Page 9 - Demo

Slippery rock Gazette
Thermal
Forming Quartz Slabs for Fun and Profit
Brian Brutting
Photos by Brian Brutting
Bending stone was once thought to be impossible, except for the thinnest veneers. With the advancement of engineered quartz came some cre- ative ideas in bending hard surfaces.
Since engineered quartz is made with up to 10 percent resin, it is possible to manipulate the material much like solid surface fabricators did back in the day. The highest quality engineered quartz is still 90 percent real stone content, which is very important to successfully bend a slab of engineered stone.
Note that the process can be tricky and is not covered under any man- ufacturer’s warranty, so it strictly creative. Never the less, I see tons on specification for thermal formed pieces all the time, and some of the very best fabricators get the lion’s share of this very lucrative work.
The process really is not compli- cated –just time consuming –and it sometimes takes a little trial and error to achieve the best results.
All you need is the ability to mill material, a large source of hot water, clamps and a wooden form to bend your shape.
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A standard turkey fryer will work just fine to boil water. The goal is to raise the core temperature of the milled slab.
Now available at braxton-bragg.com