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I'm about to start routing the channels for the binding on my first two. One will get ebony, the other will get tiger maple. I've never bent ebony or figured maple. So is it best to bend these dry, or add a bit of moisture?

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Phil

http://www.oleninstruments.com

"Those who tilt at windmills are only considered insane by those who can't see the dragon."

I use moisture for pretty much everything, but less for mahogany and koa vs any really dense wood. I find most maple bends pretty easily, the ebony is a bit tougher, and depening on grain runout, it may or may not crack ... I try not to use the stuff for binding anymore, I prefer afr blackwood.

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Tony Karol
www.karol-guitars.com
"let my passion .. fulfill yours"

Ebony needs more heat than maple. Maple bends pretty nice. Ebony can be tricky if its cut wierd.

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Jason Moe
LaCrosse WI 54601

I just bent a bunch of flame maple on my first guitar, much, much more than was necessary...

I found that it was easier to bend on the dry side, too much water loosened it up too much and led to a lot of grain separation. Really I only spritzed it when it was close to scorching and didn't saturate it. Basically I put enough water on it so that you heard a second of sizzle but not enough so steam was coming out of the side opposite the iron.

I also ran into problems with my first few by not having the iron hot enough. It should be hot enough that the water dances on the surface of the iron instead of simply sitting on it and bubbling. I found it pretty easy after I learned to listen to the wood, it will relax after a minute and bend no problem. If you try to rush or force it, it's pretty easy to break. If I could describe the feeling it would be like just letting the weight of your hands do the bending, not any hand or arm strength if that makes sense.

I like to bend mine in my Fox style bender. Tape the ends together and Bob's your uncle. +1 for less water on figured maple if you're doing it on a pipe. For ebony I like macassar because it bends a little easier that African.

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Ken Franklin
clumsy yet persistent
https://www.kenfranklinukulele.com