Bending plywood/luan. Best techniques?

[KDOG]

Well when I go to do the roof on my tt I'm going to need to bend the 6mm ply/luan around the top and rear curves, which aren't going to be very large radiuses to maximize headroom (its going to be a standie). How do you go about pre-bending the sheets so they don't crack/break when I'm trying to bend them to the frame?

[Toytaco2]

Here's a link to get you started:

http://www.tnttt.com/viewtopic.php?t=19280&highlight=bending+plywood

Try doing a search for "bending plywood" on the forum and you'll find a lot of good information.


Good Luck,

Mike

[Classic Finn]

I used the Sauna to steam our sheeting..Sounds silly but thats exactly what I did too. Worked slick. Ok but the Sauna is a part of the Finnish Culture. So I used whatever came to my mind..

It was Baltic Ply and not the Luan .

Yup I did mention it in that other thread too.

Classic Finn

[Eddielbs]

I put the 1/4 inch for my hatch in a bind little by little like this. Then i wet it with hot water a few times in my driveway on a hot summer day.. It worked pretty well..

[KDOG]

Excellent. Almost time to start. Pricing tow hitches right now.....

[doug hodder]

KDOG....I personally don't think that you ought to consider luan and ply in the same group. Ply will bend with more control than a luan will and hold a screw better. Luan is made up of some pretty crappy materials and is cheap for a reason. The core can be a collection of knots, voids etc....I've had it explode into a sharp edge that took a ton of epoxy and body work to get it smoothed out. It was only on a bend on the front of a trailer for 2 profile. Just my experience with it. I won't do it again. You might have different results and I'm sure that others have also. But, for me...I had a bad experience with it...it's not on my shopping list in the future.

In my avatar, the curves are 2 layers of 1/8" baltic birch...the flat portions on the roof are 1/4". I've gotten the 1/8" down to 1.5" R in smaller pieces. Much more stable than a luan. A sheet of luan can end up looking like a potato chip just while sitting in the garage and drying out... Doug

[2bits]

The best materials get the best quality. I had to choose one of two evils and went with masonite over luan for my underlayment purely for cost reasons which I know will be fine, just a little extra headache to work with. Given full choice 1/8" plywood is the choice of preference (In my opinion)

[dmogie]

Forgive me if this product has been addressed previously. I wanted to make a strong (to attach an overhead console and speakers) headliner inside my '40 ford street rod. A local company that supplies custom woodworkers with their wood carries flexboard (also known as wigglewood, bendboard...). It is 3/8 inch plywood that bends easily and is sold in 4x8 sheets. I soaked it, bent it to the correct specs and held it in a jig overnight to dry. Perfect! For added strength, I made a couple matching bend 10" wide strips and glued them inside the original curves, eliminating any flex. I then sealed it. It is incredibly strong. I also made a round subwoofer tube! This stuff is cool to work with and I can see in my little mind some great cabinetry ideas.