I mostly work with koa. I tried foil once and will never do it again. You don't need it. Never had any issue with my water, so I have no need for distilled water either.Definitely use no Windex or other ammonia bending aid. The paper wrap, wood not too wet, stainless steel slats top and bottom (absolutely no regular steel unless you like koa that has a greenish to black color stain} tightly against the wood,a bending blanket, and you're good to go, slowly! I start bending at about 275 degrees and my controller is set to 320 degrees for 10-12 minutes. Takes me about 2-3 minutes to do the bending, so the wood cooks for 7-10 minutes. I put a fan on it from under the mold to cool it fast , and if there is springbuck when I start to open the mold I close it up and run the temp back to 300 degrees and turn it off as soon as it reaches 300. Then I just let it cool naturally, unless I'm in hurry, in which case I use the fan again. If you have not bent curly koa before, you might want to start with some other practice wood. Give us a photo of the wood and maybe someone can give more advice. Good luck.-Bob

Where is your blanket located in the stack?

put the bindings in a pvc "3/4"" pipe with the end sealed-Add water & super soft fabric softener.
let soak overnight & It will
bend very easily -with heat.Not to much-I do not take any temps.
I do 5 pieces at a time.Just a tablespoon of the softener

Nice koa. Looks very clear of knots or defects.That wood should bend fairly easily. It is the koa with the wider, deep looking curls that either kinks or breaks more easily. Should make a very nice guitar. Good luck, Bob

The second set should probably be easier to bend. Less curl and probably was a lot cheaper, so less pain if you break it. Depending on the flex of the wood, my sides are usually 2.3-2.5mm thick. Photo shows what i mean by wide, deep, curl. Lots of endgrain, which is what makes the bending risky.