Rookie,
straightening tips can be a pain but both of your ideas will work. One of the best methods I have seen is to heat the sections as they are suspended with a substantial weight on them to ensure that they are straight. Another good method, one I got from Mike Brooks a few years ago is to use an iron on a hard surface ensuring that you do not overheat the section causing delamination, and apply the heat evenly to all 6 sides, then laying it on a cool surface that is flat until the section cools to ambient temperature.

Not too long ago I saw still yet another method using the iron to heat the section, then putting the section in a machined groove on a board and putting another board on top of it to hold it into the straight machined groove. I am making one of those boards now because it just makes too much sense for it not to work.

When dealing with a section that has a set to it, always check the bamboo to ensure that it is not loaded with moisture. If you bend a section of bamboo and it stays in the direction that you bend it, it is very possible that the section is too high in moisture content and has to be dried out. That is when hanging the weight on the end of it and leaving it in an area near a heat source, with low humidity will help to both straighten it, and get the humiditiy back to where it is a usable section again. You ALWAYS want to check it for delamination when you have that condition.

There are many many good methods for straightening a section, and quite frankly, I don't know which is the absolute best, but these methods have worked for me. I am sure that many others can offer solutions that work equally as well for them.

Good luck with it

Leo

[This message has been edited by dleo6446 (edited 12 March 2006).]