Bending Sheet Balsa Wood

Special methods for bending balsa wood may not be necessary if the curve is a gentle one and the radius is large.

Bending sheet balsa wood.

It is low density but still high strength. Choose a sub category. Basswood as light as it is is a relatively simple wood to bend. Often during a construction project you will need to bend wood.

To form sheet balsa first i have the sheet to near net size. For more complex or tighter curves however use some. I use a small bowl with a cup of water or so and a tablespoon of ammonia. Or call 413 277 9500 8 30am 4pm est.

Find a jar can or a mailing tube to form the sheet around. This video is showing you how to bend balsa wood. Balsa is a popular choice for making light rigid structures including model bridge tests model tree houses to scale architectural projects and for the construction of model aircraft. Bending wood allows you to create complex models or shapes that can accommodate numerous woodworking projects.

Balsa wood is soft and lightweight with a coarse open grain. These radii increase if you bend the sheet along the grain of the wood instead of across it because splinters are more likely to form when bending along the grain. Balsa wood is often the wood of choice when a woodworking project involves curves that require the wood to be bent. Anything can be the former.

My previous video ht. Economy it s cheaper to make a wingtip out of a strip of balsa than to use up a much larger sheet of balsa and having to discard the bulk of it. You can get a bend radius of as little as two feet by bending 1 4 inch plywood whereas the minimum bend radius for 3 4 inch plywood is 12 feet. Strength balsa is strongest when the grain runs the length of the wood.

I then have a small sponge to throughly wet one side of the sheet. The wood may conform easily. We are happy to help. This video will be very useful for you if your making a model or some sculpture etc.

Basswood is a lightweight wood ideal for model building.