Bamboo veneering lathe ...

[RaptorWing]

I've found out a lot of different stuff through a lot of different forums on a lot of different topics, but the closest I've come to actually joining and posting in any of them until now was my initial internet experience of the aol "chatroom" back in '97 or so. So far, I've only written in existing threads... hope I'm in the right spot navigationally speaking.

Try to follow me here... From a forum link in "tools and techniques/steam-bending bamboo" I was taken to a great video on utube, the video seems to have been cross-linked to Gib's website? (bamboodirect.com) There's a surfboard there in bamboo veneer, so I click and am taken to "the story" behind the board at wetsand.com... primarily a surfing related site with a story on these bamboo laminated boards by... umm... Gary Young. Had too many browser tabs open...got lost myself.... In the "bamboo surfboard exhibit" there's a subheading... "introduction to bamboo theory." In this article, there's a veneer lathe that looks to be about 30" in length handling an approximately 5" diameter piece of bamboo.
here's a shortcut:
http://www.wetsand.com/category.asp?locationid=5&tabid=850&subtabid=2188&CatID=2188


When I do searches for veneer lathes, however, all I get are super huge computerized monsters weighing multiple tons. I can find all sorts of craft/hobby sized "turning" lathes, but would be interested in a veneering lathe with a maximum blank length of 24" inches. Anyone hear of such a thing or have ideas for constructing one?

[Mark Meckes]

I too did a search on this subject a while ago and that's all I could find - monster lathe machines.
The link you found is the best example of a smaller machine I've seen so far.
I've assumed that most bamboo veneers that woodworkers are using is the imported stuff.
It certainly is an interesting transformation of turning bamboo in the round into thin flat sheets.
It probably would require quite a heavy duty motor to handle the torque of slicing a 2-3ft length of bamboo into a thin sheet.
I wonder what percentage of material is wasted from the outer surface and inner core?

Apparently, Phyllostachys edulis (pubescens) (http://www.bamboocraft.net/bamboo/showgallery.php?cat=528) is a bamboo commonly used for making veneer, presumibly from China, where large tracts of this are growing, and is also the main species use in laminated flooring production.

Phyllostachys edulis - grown in Louisiana
http://www.bamboocraft.net/bamboo/data/528/medium/AveryMoso060308-2089.jpg (http://www.bamboocraft.net/bamboo/showphoto.php?photo=3162)

Mark

[RaptorWing]

I'd settle for 12". Yeah, it seems most rotary-cut veneers are used in the plywood industry, go figure. I guess I'll have to improvise. I was thinking ... oh, this means more math/geometry for maintaining a consistent thickness/cutting angle as the diameter of the culm shrinks. Most rotary veneer lathes are designed to work with a solid log (filch) I have no Idea how it would work on a hollow piece of stock. There could be significantly more/less waste than with using a wooden log. I'll have to revisit those pictures from the surfboard veneer and see if I can scale down into a device that can do the same job in my garage on my budget.

Also I'm interested if there are any epoxy-like resins made from bamboo? (http://www.bamboocraft.net/forums/showthread.php?t=2581)