It all starts with a 12 foot culm of bamboo (Continued)

This is the continuation of the "It all starts with a 12 foot culm of bamboo" by Joel Anderson.
 

It all starts with a 12 foot culm of bamboo

By Joel Anderson

Bamboo Rod Build, Part XIII, Straightening

The first thing people check when you hand them a ferruled rod is the rod's straightness. The straighter the blank comes out of the binder, the less challenge you'll face during this next phase in the process.

Although it has very little bearing on the casting qualities of a rod, cosmetics, including straightness, are nevertheless very important. Bamboo is a natural material and, as such, it is almost impossible to achieve a perfectly straight blank. However, this process will result in sections that are very straight to the eye:


Although straightening bamboo sections can be extremely frustrating beginning makers, I have come upon an approach that greatly facilitates the process for me. Using the flattest surface I can find (in my case, the kitchen table), I place a section on the table and, working from the center of the section, I roll the blank on to each flat until I see the tip end rise up off the table:


Next I run my finger down the blank until the tip end is forced down flat against the table. This tells me exactly where the bend is locate. I mark the top of the blank at that location with a pencil:


Now I move to my heat gun and heat up that area until is is almost too hot to handle:


I bend the section in the opposite direct of the bend and hold in that position for about 10-15 seconds. Then place the section flat against the table and press firmly against the table at the area and hold for another 10-15 seconds. I'll often rotate one flat in both directions and press there for 5 seconds or so. This seems to help the straightening process:


I then work my way up the section to the tip until all bends are removed. Then I reverse the section, end to end, and work from the center towards the butt of the section. Sometimes this process goes quickly; sometimes it can take an hour or more. Again, it all depends on how straight the sections are to at the start. With patience, you will eventually achieve the results you seek.