The $75 Eight Foot Steam Box

Rocks!

-- "Democracy is by far the worst system of government. Except all the others that have been tried." ~ Winston Churchill

just in time my man !
i was asked today if i knew steam bending ,
and this box looks good .
at first glance , it looked like angle iron welded .
but its quit simple .
thanks .
is there a place to check out the steam bending qualities of various woods ?

-- david ,new mexico ,allheart

ABSOLUTELY BRILLIANT in its utility and simplicity! You have done well.

And now, I will engage in intellectual thievery and steal the idea to make one of my own!

YOU DA MAN!

(I, too, would agree with Sean and say that it “Rocks” but at my age, saying something like that would probably throw my back out of joint! So you’ll have to settle for BRILLIANT!)

Cheers!

-- Dave; Lansing, Kansas

Patron: The dept of forestry. A federal agency has a book called the wood handbook. You can download it on the web for free. You can also download each chapter. One of them has the wood bending charactitics.

The steam box looks great. I assume the water from inside the tube is not recycled back to the steamer. So how long does the steamer put out steem?

-- What happens in the workshop stays in the workshop. No wait that doesn't sound right. Karson Southern Delaware karson_morrison@bigfoot.com †

thank you karson ,
im on it .

-- david ,new mexico ,allheart

Patron: The dept of forestry. A federal agency has a book called the wood handbook. You can download it on the web for free. You can also download each chapter. One of them has the wood bending charactitics.

It looks like chapter 3 on working properties has a table table 3-8 Do a search for “wood handbook” it will probasbly be the first link

The steam box looks great. I assume the water from inside the tube is not recycled back to the steamer. So how long does the steamer put out steam?

-- What happens in the workshop stays in the workshop. No wait that doesn't sound right. Karson Southern Delaware karson_morrison@bigfoot.com †

Karson – The steamer holds 1 gallon. It used around a half gallon in an hour, so I figure at least 80-90 minutes is safe to count on. The box is elevated in the back slightly so the condensation runs into a bucket right now. It should be easy to put a hole in the steamer and recycle with a tube from the bucket back into the steamer or do a siphon type rig with a larger bucket of water. I might do that when I get into steaming boat ribs. It’s not good to run out of steam.

-- Matt - Syracuse, NY

very cool.

-- ~ Inspiring those who inspire me ~

$75 for a steam box, that’s great. Now I need a project so I can build one of these. I’ll fave this for later reference. Thanks

-- Ben Kahmann Dayton, OH

That is sweet, good job. Bending is something I always wanted to try.
This looks like one of the most affordable, clean, and simple setups I have seen.

Thanks for sharing.
Steve

-- Stevethepeeve -- I'm no rocket surgeon

Why does’nt the styrafoam insulation melt inside?

-- Mike. mwurm13@yahoo.com

Nice work Matt.

I’d like to build a steam box too. I’m thinking of building one like they have at the WoodenBoat School. It is built in sections so if you’re steam short pieces, you don’t have to fill a long box with steam. They also put in dowels across the width to make racks so you can put more pieces in and get the steam all around. Theirs is built of wood, though and I like your idea of using the foil faced foam.

-- Until you spread your wings, you'll have no idea how far you can walk.

Mike – TUFF-R is made from polyisocyanurate which has a melting point of 300F. TUFF-R is rated for use up to 190F, so I’m pushing a little on the tolerances. Steam is around 212F. From what I could find, it’s important to use rigid foil faced insulation like TUFF-R and avoid the polystyrene types (the pink and blue boards) which can melt or deform like you point out.

Time will tell though. I think that the steam could eventually degrade the material, but it’s still rock solid after several hours.

-- Matt - Syracuse, NY

That’s awsome.

-- Chris N, Westford, MA - "If you won't eat something from your fridge that turned green...why would you eat something that started out that way?"

great job

-- Jim from Heirloom Woodshop Southern Oregon

thank you Ive thought of building a steam box but none of my own ideas to add steam were that reasonable. great job ,I,ll do it .since I think all the LJ s are a bit bent there should be a few of these out there soon.thanks

-- jim nevada

this looks great! I’d be interested to see how it holds up after long use. definitely a future project when time and space come around.

Thanks for sharing this one.

-- When in doubt - There is no doubt - Go the safer route.

Thanks a pant load for answering my question. I could work around that like Dave was talking about.

-- Mike. mwurm13@yahoo.com

Hey Matt,
Good cheap effective device…..well done.

-- I will just keep doing it till I get it right.

Nice looking steamer Matt, thanks for sharing this. I just need to find where to put it in my shop, maybe its time for the car to leave the garage.

-- Whether You Think You Can or You Think You Can't, YOU ARE RIGHT!!!

I guess this is one instance when running out of steam won’t be helped by a little blue pill. Sorry, couldn’t resist…

-- Jim, www.greenteawoodworking.com

I asked about steamers awhile back and got a few ideas/suggestions…....but this is the way to go for my small scale bending projects (making wooden steering wheels for old cars.)

Will definitely “borrow” your idea and run with it. Don’t think I’ll need all of 8 ft of it but probably 6ft will be enough….

-- George..." I love the smell of a workshop in the morning!"

I use a 6 inch PVC pipe for my steam chamber. Works really well too. This might be cheaper though. Great idea, thanks for sharing.

-- "At its best, life is completely unpredictable." - Christopher Walken