions on the internet for making the latter.

Three things are critical in side bending. The thickness of the side being bent and the temperature to bend the wood at are both important. Both will depend on the the wood being bent. The technique used to bend sides is also important. Again there's plenty of information on the web on all this.

[jerryyanpu]

this is my first time to build a classical guitar ,,,i bought some macassar ebony sides firstly,, ,,,then i found it is seens very hard to steam bend it ..,,, but i dont have iron pipe ...
so ,it is anyone know how can i steam bend the macassar ebony sides?
cheers！
jerry yan

Welcome to the forum Jerry,

My first question is are you using a book to guide you through your build?

Bending guitar sides is a matter of using heat rather than steam to get the wood to bend. The easiest way to bend sides is using a heat pipe of some sort of alternately a heat blanket and form. I recommend you either buy yourself an electric bending iron or if you're tight for money make a gas powered pipe. There are plenty of instructions on the internet for making the latter.

Three things are critical in side bending. The thickness of the side being bent and the temperature to bend the wood at are both important. Both will depend on the the wood being bent. The technique used to bend sides is also important. Again there's plenty of information on the web on all this.

thanks mate~
yes, i have read some books and watched some videos ,,,im recently studying furniture making in a shcool ,,we have steam box in our workshop,so this is why i think i may use it for bending ,however,,if i really need to make my own gas powered pipe,could u give me some link or imformations?,,i m a totally new hand in this,,,
cheers!!
jerry yan

[blackalex1952]

My calibration!

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The attachment P1020949.JPG is no longer available

My calibration!

The attachment P1020949.JPG is no longer available

I made my bending iron this way. I shaped a piece of 19mm craftwood into what I would describe as a sail mast profile, having looked at various commercially available bending irons, their dimensions and shapes. The curves that I used were based on the curves that were on a Selmer style body shape, with the aim of being able to bend the cutaway on those instruments on the smaller radius end, because it is a rather tight bend. Therefore other bends of a larger radius would be no problem. I then used 2 wood screws to join another piece of craftwood in order to copy the shape I had made with a pattern following router bit, I repeated this several times to build up the height of the bending iron, and stacked them all up to make a form using long wood screws into the holes left from each copying process, so that they all lined up. Then I sent the form to a guy who was sand casting aluminium. I got the idea from a luthier who made his from old salvaged aluminuim alloy car engine pistons- he melted the aluminium himself, which I tried but gave up due to lack of a good heat source and crucible. So I located the foundry in the yellow pages, the gentleman did the job for $20. In the meantime I ordered a set of ceramic heating elements from eBay China which cost very little with free postage, along with a Chinese PID controller, an SSR (solid state relay) a heat sync for the SSR and a temperature sensor for the PID. Make sure the PID has a low DC output to drive the SSR which is used to switch the high current heating elements. I think I got the heat sinc for the SSR from Jaycar, along with some heat sync paste.I forget the correct name of the stuff. I had some hi temperature resistant glue (Pyrogrip in Aus). It is used for gluing the door seals on wood heaters. So... I made a box for the PID, the SSR and heat sync along with two terminals for the temp sensor to connect to and wired it all up with an on off switch and a power socket and lead. When the Aluminium bending "iron" turned up, I drilled a series of 10mm holes for the ceramic elements and glued them in with the high temp glue, along with a hole for the temp sensor, which I tapped in as it was threaded. I then cornered an electrician I ran into outside the local hardware and he gave me an offcut of "insulpanel" which is used to make custom fuse boards. This I used between the iron and the wooden base that I mounted it on. The Chinese PID/temp sensor combination gave an innacurate reading so I calibrated the PID using a surface thermometer. The whole rig cost less than a commercial one. Pix following after I take them! If you want to search this forum, there are posts about heat bending irons, pipes, methods. Whatever works for you. I have used a hot pipe as well. A word of warning, leather gloves and a leather apron are a good idea. I heat bent some sides one day, after a while concentrating, I had warmed right up and went to take my jacket off only to find that I had melted the nylon zipper at the front and fused the zipper permanently closed. So now it is a pullover!Cheers! Ross

[jerryyanpu]

thanks everyone ,now just strugle to get a hot pipe= =

[kiwigeo]

thanks everyone ,now just strugle to get a hot pipe= =

If youve got the money just buy one from Stewmac or LMI....

[jerryyanpu]

thanks everyone ,now just strugle to get a hot pipe= =

If youve got the money just buy one from Stewmac or LMI....

Thanks!,,, yeah maybe this is the best way!

[Allen]

You can buy quite good ones out of China on eBay these days. That would be my choice when / if mine dies.

[kiwigeo]

You can buy quite good ones out of China on eBay these days. That would be my choice when / if mine dies.

My Stewmac iron has been going for 14 years and gets some pretty heavy use.....

[jerryyanpu]

You can buy quite good ones out of China on eBay these days. That would be my choice when / if mine dies.

yes ,this is a good idea.....
haha ,but if steam box works that will be better= .=

[Mark McLean]

I got a cheap Chinese bending iron on EBay also. It has worked well for about 4 years.

Jerry, like Martin said, it is a matter of heat, more than steam. And thickness of the wood is critical. It is amazing how some timber will just not budge at 2.5mm thickness, but will happily do what you want if you take it down to 2mm. I haven't bent macassar ebony before but I have used it in bridges and fingerboards. It looks great - but it is hard and dense, so it might be a bit of a bastard to bend. Just guessing.

Maybe practice on some quartersawn mahogany or blackwood, or whatever you can get your hands on, first to get the hang of it. Don't start with your nice tonewood until you think you have a bit of a knack.

Using a strip of thin galvanized metal sheeting as a backing strip helps keep even heat and pressure during the bend. For really resistant timbers, thin it more and also try Super-Soft or similar veneer softeners.
Mark

[56nortondomy]

I've built 2 Macassar guitars and had no trouble bending with a heat blanket and mould. I don't think steam is the way to go, use an iron like the guys have suggested or a heat blanket. Wayne

[jerryyanpu]

I got a cheap Chinese bending iron on EBay also. It has worked well for about 4 years.

Jerry, like Martin said, it is a matter of heat, more than steam. And thickness of the wood is critical. It is amazing how some timber will just not budge at 2.5mm thickness, but will happily do what you want if you take it down to 2mm. I haven't bent macassar ebony before but I have used it in bridges and fingerboards. It looks great - but it is hard and dense, so it might be a bit of a bastard to bend. Just guessing.

Maybe practice on some quartersawn mahogany or blackwood, or whatever you can get your hands on, first to get the hang of it. Don't start with your nice tonewood until you think you have a bit of a knack.

Using a strip of thin galvanized metal sheeting as a backing strip helps keep even heat and pressure during the bend. For really resistant timbers, thin it more and also try Super-Soft or similar veneer softeners.
Mark

thanks a lot ,now i really consider to buy a bending iron ,although it is not cheap , but i dont want ruin my project~!
jerry yan

[jerryyanpu]

I've built 2 Macassar guitars and had no trouble bending with a heat blanket and mould. I don't think steam is the way to go, use an iron like the guys have suggested or a heat blanket. Wayne

wow ,thats look nice!
yeah ,bending iron is a good choice now i think ~!

[kiwigeo]

Jerry..see here: viewtopic.php?f=5&t=7376

[jerryyanpu]

Jerry..see here: viewtopic.php?f=5&t=7376

thanks a lot !