Bendywood® in the World

Bendywood® FAQs

Q: Can I machine Bendywood® like normal wood?
A: Yes, saw & power sand as normal wood. For moulding and planing it is necessary to follow our machining guidelines in the user guide to get the best results.

Q: Does Bendywood® come in sheets?
A: No, it is solid timber & comes in various sizes, the biggest possible cross section is 120mm x 100mm. The maximum length is 2200mm for beech and 1650 mm for oak, ash & maple. Some of our stock sections are jointed end to end in the factory to produce lengths up to 6600mm.

Q: Are there any chemicals injected into Bendywood® to make it so flexible?
A: No, it is a purely mechanical process & therefore the various species available have the same appearance and chemical characteristics as normal timber of the same species.

Q: How is Bendywood® made?
A: The timber is carefully selected at the sawmill to avoid any knots and to have very straight grain, it is then steamed to soften the cell walls and compressed along its length.

Q: Do you have to wet Bendywood® in order to bend it?
A: No, do not wet it as it will expand ( including along its length). For most tasks Bendywood should be kept dry. However for thicker sections that are being bent close to the bending limits it is sometimes necessary to increase the moisture content prior to bending, before re-drying ( & shrinking) the piece.

Q: How do I "set" Bendywood® to a shape?
A: Bendywood® does not "set". It remains flexible for ever, thinner sections are usually glued to a substrate - table edges for example. Thicker sections are stiffer once bent but require more force to bend them in the 1st place - handrails for example.

Q: Do I need special equipment to bend Bendywood®?
A: It depends on the thickness and what you are trying to achieve. Thinner sections can easily be bent by hand, thicker sections will need force applied to bend them such as a metal rolling machine or clamps, pulleys or weights. Rolling a shape has the benefit of allowing the bend to be carefully controlled and uniform.

Q: Is Bendywood® held in stock?
A: Yes, an average of 500CuM is held in our stock.

Q: What timber species can be made into Bendywood®?
A: Theoretically most temperate hardwoods. We currently stock beech, maple, ash and oak & occasionally have small stocks of Cherry. These are all European species as we need to carefully select the timber at the sawmills. Softwoods and tropical hardwoods have the wrong cell structure for our process.

Q: Can you process timber that we provide?
A: No, we have to select the timber at source to ensure the correct & unusually high specification of raw material & for economic reasons need to process a volume of one species at one time.

Q: Does Bendywood® need to be kept in special conditions?
A: No, Bendywood can be held in stock in the workshop indefinitely, however it should be kept in dry (normal workshop) conditions.

Q: How do I measure the moisture content of the Bendywood®?
A: Use a normal timber moisture meter, however as the Bendywood is 15% more dense than the corresponding timber in the same species adjustments have to be made to compensate - usually the readings are 1 or 2 % higher than the actual moisture content.

Q: What adhesives should I use for Bendywood®?
A: Normal woodworking glues can be used, avoid water based glues and avoid wetting the surface too much as this may cause expansion. PU glues work particularly well, but good results can also be achieved with PVA, Urea formaldehyde & Epoxies.

Q: What finishes can I use with Bendywood®?
A: Bendywood® can be finished like normal wood using lacquers, oils and waxes. Water based finishes should be avoided as they may make it swell.

Q: I want to do some experimental work to establish the best thickness for my requirement. What is the cheapest sort of Bendywood® for experimentation?
A: The 80x100 mm quality blanks are the best choice for experimentation - they only have minimal discoloration, therefore we sell these at a discounted price.

Q: When was Bendywood® invented?
A: In 1917 the 1st record of a patent for making wood permanently flexible by steaming and longitudinal compression was recorded in Berlin & a refinement was patented in 1926. In 1990 our Company bought this plant from the original company in Selters and further refined the technology to economically manufacture compressed wood, making it more consistent, more efficient to produce and available in longer lengths than before. We also developed end-jointing techniques to enable lengths of up to 6600mm to be produced. This improved product is marketed under the registered trademark of Bendywood®.

Q: You say in the "Price and Ordering" that the Blanks are un-planed and may have folds in the surface, How much of the 120 x 100 section is usable?
A: At least 100 x 80 is usable, it depends on the length of the piece that you are needing to machine to a straight and square section, shorter pieces yield more usable timber than longer pieces.

Q: You say that the moisture content in the centre of a blank is higher than the surface moisture content, how do I dry the centre down?
A: This cannot be done until it is cut into smaller sections, once this has been done then, the smaller sections should be left open to the air in a dry workshop for a few days to dry down to a stable moisture content.

Q: Can I laminate Bendywood®?
A: Yes, it allows laminations to be much thicker than normal and for tighter radii to be achieved.

Q: Can I use Bendywood® outside ?
A: The short Answer is 'No', as it will expand and become more flexible when it rains. However, if these characteristics can be incorporated into the design then it may work for some applications.