Wow, lots of discussion here.
Dies - yes they're aluminum. Our dies are lifetime warrantied. Just like the machine. You can't break them while bending the right OD tubing. We've tried. We've thrown 2" x .250 1026 DOM at them, no ptoblems. Up to 90 ksi yield on 1026. These aren't cheap imported castings. US material and US machining to our strict designs.
We make custom dies and add any common requests to our line up. Every single die is kept in stock. We ship benders, dies, and tube notchers in 1 business day or less in 75% of orders.
Bend spacing- about 5" between bends with any rotation you want, no limit on bend angle. "S" bends and bends in line back to back are possible with any spacing, including touching. 23 degree max on one leg of S bends in one direction.
Our reputation and customer service leave nothing to be desired. We stand behind our products forever. No fine print. Call and talk to a human who knows the product inside and out, and all the common applications.
Our machine isn't "apples to apples" with the JD2 line. We're priced below any of their air operated machines, close to a model 32 manual. We have the bend orientation benefits of a model 3, S bend capability like the model 4 has without the limitation of rotation between bends, and wall thickness capacity in excess of the model 3, 32, 4, and even 54, with the portability and compact operating space that is unrivaled by any of our competitors including JD. A few of those machines go above our max OD. All our dies bend to 96 degrees in the first ram stroke. No other 180 bender can do this within $500 of our price tag. Our 180 degree dies cost much less with shipping (averages here, not every single one). Our machine does have several cool benefits to the separated clamp block die design (mock up and resume a bend with just 1 pin removal, use multiple blocks for production speed on batch parts or tracking bend planes, leave no bolt - imprints on tube, even polished stainless, etc).
Both machines (ous aand JD2) are backed with great tech support, made here in the US, and make just as nice of bends (on comparable CLR). You can't go wrong with either manufacturer. It comes down to what features you want, what your trusted freinds recommend, and personal preference.
You will be happy with any of the machines discussed here. M32, 105, Rogue Fabrication 600. Just don't go import!
