Thread: HSC Help

Originally Posted by BryceA

if anyone could give me any information on shellac it would be greatly appreciated as i myself cannot find anything online; the areas i need info on is appearance, applications, and method of application, aswell as cost
also if anyone could suggest where i might be able to by some that would also be very helpful
thankyou very much
regards BryceA

Our sponsor has shellac products and information sheets also "The Polishers Handbook" is worthwhile. Woodworking Australia - Home Page

Originally Posted by BryceA

if anyone could give me any information on shellac it would be greatly appreciated as i myself cannot find anything online; the areas i need info on is appearance, applications, and method of application, aswell as cost
also if anyone could suggest where i might be able to by some that would also be very helpful
thankyou very much
regards BryceA

Bryce,
Try this Shellac tutorials .

I bought some shellac recently at Bunnings. You can check their prices on line. Search - Bunnings Warehouse

All the best.

Walesey.

Hello again, i ended up goin with Australian Rosewood, however i want to steam bend some drawer fronts, i seem to be having some difficulty, the pieces i want to bed are 19mm thick, 400mm long and 250mm wide, is this to large to bend or do i need to just leave it in the steam box for ages?

Hi Bryce, I am of the opinion that the only timber that lends itself to steam bending is beach. I had a student job done while at another school in the shape of a big eye. Dons stem bending was the only place in Sydney that did any steam bending. What radius bed are you trying to achieve? I know that at Uni when I did a bend of radius 250mm with a 10mm squared piece of rosewood it took several attempts and a straight grain to achieve a satisfactory result. How are you bending the timber? and how long are you leaving it in the box for?

Dean.

One thing I remember from soverign hill demo's.
The guy making wooden wheels for carts that get bent onto a frame.

Its 1 Hr for each inch of thickness at 100 degrees C.

So if its 25mm thick then it needs 1hr in a good hot steamer, not one that leaks badly.

The other thing I remember is nice straight grained timber gives you less troubles.

Originally Posted by BryceA

Hello again, i ended up goin with Australian Rosewood, however i want to steam bend some drawer fronts, i seem to be having some difficulty, the pieces i want to bed are 19mm thick, 400mm long and 250mm wide, is this to large to bend or do i need to just leave it in the steam box for ages?

Hi Bryce

are those dimensions the finished size or the piece you will cut to size after bending?
the general guideline is that the piece to be bent should be about 100mm longer than the finished dimension
air dried wood usually steam bends more easily than kiln dried,
pre soaking in clean water for a few hours can help soften the wood prior to steaming and bending
sanding the faces before bending can make finishing easier

are you using a steel strap or a male and female former?

how much wood do you have to practice on?


Oh, and I think it's time you posted a few photos

im using two steel straps (bend steel rules) and a male former that i just broke so ill have to fix it, but ill try soaking it
It is about 100 mm longer, basically its a really shallow curve with wings on the end of it, but at the moment the timber isnt even getting around the curve
Ive stuffed myself up a bit coz i thought i could get veneered particle board for some timber that i needed cheaper than for solid stock it ended up being heaps expensive so ive ordered some more solid stock timber, this all means that im really quite behind on my project so there isnt much to show at the moment, as soon as i start building the base tho i will start putting photos up

Originally Posted by BryceA

im using two steel straps (bend steel rules) and a male former that i just broke so ill have to fix it, but ill try soaking it
It is about 100 mm longer, basically its a really shallow curve with wings on the end of it, but at the moment the timber isnt even getting around the curve

Hi Bryce

without seeing a diagram I'm a bit in the dark, but I don't think two steel rules will provide enough force to bend a 250mm wide by 19mm thick board
Normally the steel strap is the same (or nearly the same) width as the board being bent.
the male former needs to be extra strong to withstand the forces you will apply to it.
As a guess, bending your drawer fronts will take the effort of 4 people, with a 5th standing by to apply the clamps.

Have you considered using bent laminations for the curve? You would need to cut about 7, 350mm long x 270mm wide x 2.8mm thick strips if you go down this route

Bryce I like the lamination idea....I cant say that rosewood will lend itself to bending easily. Either way you need to have well constructed molds to shape your timber. What has your teacher offered in advice?


Dean.