Today's
Sponsors:


Grayson Ferguson Woodworking Inc.

Great Lakes Kiln Drying Association

GreCon

GUHDO

Hanson and Leja Lumber Company

Hardwood Council

Hardwood Store of N.C. Inc.

Heartwoods, LLC

Her-Saf

Hermance Machine Company

High Point Grinding - Total Saw Solutions

Historical Plus Wood

CNCROUTERSTORE.com

CNT Motion Systems

Colonial Saw

Construction Programs and Results

Cook's Saw Mfg.

COOLwoodworkingstuff.com

Country Saw & Knife, Inc.

Courmatt International Inc.

CP Adhesives

CSH Custom Service Hardware Inc.

CTS Manufacturing Inc.

CustomMade.com

Cutlist Plus

D.S. Brown Machinery

Dancer Lumber

Delle Vedove USA, Inc.

Delmac Machinery Group

Delta

Denray Machine

DeVilbiss

Dispoz-A-Blade

Diversi-Tech

DMC

DODDS

Don Hall & Associates

Donald Dean and Sons

Downdrafttable.org

Durable Wood Products

E.W. Tooling Inc.

Eagle America

Eagle Machinery and Repair Co.

ECabinet Systems

Edge-It Edgebanding

Edwards Wood Products

Electrophysics

Elias Woodwork & Manufacturing

Elkom North America

Emerald Hardwood Floors

Endeavor Hardwoods

EnRoute WOOD

ETemplate Digital Measuring

ETK International

EX-FACTORY

Excel Dowel and Wood Products Inc.

Extrema Machinery

ez-Router

FastCap

Finish Systems

Firth Maple Products

FORDAQ

FormWood Industries

Freeborn Tool Company

Fuhr International

Fuji Spray

Gabbiani Machine

Gary M. Katz

Global Hardwood Flooring

Glue Machinery Corporation

Goby Walnut Products

Graco, Inc.

Granite Road




Bending and Laminating Cherry       Quartersawn wood will behave a little better than flatsawn for making a laminated bent piece, but it's not a critical issue. April 21, 2008

Question
I am making a table with bent legs. I want to laminate a stack of .125" x 4" x 4' and bend them over a form, then shape them. Is there any benefit to using 1/4 sawn cherry over flat?

Also, I don't really want to resaw the cherry. I was thinking of subbing that out. Can anyone recommend a place that will mill and ship 130 pieces to me at the aforementioned dimension? Or do you think it is too small of an order and I should just get my local millwork place to do it? I am in Portland, OR.

Forum Responses
(Furniture Making Forum)
From Professor Gene Wengert, Sawing and Drying Forum technical advisor:
If you are using a slight bend, then either is fine. For a more severe bend, quartersawn is a bit better. However, straight grain (less than 3 degrees of slope) and correct MC (15% to 18% for slight bends; 22% to 25% MC for severe bends) are much, much more important.



From the original questioner:
Thanks. I think I am going to soak the pieces in hot water, then bend them over the form without glue first, then do it again with the glue. Do you think that is smart or a waste of time? I made one these tables a few years ago and have another opportunity to make it.


From contributor A:
If you've already done one before, then you should have a good feel for the stresses involved. I've done a fair amount of bent and tapered lamination work (I was fortunate to spend a week with Jere Osgood picking his brain on this). Needless to say, quarter sawn will behave a bit nicer, but I've used both in cherry. I would not sub this out because I would want to cut and stack all of the pieces in the same order that they came off the board. Doing this really makes a huge difference in the appearance. If you still have the forms from the one you did earlier, simply take a single piece, bend it and see what stresses it is under.


From Professor Gene Wengert, Sawing and Drying Forum technical advisor:
I would not wet them. However, I would get them at the correct MC using humidity.


From contributor W:
I have just finished using 1/4" x 1 3/4" x 48" cherry lams to bend into rockers for two rocking chairs. There were 7 lams being bent to make a 1 3/4" stack. The outside radius is 42". The pieces were at shop humidity for about 5 days after being cut out of the plank. No attempt was made to select quarter or flat sawn pieces, but we did maintain cut order. There were no problems in making the bends into the form. As we all know, cherry can be highly variable within a given plank. At least for those of us in small, one-man shops.

Would you like to add information to this article?
Interested in writing or submitting an article?
Have a question about this article?


Have you reviewed the related Knowledge Base areas below?
  • KnowledgeBase: Knowledge Base

  • KnowledgeBase: Furniture

  • KnowledgeBase: Furniture: Custom Furniture

  • KnowledgeBase: Woodworking Miscellaneous

  • KnowledgeBase: Woodworking Miscellaneous: Bending Wood




    Would you like to add information to this article? ... Click Here

    If you have a question regarding a Knowledge Base article, your best chance at uncovering an answer is to search the entire Knowledge Base for related articles or to post your question at the appropriate WOODWEB Forum. Before posting your message, be sure to
    review our Forum Guidelines.

    Questions entered in the Knowledge Base Article comment form will not generate responses! A list of WOODWEB Forums can be found at WOODWEB's Site Map.

    When you post your question at the Forum, be sure to include references to the Knowledge Base article that inspired your question. The more information you provide with your question, the better your chances are of receiving responses.

    Return to beginning of article.



    Refer a Friend || Read This Important Information || Site Map || Privacy Policy || Site User Agreement

    Letters, questions or comments? E-Mail us and let us know what you think. Be sure to review our Frequently Asked Questions page.

    Contact us to discuss advertising or to report problems with this site.

    To report a problem, send an e-mail to our Webmaster

    Copyright © 1996-2009 - WOODWEB ® Inc.
    All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced in any manner without permission of the Editor.
    Review WOODWEB's Copyright Policy.

    The editors, writers, and staff at WOODWEB try to promote safe practices. What is safe for one woodworker under certain conditions may not be safe for others in different circumstances. Readers should undertake the use of materials and methods discussed at WOODWEB after considerate evaluation, and at their own risk.

    WOODWEB, Inc.
    RR4 Box 265A
    Montrose, PA 18801

    Contact WOODWEB













  •   Home » Knowledge Base » Knowledge Base Article