I am making a Hal Taylor style rocking chair from his plans. After sculpting the seat it sat for a couple of weeks in the Vegas heat and has bowed / cupped toward the top. So the middle front and middle back of the seat are the lowest points. The plans say this may happen and to adjust for it when cutting the bottoms of the legs, but it is cupped bad.
I ran a search but I guess I did not use the correct words.
I have read in other posts that it may work to spray one side of a cupped board with water and let it dry in hopes of straightening it out a little. I cant remember which side to spray or even if I should try it since it is not a board of uniform thickness.
Any thoughts?
Seat is 1 13/16 alder, 4 boards edge glued together. approx 22 x 20.
Thanks Tony
Edited 8/6/2009 9:38 am ET by docrx
Replies
Dampening the wood will cause it to expand. Therefore, if you dampen the concave side, it will expand and the wood will tend to flatten. Some find it works well to lay the wood, concave side down, on the lawn (or in your case, on some damp desert sand <G>) on a sunny day. That way, the convex side tends to dry out a bit as well.
That said, this solution may be only temporary and the wood will again warp as it finds its new equillibrium. Worth a try, though.
Mike Hennessy
Pittsburgh, PA
Everything fits, until you put glue on it.
"That said, this solution may be only temporary and the wood will again warp as it finds its new equillibrium. Worth a try, though"
Thanks for the reply and good point, I may be better off adjusting the leg angles and leaving the seat Just like the directions said....directions....they do tend to work when you follow them!!!
Thanks Again
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