how to bend some oak - advice pls

[Poignard]

the purpose of the pad under the tabernacle is to spread the load of the mast but you also need to avoid point loads and thats what you risk by attempting to get the profile of the underside of the wood to match the top surface of the deck by carving away at the wood. You need a filler inbetween to ensure they match well and epoxy with a hard filler will do that job well. Wouldnt advise sawdust - its a proper engineering job and you need proper materials rather than thrift.

Wish I known you were typing that - I could have saved myself the trouble of repeating (more or less) your advice!

 

[nigelmercier]

OK, so not bending oak 'plank', but cutting away waste to deck profile...

I was about to propose exactly the same idea, leaving small ridges of wood to rest the router/saw on.