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They only had three in stock when I first looked and I ordered the last one as soon as I noticed the other two had gone!
Contact them and ask when they'll list more with the rainbow controller. They seem like good communicators.

I really hope this one works well. I'll be making the bender in the next week or two. Got to make up for lost holiday time first!

There are lots of us watching with interest Nick, so pull your finger out!!

Indeed, I am interested in this as well. Start making that bender!

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久保
美智え

Woohooo! Good news, people.... I made my side bender today (with much more than a little help from an incredibly kind OLF user!) and tested the blanket for the first time.


It works!

Well!

The numbers on the controller didn't really seem to really match up to the temperature, but I was working quickly and trying to learn, so didn't take the time to focus on that. I just looked at it like a dimmer switch, much like the router controller method that most people seem to use, and in that sense, it works exactly as it should. Quite fine control. Just make sure you have a decent thermometer to keep track of things!

We didn't time it but it heated up impressively quickly, and I couldn't believe how well the wood bent!

Erm... What else to report... Well, it obviously didn't explode! And I put the plug on it, so that's doubly impressive!

Really glad I took the gamble and went for this one! Frankly, if I couldn't get it for this price, I'd be bending my next guitar's sides on a pipe! If I look past the slightly retro 70s styling I feel like I've received a high quality product. Arrived within three weeks and I was on holiday for two of them so it worked out very nicely for me.

Hope this is useful to some. Any questions, just ask!

(Flounder? How's that for pulling m'finger out?! )

Glad it's working out for you, Nick. You tested the waters for all the others on your side of the pond.

Alex

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"Indecision is the key to flexibility" .... Bumper sticker

Cheers, dude! Nice to "give back" in some small way. I get so much help on here!

Though I should really create a signature with a disclaimer pointing out that I'm a gibbering idiot with only 3 guitars behind me!

That is excellent Nick! The end result looks spot on. I am going to have to take the plunge now! I notice you use threaded rod for the pull downs rather than strong springs like i usually see, any reason for this?

Thank you Nick I appreciate the info on this.

_________________
久保
美智え

My pleasure, Michiyuki!

Lee, I'm glad to help! It really did work out well. I did say that if I ever make a symmetrical guitar, then the ground would swallow me up... Well, my Wellington boots are on standby! I'm going to continue improving my pipe bending skills but I'm incredibly happy to have this option now. No doubt that it bends better than I can currently!

Oh, and as for the bender design. Used the eye hooks because they have done good service for the gentleman who showed me the design. I guess you'd have enough room for springs on this one. Not sure. An argument could be made to say you get a little more control with the eye hooks and hand wheels but a counter argument could be made to say that it can be a little fiddly. I can only really recommend the eye bolts because I haven't tried any alternative.

Seems like they have relisted it at 80 pence more.... http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Guitar-Side-Bending-Silicone-Heat-Blanket-6-X37-4-1-2KW-220V-w-Thermostat-200-C-/281278046621?pt=UK_MusicalInstr_Access_RL&hash=item417d7a619d

I saw that they were back available so have ordered a set this morning! I told my wife it was your fault! Were did you get the eye bolts and wheels from?

Aah.. The handwheels I bought on eBay are a Bermuda Triangle level mystery. They didn't work. The bolts wouldn't go all the way through even after re rapping. Very weird. I'm returning them today. I used my friend's ones. I'm afraid he also got me the eye bolts, I was thinking of ordering some from here, https://www.raygrahams.com/products/128644-zinc-plated-straining-eye-bolt-m10-x-300mm.aspx, but didn't have to in the end. Fencing supplies is the thing to search for I think.

Tell your wife I'm sorry!

Those eye bolts look just the ticket so I have ordered some of them. With regards to the mold itself, is it just two bits of ply with cross braces fixed in-between? In the second picture it looks like some kind of spring across the waist area?

Yup, two pits of ply with spacers screwed between....Takes less than a day to make, even for me! Cut two 12"* wide blanks, long enough for your body shape. Cut them out. Clamp and drill for threaded rod. Mount rod with nuts and washers. Secure sqaure and screw identical 2x1 spacers in place. Replace nuts with nyloc nuts on the outside for extra security. Nyloc nuts on the end of rod, too, to stop eye bolts slipping off.

This pic will show things better....


The trick is working out where to put the threaded rods. The one under the waist is easy, but you want the others centred on the radius of the curves as far as possible. My shape has somewhat pronounced shoulders and the caul tracks the curve nicely for only about 3/4s of the way. Then I need to start tightening down on the handwheels. The lower bout slips around with little adjustment necessary. Just visualise the path the cauls will take around the bouts and go with your gut. Moving the rods is easy enough anyway. I had to move mine to better locations (lower) after a test.

*Oooh, I just thought, I have a genuinely useful tip! As you've got the same blanket as me , (or will have) you'll have the same issue as me, namely that the blanket is slightly longer than some others, and will have to either touch the workbench slightly or hang over an edge.... I suppose the way to fix that would be to start with 15" wide ply blanks rather than 12", and just live with a slightly taller form. Maybe doesn't nee the extra three inches. I'll check.

The cauls need to be shaped to match their final positions. They have open ended slots for the eyebolts.

The little clip you noticed in the second pic is actually quite an important feature, particularly if you're using spring steel slats. Once everything has cooled down but before the cauls are released, six of those are inserted... Without them to hold it down, the spring steel could will do its very best to crack your freshly bent side by *springing* back to flat!

Hope this design works well for you! I like the simplicity of it and the gentleman who showed me it points out that you get quite good feedback too. You're still bending the wood. You're just using a more efficient heating method and a more controlled pressure application method.

Cheers!

CAUTION: THIS IS NOT A TUTORIAL, ONLY SOME OBSERVATIONS!
I should mention his bending routine (without times for now because there's too much chance of me making an error without thinking it all through. Lots of info out there on that).... Tighten waist but not all the way. Leave ~1/2"-3/4" gap underneath. Then do the lower bout, then the upper bout (so as to give it the most time to heat up). Then tighten waist all the way down.

The stack is stainless or spring steel (S), brown paper (BP) and foil (F):
S/F/BP/WOOD/BP/F/S with the blanket on top.

The practice side we did was narrow enough to just wrap up in brown paper and foil rather than using separate pieces. Brown paper and wood is spritzed with water from spray bottle. (There'll be some steam that might put you in mind of being in a very humid country. )

Nick, thank you so much for taking the time to post such a detailed response, it is much appreciated!

Absolutely my pleasure, Lee! Anything else, just ask!

Hi Nick, I just want to thank you again here. You are so helpful.
We are making some 1200W, 6" X 36" blanket (rated with 5.5 Watts per square inch) and will list them once they are ready.

Michiyuki, we just dispatched the blanket to you yesterday.
Flounder, yours were sent this Monday.

Hope both of you will get them soon.
It's been a bit delay recently at China Customs, but it seems to be getting back to normal.

Thank you again, Nick.

Thanks for the update Johnny!

No worries, Johnny!

Just so everyone knows, I contacted Johnny after testing my blanket to say he might want to list some more as there were interested parties waiting on my "review".

His question to me was whether people were put off by the 37.5 inch length if they are looking for a 36 inch one. I quite like the extra length, but input from others may be valuable to him!