Official Luthiers Forum!

So the next thing i need to build is the side bender. Going to surf the next today to see what makes sense to me but...

If you have a favorite feature of the bender you use, or can think of something that every time you use it you say, "I wish mine could do" or "I wish mine didn't...", sure would be nice to know.

Thnx!

I like being able to bend starting at the tail instead of the waist, so my bender hinged on 1 side. You can see it at http://www.pegasusguitars.com/how-i-ben ... sides.html

_________________
“ The meaning of life is to find your gift and the purpose of life is to give it away” Pablo Picasso

I really like using a blanket.

I really like being able to bend the waist most of the way, and then being able to finish up that last half inch or so after the upper and lower bouts are bent.

I really like using a thermocouple in my multi-meter to give me the temperature. It's a huge improvement over simply using a thermometer like I did initially.

I wish I could control the temp with one of those fancy PID temperature controllers, but I can do a good enough job with the router speed control.

I wish I could get the upper and lower bout to conform to the mold more at their widest parts, but it's never and issue once they're in the mold.

Had to read that a couple of times... then i saw you said "multimeter" ... thought that was wrong, so i googled it and yep, some multimeters now have temp sensors...

I bought a new multimeter last year and just checked it. Sure enough, it has a temperature setting.

OMG! This forum is so awesome.

Thank you James.

In my minds eye, if i go all the way down at the waist to start, If the wood is not quite plastic enough, then it could tend to resist the curve of the upper/lower bouts and rise from the mold between the waist and top of the bouts? i am assuming saving that last bit of tension for the end pulls that back down?

Two questions:
- If i were to do it that way, would that eliminate the need for the springs that people use to keep the wood tight (If that's the purpose of the end springs. The ones that pull the ends of the steel slats towards the floor...)
- I assume you wouldn't do it if it were a problem, but does that work for a cutaway as well? I assume there's enough slop in the sides after the bend to allow that final adjustment without the side being pulled through the bends and causing some odd stress fractures...? Does one need to do anything differently to work in this wasy?

Hi Robert.

Glad to help with the thermocouple thing! I bought mine from Sears. It's a K-type thermocouple.

I bought my bender from John Hall/Bluescreek, so if you look at his Fox bender, that's exactly what I use in terms of the spring configuration.

When I bend, I start with the waist. I lower the waist caul until I'm a finger width or so from being all the way set down against the mold. It's about a half inch, but this isn't something that needs to be precise.

Then I run the spring along the lower bout until I reach the bottom of the lower bout. The widest part usually isn't fully set down against my mold, but this has never turned into an issue because it conforms to the mold easily.

After the lower bout, I do the same thing with the upper bout.

Then, finally, I lower the waist all the way down to the mold. I picked this up from Lance, but it's a common practice.

I hope that helps. When I started building, bending seemed like a black art, but it's probably the easiest part of the entire build process for me. I've never had an issue. Todd Stock has a great series of videos on bending on YouTube that may help fill in the gaps I left in my description.

I replaced my original bender a few years ago. The new one is partially modeled after the LMI bender. It's not as pretty as most but it gets the job done. The new machine has really improved my bending, better bends and, knock on wood, no broken sides.

Key points that seem to really help
1. The controller doesn't show in the picture but the space in the base is for an LMI style blanket controller with thermocouple. Having control of the heat is a big plus.

2. The bending form is of course removable so you can make one for any body style you want

3. I like a solid form. it seems to hold the heat better

4. I use a permanently mounted SS slat on the form. it helps to spread the heat

5. I like to use two blankets, one below and the other above the side. (suggested by John Mayer) It gives more uniform heat. My controller only does one blanket so I connect the second one to a rheostat. Once I see my heat target is almost reached I lower the second blanket.

6. The springs on the upper and lower bout bending slides are very helpful keeping the sides firm against the form as you bend. Not shown in this picture, I use an additional slide on both bouts to hold the wood against the form. (the sides have a tendency to raise up at the crest of the bouts after the slide has moved on. This is where I place them)

_________________
Joe Beaver
Maker of Sawdust

I too, have the bluescreek bender and it works great. I did make one mod after my first four guitars though. It came with a "universal" waist caul (the part that presses down into the waist area. My waist bends therefore never really fit the mold perfectly.
I replaced it with a piece I made from spanish cedar (leftover material) that I carved to fit the bend of the waist exactly. It really made the waist bend correct, and this made binding the waist area much easier as the bindings now match the curve there very well. Definitely worth doing,
Mike

Hmm... I like this... Sounds like something to do next time I'm waiting for a glue up to dry. Thanks!

_________________
Insta - https://www.instagram.com/cbcguitars/
Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/cbcguitars

I've had a Bluescreek bender set up from the beginning but if I was building one Joe Beavers is nice set up. I like the way the radius of the upper and low bout are over bent on the form