# Bending Cane



## ctc (Jul 22, 2008)

I have steam-bent wood for walking sticks with a large diameter pvc pipe and an electric teapot. No major problems. Then I decided to bend some cane. I have a couple of stands of cane in my back yard, some up to 1.25 inch diameter. I looked at a video of a Mexican bending bamboo with a propane torch and filling the cane with sand. I did this on a small (3/4 inch dia.) cane section and it worked o.k. Then I went to the 1.25 inch dia. and several tries were failures. The cane split every time. I tried boiling the cane in water for 30 minutes….same result.
So, I ordered some sodium hydroxide (lye) to see if a solution of this would soften the lignin and allow bending. This chemical is used in paper-making. I will let you-all know if this works.
However, has anyone had success bending larger diameter cane ? If so, how was it done ?
C.T. Carley
Starkville, Mississippi


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