DIY Plank Bender

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Mar 9, 2021
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I am fairly new to ship building and even newer at being retired. Although retirement is fantastic it does present some financial constraints. So when researching plank bending techniques I came across a few inexpensive methods that seemed to work well.

I was considering using the curling iron technique but before buying one, I decided to try the soldering iron method. It was then that I accidentally found another method I’d like to share.

As you know, many smaller TV’s come with a table mount but I usually hang them on the wall. I was in the process of throwing out the table mount when I noticed a few parts that may be useful for plank bending.

Turns out it was a simple matter of fitting them to the iron. The double taper part has female threads so attaching it to the iron was simple using a screw. See photos. The bigger drum works well but takes about 30’ to heat up. That drum was just pressure pushed onto the double taper part.

I have used it for the entire plank bending of the Soleil Royal and used the iron exclusively.
My iron has a temp control and usually I had it about 3/4. At full blast the temps reached 380*! I did soak the wood and even at wet you have to constantly move the wood (slowly is ok) to keep the plank from scorching. Of course you can always cut back on the heat
Wales took a few trips from water to heat and back again but worked great.

If you happen to have a table mount you’re not using, see if similar parts are there and just attach to a soldering iron.

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Интересная идея. В общем, моделисты такие артисты. Чего только не придумают.:):) Идея класса.Thumbsup Спасибо, что поделились
 
Nice: Another thing to look for in my dumpster adventures! Here is Alexander's comment fun through DeepL machine translation-
That's an interesting idea. In general, modelers are such artists. What can not come up.:):) Thumbsup Thanks for sharing.
 
Here’s my home brew plank bender. From my Dad’s collection of old soldering irons, I got one with a removable tip. I turned a new tip on the lathe and quenched it in motor oil to prevent rust. The form is made from a scrap of poplar.
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