Question
In another thread, we discussed the fact that I was building a European style kitchen and most of the work required flat true panels. I was curious about moisture entering the thin face veneers and making the plywood bend one way or another. I now have a pair of doors, cut from the same sheet side by side so the grain patterns match, and one door curves out and one curves in. I started thinking about the moisture issue and took my iron and applied heat to the concave side and after about 4 passes it had straightened out, and now I have to see if it will last. If you need to straighten your plywood out, use your wife's iron - just don't let her know you're using it or you will be buying her a new one like I had to. I will let you know whether or not it stays straight.
Forum Responses
(Cabinetmaking Forum)
From contributor A:
It is interesting that drying out the hollow or concave side would straighten the bow. The concave side of a bow is usually the dry side. Did you use steam? My experience is opposite in that placing the convex side of a panel to face the wood stove will cause it to reverse bow. Now that you have an iron in the shop, the next time you get a dent in unfinished wood you can steam it out by placing a wet piece of clean cotton cloth between the dent and the hot iron.
