Stew Mac Bending iron

Klufty · Post by **Klufty** » Wed Jun 17, 2009 1:57 pm

Hi all,

I am new to this forum and guitar building. Looking at purchasing a side bender and have heard some goods things about the Stew Mac bending iron. Would like to hear others experience with these or some alternatives.

Thanks in advance,

kiwigeo · Post by **kiwigeo** » Wed Jun 17, 2009 3:54 pm

Welcome to the forum Klufty,

Both the LMI and Stewmac bending irons are good for general bending. Ive got the LMI version in my shop and its done good service. If you shop around there are cheaper equivalents on ebay etc. Im told some of these irons are essentially from same supplier as the onees that LMI and Stewmac supply. Others who are using these irons will no doubt chime in and add comments accordingly.

Cheers Martin

jeffhigh · Post by **jeffhigh** » Wed Jun 17, 2009 4:25 pm

I got mine from pilgrim's projects for a good price
They are all the Ibex bending iron ?

Allen · Post by **Allen** » Wed Jun 17, 2009 5:16 pm

I got mine from Australian Luthier Supply. Does what it's suppose to, so can't complain about it. Knowing what I do now, I'd probably make one myself using a gas torch to heat it up. Micheal Connor has a great one that he made for a fraction of the cost of the electric ones.

James Mc · Post by **James Mc** » Wed Jun 17, 2009 5:39 pm

I'm still using a couple of chunks of steel pipe (60mm and 100MM) with a metho burner for heat... I keep thinking about building something better but as the old saying goes ' If it ain't broken don't fix it'. I loved the one Taff made with the old bar heater element.

James

woodrat · Post by **woodrat** » Wed Jun 17, 2009 6:16 pm

They can be made very cheaply. Aluminium pipe from the tip (got to have sharp eyes and be lucky I suppose) Gal pipe would do too.

Klufty · Post by **Klufty** » Wed Jun 17, 2009 6:20 pm

Hi guys,

Thanks for the posts. The blow torch method looks the goods. A lot cheaper than the electric version. Put towards a band saw. Another question; is a 10' band saw sufficient for luthier work?

thanks again.

kiwigeo · Post by **kiwigeo** » Wed Jun 17, 2009 6:25 pm

Go for a 14" minimum...if youre planning on doing any resawing then aim a bit bigger.

Ive got a Carbatec 14" bandie that does most of what I need it to do. I did upgrade to the better bearing based guides on the thing. If I was buying again Id probablly go for a Jet over a Carbatec mainly because service from Jet agents seems to be generally better than that from Carbatec of late.

Klufty · Post by **Klufty** » Wed Jun 17, 2009 6:53 pm

Back on the home made benders.. Do you need to use a thermocouple of some type to measure the temp or is it experience tells you when it's hot enough?

thanks

J.F. Custom · Post by **J.F. Custom** » Wed Jun 17, 2009 7:05 pm

Hi Klufty and welcome.

Firstly - I've got the Stew-Mac bending iron which I 'upgraded' to from the blow torch hot pipe method. The hot pipe works fine and you can't beat it for price - I just wanted some more repetitive control in the heat, hence the upgrade. I too believe Ibex manufacture for both Stew Mac and LMI. The only reason I went for the Stew-Mac in the end is that they slightly modify theirs with the addition of a tapped thread in the end. This allows use of their smaller extension for very tight bends in mando's or violins etc.

With regard to your second question, 10" is not enough. At a pinch it could do for a starter but you will VERY quickly outgrow it and find its limitations. Therefore the money spent would somewhat be money wasted. Better saving it and putting it toward a 14" minimum. These will do most luthiery jobs but, as mentioned, will struggle to re-saw. I had and used a 14" model for years but had to continually get my larger stock resawn by others which was an expensive and 'uncontrolled' solution. If you don't plan to re-saw, as in you are prepared to buy back and side sets etc, 14" is enough. I upgraded some time back to a 17" Carba-Tec model so I could do 95% of jobs myself and have never looked back.

Jet and Carba-Tec make good machines, at least, for the most part. Both have machines manufactured in Taiwan and China, as most companies/brands do now. The difference in quality and price is which factory they have produce the machine and what specs they chose or have upgraded. I have been to many of the factories in China and Taiwan that produce Jet and Carba-Tec - some factories produce both and others such as Powermatic too. I have fair knowledge and information on this type of thing. If you have any questions or have any model in particular in mind, fire me a message. Same goes to all on the forum.

Good luck,

Jeremy.

graham mcdonald · Post by **graham mcdonald** » Wed Jun 17, 2009 7:37 pm

I use a couple of lengths of brass pipe 65mm and 40mm (roughly) in diameter with a propane torch. One worthwhile addition is mostly filling in what would be the non-torch end with a bit of brass sheet cut into a cross shape and pop riveted onto the end.

The pipes are hot enough when water sprayed on bounces straight off. If it sits there and bubbles the pipe isn't hot enough and there is a good chance your side/binding will break

cheers

graham

kiwigeo · Post by **kiwigeo** » Wed Jun 17, 2009 7:59 pm

J.F. Custom wrote:
Jet and Carba-Tec make good machines, at least, for the most part. Both have machines manufactured in Taiwan and China, as most companies/brands do now. The difference in quality and price is which factory they have produce the machine and what specs they chose or have upgraded. I have been to many of the factories in China and Taiwan that produce Jet and Carba-Tec - some factories produce both and others such as Powermatic too. I have fair knowledge and information on this type of thing. If you have any questions or have any model in particular in mind, fire me a message. Same goes to all on the forum.

Good luck,

Jeremy.

True that the Jet and Carbatec machines come out of the same factory but level of QC during manufacture can vary with the client. As alluded to in my earlier post, service from Carbatec pre and post sale is not quite as good IMO as that offered by Jet agents.

J.F. Custom · Post by **J.F. Custom** » Wed Jun 17, 2009 8:53 pm

kiwigeo wrote:True that the Jet and Carbatec machines come out of the same factory but level of QC during manufacture can vary with the client. As alluded to in my earlier post, service from Carbatec pre and post sale is not quite as good IMO as that offered by Jet agents.

Just for clarification of my statement - no, not all Jet and Carba-Tec machines come from the same factory/s. Some cross over while some are simply very similar machines from different factories - copies if you like.

OK, here is some more info for you all.

Yes, quality control is one factor, but I disagree with the above statement (sorry Martin!).

This really does come down to actual manufacturer more so than brands within the one manufacturer. Brands within the one manufacturer differ more in the selected options or requested modifications by the relevant company.

Some machines of both brands are stock standard models made by a relevant manufacturer.

Sometimes one brand over another is given exclusive license to sell the product due to a deal struck that proves too good to refuse. Sometimes entire manufacturers are sown up to one company, preventing other companies access regardless of machine type. I don't mean factories actually owned by one company or another either, but third parties.

Other machines are simply 'up-specced'. That is the base model has several 'optional' additions. Different companies select different options.

Yet other machines will have minor modifications made either A - to improve the models performance and reliability; or B - to make a 'point of difference' to the competitors product that is then 'licensed' to that company. An example may be a different plastic molding on a given part of a machine to 'look the part' when the guts are the same.

Finally some machines are entirely researched and designed by a specific company and then made to those exacting specifications. These are for the most part only available to the original designing company.

So there it is in a nutshell.

Jet are a very large US company that have had many years experience. They also have a much larger market than just Australia and as a result, have more money to put into some of the finer details. They have a large part to play in making Taiwanese machinery what it is today, as they established business there so many years ago. They deserve the reputation they have, again, for the most part.

Carba-Tec is a much smaller company here in Australia and while it would seem to us Aussies or Kiwis for that matter, that they are very large, they are nothing on Jet in this respect and US will likely not have heard of them. They too deserve their reputation, again, for the most part.

To a certain extent, you get what you pay for. Knowing what I do I can say this of both companies; some machines are well priced for what they are, others are well over priced or differences are overstated and overblown.

I think if you were to spend wisely with either company, you would be happy with your purchases - they are good machines and we have to be thankful they are available to us! Where would I be without my bandsaw??

As for service, I guess that is a matter of opinion and who you happen to deal with both personally and store to store, state to state. Each will have their own experiences and I don't want to comment on that. Theoretically both should be providing good service, pre or post to any customer. Unfortunately this is not always the case - Martin appears to be case in point! What I am saying is on a purely machine to machine basis, both should prove to be a good purchase (depending on exact model!!) so perhaps if they are comparable, it does come down to the service you individually receive from each...

Jeepers... That was a long winded 'clarification' ramble.

Sorry, but I hope the info is of use to some!

Jeremy.

Chopper · Post by **Chopper** » Thu Jun 18, 2009 9:15 am

Jeremys clarification is proved by the fact that Hare and Forbes carry the same machines as Carba-Tec and sell them at a better price . They have the absolute best after sales service and carry the spare parts to back it up. Sound like a plug? No, just a very happy customer who has been on the end of some good treatment. They have branches in Sydney,Brisbane,Melbourne and Perth. and I find it cheaper to hop in the ute and go to Sydney than take the 15 minute trip to the local Carba -tec dealer.

Cheers Chopper

bunker · Post by **bunker** » Thu Jun 18, 2009 2:22 pm

Hi Klufty,
I am on my 3rd guitar and don't have a lot of money or room, so for bending I use a 75mm stainless exhaust pipe offcut kindly donated by "The Man Who Owns The Store" and heat it with a gas torch attached to my barbie bottle. It cost me about $60 for the gas torch kit and adaptor and I figure I shouldn't run out of gas in the middle of a side this way. I wrapped a piece of teflon sheet for barbies and ovens etc around the pipe which makes for smoother, cleaner bending and so far have had great success with Tas Blackwood and WA Sheoak sides and binding. I have a digital laser type thermometer but find as long as it hisses and sizzles and you don't stand still too long it all works fine. I also just ball up some Aluminium foil and shove it in the end that points at the weeding tackle to save accidents and help keep the heat in.
Archie.

sebastiaan56 · Post by **sebastiaan56** » Thu Jun 18, 2009 3:33 pm

I also just ball up some Aluminium foil and shove it in the end that points at the weeding tackle to save accidents and help keep the heat in.

Thats a stunning image that just invaded my head, Hesh has a rival! You dont bend in a purple spandex suit do you Bunker?

kiwigeo · Post by **kiwigeo** » Thu Jun 18, 2009 5:46 pm

Hesh bends wearing asbestos Y fronts.

Localele · Post by **Localele** » Thu Jun 18, 2009 6:25 pm

Aluminium bender heated by a gas torch. It works quite well .

vandenboom · Post by **vandenboom** » Thu Jun 18, 2009 6:54 pm

I used the blowtorch in the pipe for my first, but found it unpleasant to work around.
Since then, I bought a pencil shaped heating element from Hotco in Cheltenham (Melb) - cost about $60.
I got a short length of 2" copper pipe and distorted its shape to get different different radii. I fill the pipe with sand - good heat conducter apparently. I was lucky to get a simply regulator for nix from a mate, which kept the cost down. And I just the use "drops bouncing off the pipe" as my temp guage.
Frank

sebastiaan56 · Post by **sebastiaan56** » Fri Jun 19, 2009 12:33 pm

Here is another take on the bending iron device. Go to the bottom of the thread http://mimf.com/cgi-bin/WebX?50@162.T3k ... 2cb6a343/0

A 250W bulb is a lot, I dont know where to get them here in Aus

Corky Long · Post by **Corky Long** » Wed Jun 24, 2009 5:10 am

Si, I've also used both. My Stewmac electric bending iron burned out on the third guitar - I know I can replace the heating element, but am too lazy at this point.
As for the torch method - well, it's pretty much idiot proof, as long as you don't have any open solvents, piles of sawdust, or hair which get close to the bender. I'm not knocking it - I like the torch method best for controlling heat, etc. I just am pretty careful to have a bucket of water and a fire extinguisher handy.

Lillian · Post by **Lillian** » Wed Jun 24, 2009 5:41 am

Klufty, if you aren't interested in using a bending iron with a torch aimed at your belt, look for an industrial soldering iron or an electric charcoal lighter. Don't get one with ceramic elements. They'll break when you bend them to fit inside your pipe. Same thing if you go for an oven element.

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