Is cedar good for steam bending?

You can steam bend soft woods (including pine, cedar and spruce) but if you were attempting this, again it would be best to use air dried wood – as kiln dried wood tends break or snap more easily during the bending process.

How thick are cedar strips to build a canoe?

Normally strips are 1/4” thick, but I decided to try to reduce a little weight by making them 0.2” thick. It is recommended that rough sawn lumber be planed to uniform thickness to ensure strips remain uniformly thick when ripped.

What woods are good for steam bending?

Bending qualities of various hardwoods were tested by the U.S. Forest Service and the results show that white oak, hackberry and red oak were ranked as the best woods for steam bending, while soft maple, yellow-poplar and hard maple were ranked as the least compatible with the steam bending process.

How long does steam bent wood need to dry?

Too little moisture makes the wood difficult to bend and you run the risk of breaking your bending equipment. The general rule is one hour per inch of thickness (regardless of width). Wood at 30% will require a little less time, wood at 15% a little more.

Can you kerf bend cedar?

The use of kerf cuts will reduce the rigidity and aid in bending. I actually was able to successfully round my first piece of cedar, with Kerfs, but I ultimately cut it too short, and it developed a slight warp. A bent lamination will be stronger and look better than one made of solid wood.

How much wood is needed for a cedar strip canoe?

For a strip-built kayak a good rule of thumb is 2 board feet of western red cedar or other softwood for each foot of boat length.

How do you steam bend cedar?

A general rule of thumb is to steam the wood for an hour for each inch of thickness, but cedar, being such a soft wood, will only require 2 minutes for every 1/4 inch of thickness. Carefully remove the cedar planks from the steam box once the wood is sufficiently pliable.

How long do you have to steam wood before you can bend it?

The general rule for steam bending wood is 1 hour for every 1 in (2.5 cm) of thickness of the piece of wood that you are processing, but since all woods are different the time can vary. If you don’t steam the wood for long enough, then it will snap when you try to bend it.

Can you epoxy cedar?

Similar to stain, epoxy resin is another protective coating that can be applied to cedar decks.