Warped Flat Back Boards

[hawthorn1213]

Hey!

I just received some ~.200 inch thick claro walnut boards for my latest mandolin project. The problem is though, they are slightly warped and I'm wondering how to get them straight before planing down and edging.

My thoughts were to soak them and then clamp between two pieces of granite, but I'm wondering if this will have any adverse effects down the line.

Thanks in advance for your help!

[pops1]

How warped are they, can you plane the warp out instead of trying to rewarp them flat.

[sunburst]

Don't soak and press between non-porous surfaces like Granite. You want your wood reasonably dry for building, say 6% to 8% moisture. Getting them that wet and keeping them that wet might not be good and could cause discoloration, fungus, or other problems.
First thing to try is to dampen both sides (not soak, just spritz with water) and hang each piece by a corner to let it dry. Unless there is some kind of grain variation at work, they should straighten out as they dry evenly with all surfaces exposed to air.
If that doesn't do it, then wetting the side with the inside curve and warming the side with the outside curve can sometimes flatten the wood, but it will need to be restrained with stickers while drying to maintain flatness.

[hawthorn1213]

Thanks for the advice! Worst part of the warp is just under ~1/16 of an inch.

I will definitely try just hanging the dampened sides first as sunburst described and let you all know how it turned out.

While we are on the subject though - Does anyone have any thoughts on getting a nice crisp edge for joining without a hand plane? I was thinking of setting up a fence with my router to see how close I could it and finish up with sanding on a long straight edge.

[RobH]

I think Dan Erlewine has the answer you are looking for
Rob

[hawthorn1213]

Thanks Robh, that helps a lot!