A steam box for not much

If you've ever marveled at the intricate wooden curves used by shipbuilders or some furniture makers, then you've probably at some point been craving a steam box. It is, as the name suggests, a chamber in which a piece of wood is steamed until it becomes flexible, at which time it can be pressed into a new shape which it will keep when cooled. The always-resourceful [Xyla Foxlin] shows us how to make a steam box using some easy-to-find parts, as seen in the video below.

The steam supply comes from a commercial steam boiler of the type used by decorators for wallpaper stripping, and the steam box itself is made from a length of PVC pipe. Inside the pipe are a series of aluminum pegs that form a support on which the wood sits free from condensation, and the whole thing is angled with the steam inlet and a condensation drain inside. lower end.

In use, a piece of wood is loaded into the tube and steamed, before being bent using a set of shapes in a vise. The process seems simple enough that even we could try it, so we're sure Hackaday readers will find it interesting.

We think this might be the first steam box we've brought to you, but it's not the first time we've talked about bending wood.

Thanks [Abe Tusk] for the advice.