When you click on links to various merchants on this site and make a purchase, this can result in this site earning a commission. Affiliate programs and affiliations include, but are not limited to, the eBay Partner Network.
you can put a crap ton of work into tube(pipe) fab and have it dent and not be happy with it after one trip. or you can use the same ammount of effort and spend some more money on some DOM and be happy with it for a very long time. i guess it all depends on your intentions with your rig but if your gonna have it at all you would want to feel secure with your work man. if sch40 does it for you than thats your choice.
just my .02
please tell me how sch 40 is going to split and come through the cab and through my skull.
ok, the body will likely save you from that scenario, but once it's separated, bent and twisted, you may need a saw to cut that piece off if it were to get into a rare instance. so you should be fine.
but seriously, i wouldn't make an internal cage using sc.40 or anything other than dom, crew or hrew.
the jd2 is a nice little bender. that was gonna be my choice but up here the pro tools is the popular choice, so i went with the pro tools 105HD.
i would like to add the hydraulic set up to it at some point.
ok, the body will likely save you from that scenario, but once it's separated, bent and twisted, you may need a saw to cut that piece off if it were to get into a rare instance. so you should be fine.
but seriously, i wouldn't make an internal cage using sc.40 or anything other than dom, crew or hrew.
the jd2 is a nice little bender. that was gonna be my choice but up here the pro tools is the popular choice, so i went with the pro tools 105HD.
i would like to add the hydraulic set up to it at some point.
id love to go hydro on mine...probably wont happen til after this phase of my build though... I also need a barn...
Not trying to hijack your thread but I thought this might be relevant. I've only seen this done online (this is why I'd like a second opinion) but the people swear you can get a kink free bend 95% of the time.
They claim the reason the tube kinks is because it doesn't fit the die tight enough and doesn't support the tube sides while being bent. We all know that tube and pipe are different dimensions that it makes sense that you might have a little wiggle room. The theory is that if you add extra material to the die, bringing it up 50% of the way up the tube, the sides will not be able to expand and crush the bottom. This in addition to a clamp holding it down from the top SHOULD make a kink free bend.
I drew up a quick picture in paint to show what I'm trying to explain. On the left you have a stock die and tube (see extra space and sides not supported), and on the right the red material added to support the tube. One person even claimed to take a die that was too small and grind out the extra material until the tube fit tight.
Anyway, thought this might help the guys that bought a HF tube kinker and want to try it. I know a JD2 type bender is the ultimate but thought some might want to give it a shot.
Not trying to hijack your thread but I thought this might be relevant. I've only seen this done online (this is why I'd like a second opinion) but the people swear you can get a kink free bend 95% of the time.
They claim the reason the tube kinks is because it doesn't fit the die tight enough and doesn't support the tube sides while being bent. We all know that tube and pipe are different dimensions that it makes sense that you might have a little wiggle room. The theory is that if you add extra material to the die, bringing it up 50% of the way up the tube, the sides will not be able to expand and crush the bottom. This in addition to a clamp holding it down from the top SHOULD make a kink free bend.
I drew up a quick picture in paint to show what I'm trying to explain. On the left you have a stock die and tube (see extra space and sides not supported), and on the right the red material added to support the tube. One person even claimed to take a die that was too small and grind out the extra material until the tube fit tight.
Anyway, thought this might help the guys that bought a HF tube kinker and want to try it. I know a JD2 type bender is the ultimate but thought some might want to give it a shot.
There are many ways to try to get the HF bender to work, but I look at it like this...you can spend very little money right up front, but then do all kinds of different tricks just to get it to work right. Lots of wasted time and effort, and more money down the road to modify just to get it to work right. Yes it can be done, people have done it. But with all the effort put into it, it just isn't worth it, in MY opinion. Love my JD2. Tried using "other" low cost methods, the HF solution wasn't one of them, but all of them cost money I could have just used to get a quality tool, and effort to make them work right, which it seems they never did, or did once or twice, then crapped out, and all the wasted tube, by the time all this was said and done I could have had a nice tool, with no hassle, and been better of overall. Just my experience.
I have a bunch of tube benders of different types. You can do press bends if you have a proper fitting die set with a very gentle radius, may be 10-15 degrees or so. Building cages, the challenge for me has been the straight sections of tube. You have to be able to accurately predict where they begin and end and what direction they are going. You can't do this with press bending method without a lot of splicing of tubes or wasting a bunch of material. Making a cage takes a lot of time and work and if I am going to make that effort, I want a good result.
the problem with the harbor freight benders is they are pipe benders, not tube benders.
pipe is measured by the inside, since stuff will be flowing through them, where as tubing is measured on the outside.
this is why tube doesn't fit properly in the pipe die.
dies for my pro tools bender run between 2 and 3 hundred bux each. but it's all worth it by the little waste and nicer bends using a tube bender.
there are cheap home made tubing bender plans available online, but the dies still cost money. either way, it's worth every penny.
Not trying to hijack your thread but I thought this might be relevant. I've only seen this done online (this is why I'd like a second opinion) but the people swear you can get a kink free bend 95% of the time.
They claim the reason the tube kinks is because it doesn't fit the die tight enough and doesn't support the tube sides while being bent. We all know that tube and pipe are different dimensions that it makes sense that you might have a little wiggle room. The theory is that if you add extra material to the die, bringing it up 50% of the way up the tube, the sides will not be able to expand and crush the bottom. This in addition to a clamp holding it down from the top SHOULD make a kink free bend..
while that is why i bought the HF bender to begin with.. i see people all online saying oh it works great you can grind it out for tube. so i figured it would work fine for pipe.. since thats what its made for. i buy it. use it on pipe and it kinks every time. tried modifying it and everything. doesnt even work.. dont believe everything on the internet.
OK, I know I'm late to the game on this one... but I've had pretty good success with a bender from Harbor Freight. The secret to my success has been to use a piece of slightly larger diameter pipe cut lenghtwise in half as a backing on either side against the rollers... and make sure the die you push with is slightly smaller than the tubing... that way you're pushing on the "sides" of the tube instead of just pushing flat against the middle. I can usually go about 60 degrees before it starts to kink. The bends usually look a bit ovaled through the radius, but when welded into a roll bar or cage look pretty appropriate... Just my two cents worth on what works for me.
let me just update this thread.. AGAIN.. i bought it to bend pipe, like its suppose to be able to. i know people modify it for tube.. the bender doesnt even do what its made for. its junk. if you buy one you just added $100 to the cost of your jd2
04-15-2015, 08:40 AM
) 
