: Is there a trick to heating the ash that I'm missing? My new heat gun has two
: settings - 1000 degres and 750 degrees. I'm using the high setting. Is the
: grain orientation wrong (that is, should I rip a 3/4 piece off my board,
: turn it a 1/4 turn, and then rip it into 1/16" strips?).

: Any and all help is appreciated.

Rick-

I built Rob's Shooting Star using kiln-dried WRC (not an easy wood to bend), and had varied success depending on the particular strip. A few suggestions: 1) Keep strips wet by wrapping with thin cloth (T-shirt fabric) to prevent charring. 2) Make a simple jig that holds the strip in the general shape you want. This way you have both hands free to hold the heat gun and wet the strip. As the strip softens increase the bend or twist until you get the shape you want. Let strip dry while still in the final shape you want. 3) For stubborn strips or severe bends, use Al foil to make a small tunnel around the strip to help trap the heat (sort of like a portable steam chamber). 4) To prevent splitting due to grain runout C-clamp a strip of Al sheet metal to the outside edge of the wood strip at each end of the wood strip. The metal strip is held tightly against the wood during bending and keeps the wood from splitting. 5) If you haven't done it already, try bending pine or oak strips. Even the Home Depot-grade stuff bends easily and will give you some confidence that your technique is not the problem.

wes