Building the TotalBoat Sport Dory: Episode 10 - Compression Steam Bending

[@scottelliott6900]

your three or four steam bending videos really saved my bacon building a 33' mahogany toe rail. Sincerely grateful.

[@pauljenkinson8798]

I read some of the comments that complained of the pace of this series, In this video series our Master guide, Lou is taking us along on a journey much deeper into the hidden science and craft of boat building. In the first video series the skiff could be built with the simplest tools and minimal if any drafting or design. Is was all a product of what pleased the Masters practised eye. But as we are beginning to see the more complicated and refined the structure and the shape of the hull the more complicated and methodical the process of the build. So be patient when watching, resist the urge to hurry this man and his process. I doubt he will compromise his methodology anyway. He knows exactly how quickly each segment will take, i imagine he has' built dozens of similar hulls. There are thousands of hours of experience that inform his craftsmanship. Each step along the way takes exactly the time and effort needed,,, no more no less. Besides it is such a pleasure when the videos finally arrived, kind of like opening a Christmas present under the tree when you were a little kid.

[@TipsfromaShipwrightvideos]

This guy gets it ^^^

[@dsSpitfiremk4]

I've always believed that making something makes one happiest. It's true with me, and like Lola above with the little tug. Lou is a very happy man.

[@TokyoCraftsman]

In this day and age it is so rare to be able to watch a master at work, thanks Lou you inspire me. Cheers from Tokyo Japan

[@roycegerardo9708]

you all prolly dont care at all but does anybody know of a method to log back into an instagram account?? I was stupid forgot the password. I would love any tips you can offer me

[@vivaanignacio9363]

@Royce Gerardo instablaster =)

[@robertt5992]

Lou,I could watch you boil water any day of the week. You've got my undivided attention when it comes to you sharing your knowledge.

[@wadepatton2433]

Nice, I learned again. Thanks Lou. Compression bending it is.

[@Imwright720]

It’s fun to watch someone whose so passionate. I’ll never need this but now I’ve learned something new.

[@ChristopherMCraig]

Keep bringing the good content, Lou! Thanks!

[@ecrusch]

I learn a little something with every episode Lou. Thanks a bunch. Eric

[@raytheron]

Gobsmacked, every time! Thanks, Lou, you're my hero! What a privilege to see a master craftsman at work!

[@trevorpeauk3931]

Like reading a good, interesting book. You don’t really want it to end. Thanks Lou.

[@StonyRC]

Another amazingly interesting and educational video - Louis Sauzedde is like a fiendishly brilliant scientist, bending materials to his will. Can't wait for the next installment.

[@barryp4700]

Cooking with Uncle Lou! That was the shortest 23 minutes of my week. Thank you for sharing your knowledge with us.

[@rewmoto]

Awesome video as usual. I am the worst handyman but over the last year or so these vids inspire me to up my game. Thanks Mr. Lou!

[@johnbower]

It makes a pleasant change to see someone take pride in their work these days, there is a lot of room for people like you especially in the house building industry. Good look, regards John.

[@charlesxix]

Poetry in motion. Brilliant.

[@JPilot2]

G'day, Louis! Building the TotalBoat Sport Dory... I too, am learning a little something with every episode! Well, it feels like a neat Cliffhanger! “To Be Continued!!” Cheers, mate! ⛵️⚓️ 😊

[@denniswilliams8747]

When I worked in a quarry the blaster would use a plastic tube like that to hold the explosive in a wet bore to keep it dry. Worked well. Thanks for your vids . I am following all of your build vids

[@Snoopy_59]

Hi Lou,your steam bag bending is the cleverest bending I have ever seen. You use it in a video before if I remember right. See you next week I hope.

[@UrbanSelfSufficiency]

You could cut the outrigger strut to the right size to calculate how much bend you want in the curve. That way, when it's pulled tight enough for the strut to pull out, you'd know that it had enough of a bend in it to be the right amount without the need to check it against a straight edge. As usual, awesome work, Lou; love this channel so much, thank you. Jim

[@doctorjekyl20]

Really enjoying the video's... just watched all of season 1 and up to date season 2, looking forward to the next episode. Love watching you work, i think theres nothing more interesting than watching seasoned tradesman practicing and explaining how they do what they do. Cheers for making these video's Lou.

[@ronwatson4902]

Very well thought out and executed.Pure genius!!!

[@kerrygleeson4409]

Alway so good Lou , the steam bending is very interesting

[@billmoore2493]

Hurry with the next video. I want to see the shape of the piece. Daily videos would be ok with me. Yours is my favorite content.

[@deantubeful]

Another master class that I hope to put to use some day. Must wait untill I have built the wotkshop. Thank you Lou and thank you KZbin.

[@BerndtTost]

Great episode as always. My way of checking water level in a canister is to use a softwood stick and just plonk it in there then lift it out and where the stick stops being wet is your water level. :)

[@johnbower]

The stick will be wet all the way up because the tank is full of steam.

[@sjcorrea]

One of the coolest woodworking videos I have seen in a while. Great work!

[@frankfulton2283]

This film is fascinating, and the camera work is superb.....Wow!.....keep it up....!

[@TipsfromaShipwrightvideos]

Frank Fulton Thanks Frank. I hope you are keeping all those Wind Hill Cup trophies polished.

[@santiago2964]

this is amazing! I wish I had a teacher like Lou in college

[@SevenRavens007]

Im replacing some mahogany planking on my 1956 Watson 46.9 lifeboat. Its double diagonal so pretty tricky. But watching your video has really helped me see how I can do a good job of bending the replacement planks into the shape of the hull.

[@LNM0000]

Lou, inspired by your videos, I've just successfully bent my first ever gunwale piece for a boat I'm repairing. It is some pshyco hard Indian hardwood, not sure what (sisele or something?) but you can't bend it when it's dry that is for sure. Thank you mate. 🙂

[@CPTDilxDozer]

I live watching this guy work!

[@WalterKitunduStudio]

Fabulous! Your work is inspiring and motivating. Always educational.

[@Dave51262]

This is so great to learn all of this for free. Thanks TotalBoat and Lou.

[@kevinsmith3274]

Great video Louis!

[@tomtruesdale6901]

Again an excellent video. Amazing what you can do with steam and a come a long. As a former Firefighter those gas cans get my pulse rate up even if I know they are new and never had gas in them.

[@MrChrisKnowlton]

Great video again Lou! Nice to see a method that works without having to make a mold and glue a bunch of strips together. As usual I can't wait until the next one. I learn something with each video. Thank you and the videographer for making these high quality shows.

[@RonKris]

Science, experience and guessing. Great work!

[@MakeBrooklyn]

Thanks Lou, there's always a ton of info in your vid's keep em coming!!

[@dozer1642]

Man I wish I could hang out in the shop with Lou.

[@nmoran2046]

Congrats on the new belt and boots king louie

[@TotalBoat]

you can have one too - great holiday gift for the Louis Lover! www.totalboat.com/product/nylon-web-belt-aluminum-slide-buckle/

[@TipsfromaShipwrightvideos]

Our website now has stickers, carpenter pencils and t-shirts for sale www.tipsfromashipwright.com/store

[@thesickhorseranch]

Fascinating!

[@greghawkins549]

I appreciate these videos and I wonder how this was done 150 years ago...before plastic!

[@PiazzaWoodWorks]

Awesome job lou

[@fredjonesxyz]

That's a really informative video Lou, I learnt a lot. Thanks.

[@chuckfinley3542]

Lou, I suspect that you’ve done this before. Love this series. And I see that you wore your winter belt!

[@robertrantane6867]

Lou, I went to a "tool exhibition" in Western PA - think it was King of Prussia. - where I saw a company that used a hyperbaric chamber to turn a stick of wood - maybe a 2x2 into a cooked noodle. They sold bent wood furniture kits. Much as I enjoy the old school DIY of the steam bent technique I think the hyperbaric might be a superior process for this stem piece.

[@PaulMeyette]

So amazing to watch you work.

[@deanfulford69]

You'er a very smart man my friend

[@phooesnax]

Great stuff. Nice work

[@radesestovic698]

Ви сре најбољи. You are the best.

[@davevanzanten1883]

I love your videos. Been trying not steam bend for a couple years and fail every time (1” thick hickory, crazy yes I know). Ready to give up. The way I made seams in plastic sheeting was to fold end over end a few times and staple it. Worked pretty well.

[@aserta]

A very good water level indicator anyone can make is made from these: a piece of rod as tall as the canister, a piece of cork large enough to float the rod vertically (bottle cork stopper), a piece of coat hanger wire, and a hole. A hole that's just large enough for the rod to slide with ease is drilled atop the canister. Through the open hole in the canister, the cork is passed, preferably stabbed in to another rod to keep it from moving, and when positioned just right, the cork should be affixed securely to the rod that's passed through the drilled hole. The positioning rod is removed. Once that's done, with the coat hanger wire tied around the handle, a loop is made for the rod to keep it vertical. Markings can be made with the rod at empty, half, and full tank. Of course this is tailored for this particular can, in this particular application, but it's nothing special, and anyone can adapt it to their needs. Idea came from old, old tea kettles that were used in food courts. They were large ones that were hardly ever removed from the stoves and had a little peacock valve at the bottom to pour hot water. This device was present the main filling cork and it showed when water was running low so they could be refilled. So certainly, it's heat resistant.

[@johnbower]

Or you can just insert a pipe into the tank and blow into it and listen for the bubbles stop, like Lou did.

[@twoseat]

Or use a piece of clear pipe. Put the pipe in the kettle, cover the top end of the pipe with your thumb, then lift the pipe. The level of the water in the pipe is the level in the kettle.

[@jira950]

Watched breathlessly...

[@Pete-z6e]

Superb, as usual.

[@bobd.]

Lou, you could add a gauge glass style level gauge to the tank so you could see the level without using the bubbler tube. two 3/8 brass elbows and a length of plastic tubing is about all you need. Install one down below the minimum level you want in the tank, and the other one in the top. Braze the fittings into the tank, and connect with a length of tubing just long enough to span between the two fittings. When you put water in the tank you will see the level in the gauge glass constantly.

[@547Rick]

Amazing!

[@RodGibsonMusic]

I used this plastic to grow shrooms! there you have another use for that 6mm poly! Great videos Lou!

[@MartinFluteCompany]

Master Technique...thank you for the lesson!

[@Stan7670]

Excellent video and narration.

[@DH-ik1vf]

Lou, When I was much younger, my father and I used to make kites out of 1/4" wood strips and plastic bags. We would use an old iron to melt/weld a seam of the plastic around the wood strips. You may have better luck using that technique when making your bags.

[@cherryblossomforge6896]

You're the man Lou...

[@reforzar]

Amazing. Great tips.

[@puppetmaster1940]

Thanks for another great teaching.

[@georgejohnson1537]

Excellent..........................

[@robinengland5799]

Amazing technique!

[@Imightberiding]

I've watched your videos from the start of the first series when you were building the work skiff & always enjoy following your progress. As a man of a certain age, I can say that it is always nice to see another old school guy willing to share his knowledge & experience with a younger generation. As a carpenter/woodworker/cabinet maker of 30+ years, I have steam bent countless beams & lengths of wood (as well as laminated curved glue-ups) for various projects but always did it outdoors or in another space away from the other wood I had stored & drying for future use in my wood shop. Are you concerned about all that steam & humidity messing with all that lumber in your shop seen in the background throughout the video? Or maybe it just slipped your mind while producing another great video for us unwashed. Cheers from the west coast of Canada.

[@kb9061]

Here is trick to know when water is running out in streamer vessel when running. Place glass marbles inside the vessel, as water boils marbles bounce and make a noise. When water gets low marbles stop bouncing and change in noise let's you know you need to top up water before vessels becomes empty. This is an old cooking method used for steamed items in the stove top.

[@roberthamilton9730]

I learn with Lou

[@bobhowell]

I like that. We're "Learning with Lou"!

[@scotyfilms]

Awesome buddy!

[@thiagoennes]

a clothing iron for the plastic would make that job a lot easier and yield much better results! cover the plastic with some newspaper and put the iron in the high setting... you'll get great seams that way!

[@russelthurgate6618]

Thiago Ennes g

[@LeLOUISE1]

hello, j'adore comme il roule des mécaniques!!!!

[@arkansas1336]

Great video, keep 'em coming! ....13

[@glenbarrett5408]

I remember hauling stumps with my old 56 John deer for getting stems and knees

[@whitebuffalo4641]

Great stuff, thanks.

[@tomstewart9999]

So much great information. I was wondering if you use a special plastic for heat or just 6 ml out of home depot.

[@kevinvermeer9011]

Fascinating! Doesn't the wood dent easily from your clamps or spacer? And I never realized that the heat, not the moisture, was the operative part of steam bending. I know that green or wet wood bends easier even when cold, so that was a surprise - I suppose, though, that's just temporary because it springs back.

[@ZacVaper]

To check the water level you could use a straight clear tube, lower into tank, place thumb over end of tube and remove tube. The height of water in the tube is the same as the tank.

[@fakiirification]

im in love with that deep keel sail boat in the shot behind you. what do you call that hull style?

[@kenmarapese9085]

Excellent vid, I wanted to see the bent piece! boo.

[@EnsignRho]

Lou!! I cannot believe you didn't let us see the bend after the steam! I feel so let down, such a level of incompleteness. :-)

[@captnemo8069]

Maybe the piece cracked and Lou suspected as much? I did hear a pop or two as he tightened the come-along. When I tried it the outrigger put all the force in the middle and cracked the wood. Commercial furniture makers bend the wood (out of a steambox) around a form with a metal strap, the wood gets even force, not in just one spot.

[@mcpheonixx]

I had an idea lou. How about taking a roller tool used for setting the spline into a screen window/door and heating the roller and using that to roll along the edges of the plastic to bond the two layers together. Typically the roller tool is made of metal and it has a groove machined into the edge. I bet if you heated that roller and just roll it along it would melt the two layers together, easy peasy. There is a chance the plastic might stick to the metal roller though but it might be worth a try.

[@gatekeeper84]

commercial bag sealers are essentially a nichrome wire covered in PTFE (Teflon). put a heating element in the roller and cover it with teflon tape. It may be preferable to heat the plastic from both sides so double rollers may give better results.

[@bulletproofpepper2]

That is great. Thanks for sharing

[@UweBehrendt]

Thanks very interesting and educational . It must have gotten quite hot in the shop. How long did it take from start to finish?

[@clydecessna737]

Terrific. What type of boat is in the background? Herreshof 12.5?

[@petenash7994]

Just saying Lou - how about you get back to that classic restoration just behind you - now that would really grab our attention!!

[@rebelxti910]

By welding shorter backing plates in certain ares along the plate do you think you could achieve a parabolic curve

[@bushratbeachbum]

Beautiful work. Ive done a bit of steam bending for furniture during my earlier furniture making days. I like watching Engels Coach Shop as he does a fair bit of bending. Does Lou have many other bending videos? I can never get u tube to search specifically within a channel for stuff!

[@billzech3927]

Lou ,I love your work and videos. Why didnt you just glue up thin pieces of oak with epoxy resin to make the stem? Thanks.....

[@paulryan3849]

If you put a length of dowel or similar into the can until it hits the bottom, and the take it out, you can see the water line on the dowel.Hold the dowel next to the can, and you can see what the water level is.Simple and foolproof.

[@captnemo8069]

Lou, I've steam bent many sister ribs, but need to bend a stem 7ft x 3-1/2" x 3-1/2". Your method is amazing. Q. A stem that's beveled, can it be shaped before bending or you recommend bending as square stock, cutting the beveled sides after? I notice your stem is square.

[@rjtumble]

That was cool, what was the total time spent bending the board?

[@johnferguson7235]

Come on Lou, you should take this all the way through to the end. Let's see the stem come out of the bag.

[@TipsfromaShipwrightvideos]

John Ferguson The plan is for the next one to go up before Thanksgiving. Plot twist!

[@symbolsandsystems]

Could you build an entire boat from the plastic ribbing material? Was it polyethylene, you used?

[@daleskidmore1685]

Another great episode, Lou. I followed your method to bend the top rails for my boat restoration and it was really easy to do compared to using a steam box. Did you make any marks on the bench to guide the amount of curve you needed?

[@davidtraugot1405]

I read that the need for compression bending, particularly in thick pieces either across or with the rings, is that wood in tension is much more likely to crack or split open even though you are melting the lignin bonding the cellulose together; it doesn't really have anything to do with how much springback or recoil you'll get. What is your opinion and experience regarding this? Thanks for doing these videos and explaining everything in such detail! As a woodworker, though not a boatbuilder, I can understand the reasoning behind most of your techniques, and I love your unorthodox approaches to some of the work you show.

[@rustytruck66]

Hey Lou, how long did it take you to make the bend start to finish?

[@stevenbellwallace6194]

Hi Lou, Is there a maximum compression you can apply to the wood, when the fibres will not compress any more?

[@jeffpotter7656]

It seems the stem is massive for the dory ?

[@randydueck889]

This steam bag setup looks like a scene from the movie Alien at times lol.

[@pauleohl]

And all along I thought he was making a condom for a whale.