buckhorn
Mar-26-2014, 9:25am
It has become pretty easy for me forming parts for rims and I would like to pass on some tips for those just starting out..I soppose the biggest tip is using medium heat if you are using a pipe to form and use as little water as possible to get steam going..I use a spray bottle to mist and keep it handy to avoid scorching..this really helps on highly figured wood and cuts down on splits and cracks....as you're bending, go slowly and sometimes it's good to allow pieces to cool a little before completeing..this allows the wood to stretch back a little..when forming for around blocks and points, it is okay to sand the ribs a little thinner to make tighter bends..my ribs start out about .080 but sometimes I get down to .050 for the tight radiuses..as other people have said, it's okay because the block and point material takes up the support.. now, I have taken 2x6material and cut forms that I use to clamp parts in while they are drying..when dry, these parts are pretty much stable and don't move much..when it comes time to glue the parts together, I try to match them to the forms and if off a little,I clamp them into the forms again after a little mist and heat..when they dry in the forms they are ready to glue the blocks and points..I try to sand those to fit the ribs without any cracks at the seams...I glue in stages starting with the 'S' piece and head block, then on to the scroll piece...next,I glue the piece between the points to the 'S' piece with the second point....then I start back with the tail block and finally glue up the first point...I use wood clamps instead of center spanners because I get better control and a tighter clamping to the form......some might have different methods , but this works wonderfully for me and I hope it helps others ........Keith117309