Bevel Stem Pieces after Bending?

[techrtr]

I'm going to be bending some stem tops for a canoe that I'm restoring. I was wondering if it's better to bevel the stem after steam bending the wood or before, or does it matter. I'm guessing it's easier to cut the bevel on a band saw before the wood is bent but in most of the videos I've seen, it seems like people cut the bevel after the wood has been steamed.

 

[Rod Tait (Orca Boats)]

I just steamed a stem piece that was quite long. I bevelled before and had a bit of problems. The wood did not bend evenly and tended to crush or kink. My theory is that the different width of wood along the piece caused it to not bend evenly. I think I also may have steamed a bit too long since it bent better as I went along the length and it cooled. I was able to use it as I steamed a piece longer than needed. Next time I will try even thickness (no bevel) and see if that makes a difference.

 

[techrtr]

Hey Rod, thanks for responding. There's a lot more to this steam bending than meets the eye. I tried to steam a stem piece last night and it was obvious that it wasn't going to bend. When I tried to flex the piece by hand it was stiff as a board (pardon the pun). When I turned it 90 degrees and tried to bent it by hand, there was nice flex. Anyhow, back to the drawing board. I'll cut another piece, leave it un-beveled, and then test it to see which way it naturally wants to flex before I try to steam bend it.

 

[Rollin Thurlow]

For any kind of wood, it is much easier to bend when it it is wider than it is thick. It bends fine if the stock is square. As soon as the wood is thicker than it is wide it becomes very difficult to keep the bend even and to keep it straight, which is the case for most stems if they are shaped before bending.
For almost all stems its much easier to bend a square shape first and shape latter.

 

[techrtr]

Hey Rollin, thanks for the info. I guess the tricky part is cutting the bevel on a curved piece of wood. I'll have to experiment a bit on my band saw to see if I can do it.

 

[Rod Tait (Orca Boats)]

Also helps which way the grain is running. I do very little steaming but I believe that flat grain orientation on the wider portion will bend easier and always soak your wood for a few days as most lumber is kiln dried unless you cut the tree down yourself.

 

[techrtr]

I'm surprised but I guess I shouldn't be that it's so hard to find air dried wood. I'm going to do some experimenting with different types of wood to see which ones respond best to steam bending.

 

[dtdcanoes]

Yes, soak for a few days, and go for it. Beveling ? Take your belt sander ( preferably a smaller , lighter one ) with the coarsest belt you can buy. pencil on the bent stem the bevel you want for the whole length of it. Even add gradations for the curve. Open your vice enough to put the bent stem in ( ie. perpendicular to the vice jaw ) . Hold the stem stem steady with the free hand and sand across the grain using the sander as you would, ah , say a cement trowel. You are now a sculptor, and can do to the bevel to any shape you wish. You would be surprised how quickly this can be done if you focus....and how fine the surface can get with finer belts and finishing with hand sanding with the grain. Have fun.There are other details to the process, but you will discover them in five minutes. And, yes, I am fearful of power saws. Dave

 

[techrtr]

True handcrafting eh? I've been using an angle grinder with a sanding disc to do the coarse shaping and a Dremel Multi Max for the finishing work. The angle grinder works awesome but you have to be really careful with it because if you aren't paying attention, it will take off too much wood in the blink of an eye. The angle grinder is excellent for cutting scarf joints for rib tops.

 

[gfatula]

Rollin,

Is there an optimum or a minimum sized "square" you would cut for a stem? Would you cut it, say double the thickness in width just for comfort? I am getting ready to cut some white oak for an outside stem on my Morris.

Thanks,

George

 

[Rollin Thurlow]

If the stem is just a bit wider than it is thick it does bend better than if its sq. Adding just 1/8" extra on the width does make it a bit easier but most of the stems I do bend are square.
If the lumber is a kiln dried, it does help quite a bit to add some moisture back into the wood. It takes much longer to get moisture deep into the wood than most people realize. For a day or two of soaking, the moisture still has not penetrated very deep. Even for that short time it will still make a difference but longer is always better.
Soaking oak can be a problem because it will quickly turn very dark. It does not hurt the wood but it just makes the finished stem very dark unless you bleach it latter.
Rollin

 

[gfatula]

If the stem is just a bit wider than it is thick it does bend better than if its sq. Adding just 1/8" extra on the width does make it a bit easier but most of the stems I do bend are square.
If the lumber is a kiln dried, it does help quite a bit to add some moisture back into the wood. It takes much longer to get moisture deep into the wood than most people realize. For a day or two of soaking, the moisture still has not penetrated very deep. Even for that short time it will still make a difference but longer is always better.
Soaking oak can be a problem because it will quickly turn very dark. It does not hurt the wood but it just makes the finished stem very dark unless you bleach it latter.
Rollin

Thanks for this, Rollin. What are your actual starting dimensions for an outside stem? I have a piece of white oak I am going to rip up soon.

Thanks,

George