A little background....
Ok...as a continuation of the Thread On Ammonia I've decided to build a steambox that will accomodate turnings. As I said in that other thread...my first objective is to make a Turned Water Pitcher...complete with spout and handle. At first, I thought that ammonia could be used to accomplish the bending required to create these features...but as discovered in the ammonia thread...it just might not work out for a variety of reasons.
Another facet discussed in that other thread, is the subject of green wood stabilization. It is an ongoing dilemma, that most of us struggle with...and I suppose, a dream scenario is the day when you can turn green wood...stabilize it....finish turn it...finish it...all in one day. Not a likely scenario...but it would be cool.
There is also the subjects of warpage and cracks, and how to control those pesky facts of life.
So, the question is...Can steaming our turnings accomplish anything?
So...it's time for an experiment. I hope to perform as many tasks as necessary to answer everyone's questions....and hopefully, in the end, we will all benefit....with just one person putting in the time for everyone else.
So...through my inevitable failures...and hopefully, successes...there will be something to gain from this.
The first step is to build a Steamer Box....then, I will turn the top of a wide-mouthed vase, steam it, and see how it behaves when I try to bend it into a spout. During that phase, I'll also bend a handle....but this is really a no-brainer, since it is done all the time.
After that...we will explore the question of green wood stabilization. I have some ideas of things to try...but will be eager to hear from everyone else. We need to find out as much as we can.
The Steamer Box
So.....I used to do a lot of flatwork and got into bending smallish piieces of oak and walnut for various things. This required that I build a steamer box using a 3" diameter, 5 foot long section of PVC pipe. I simply fitted up a Wagner Wallpaper Steamer to it...and it worked great.
With turnings, I need something bigger, so I figured that a box that would accomodate a single turning from my lathe, would have to be around 15X15X15 on the inside.
Luckily...I happened to have a 3X4 foot sheet of 1" thick plexiglass that has been collecting dust.
Plexiglass-1.jpg
I figured that this oughta be perfect.
So this morning I hauled it into the shop (IT'S HEAVY!!!) and decided to cut it up.
First, I needed a tablesaw...and I found one!! It was under a bunch of turnings and turning blanks
CleanTheTS.JPG
Now...a tablesaw is something that flatworkers use to make big boards into little boards. I guess it is quite useful if you are into that sort of thing. And in this case...it was pretty convenient.
So I chopped up that big heavy thing into pieces that were more manageable.
And I finally found a purpose for the marking knife that I made years ago
Cutup_Plexiglass.JPG
After getting it cut up...I pulled out some Lacquer Cleaner (which smells really good!!!) and cleaned up all my pieces.
CleanedUpPlexiglass.JPG
My next post is the building of this thing.
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) you people should be ashamed.!!
Originally Posted by David E Keller
