How to Bend Plywood for Furniture

If you plan to build your own furniture using plywood as part of the furniture frame, you will likely need to bend the plywood to form arms, legs and other parts of the frame. Although thick plywood is difficult to bend, you can create furniture frame parts by joining several sections of 1/8-inch-thick plywood, which are relatively pliable. Bending plywood is a time-consuming task; however, you can complete this project with basic woodworking tools.

2-inch-thick lumber
Band saw
1/8-inch-thick plywood sheets
Wood clamps
Wood glue
Palm sander

Instructions

- 1
  Trace the curve on a piece of 2-inch-thick lumber. Cut the lumber along the curve with a band saw to create the plywood form.
- 2
  Cut six sections of 1/8-inch-thick plywood 2 1/2 inches wide and long enough to extend along the curve, using a band saw or table saw.
- 3
  Bend one section of plywood around the curve. Bend the additional sections around the curve to form a 3/4-inch-thick plywood section. Tighten clamps around the form and plywood stack to ensure that the plywood conforms to the form, and mark the positions of the clamps on the form.
- 4
  Remove the plywood sections. Apply wood glue to one side of five of the six sections. Replace the sections on the form one at a time with the glued side facing away from the form.
- 5
  Replace the clamps along the marks you made during the dry run. Allow the glue to dry for at least six hours before removing the clamps.
- 6
  Trim 1/4 inch of width off of each edge of the bent plywood. Sand the edges and corners with a palm sander.

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