bending tips

[metal1313]

i need to bend some 3/8x3/8 or 1/2 square tube into some tall U's. im building interior dog gates, to keep my dog away from upstairs and the cats. id like to have a 2-3 in radius and produce a 180 degree bend. i may go a little bigger, depends on what mom likes. does any one have any tips on bending this stuff up with out a bender, and using hollow stock.

anytips, i havent needed to produce any bends really clean or tight out of square tube. im trying to produce a victorian looking fence, as i have a victorian house.

 

[94legaleagle]

I've not done this before and my knowledge in this matter is limited, but I believe (IE: do this unless told otherwise) that you will need to fill the inside of the hollow square tubing w/ sand (not sure if you need to pack it or not) before you bend it - this keeps the tube from collapsing during the bending process.

 

[z28snksknr]

From bending S/S brake lines, I'll agree that filling with sand will keep the cross section more uniform in the bend and keep it from getting kinks.

Other than that, lots of heat and a form / jig helps to get the desired radius.

 

[bimmer1980]

what they said....

also, you can try taking some wood and a jigsaw to make a bending buck. make a half circle and screw that down to a piece of plywood. THen add a peg to secure one end of the tube. then you just need to grab ahold and wrap the tubing around the "die".

 

[Jack Olsen]

For 3/8 or 1/2, it might be just as cost effective to use solid stock.

There's some good info on low-dollar bending here.

 

[metal1313]

i need them to be as light as possible, they get opened very often. i think im actually going to source everything from king architectural metals, because they have things that will look and work just the way i want

 

[Joe69]

Jack, thanks for the link!

Joe

 

[justin_rathjen]

can't you fill them with water and freeze em solid and then bend them? If you were going to cold bend them, not sure on that type of stock what would be more effective.

 

[z28snksknr]

can't you fill them with water and freeze em solid and then bend them? If you were going to cold bend them, not sure on that type of stock what would be more effective.

You must have a BIG freezer.

 

[malibu101]

You must have a BIG freezer.

Or just wait to do your job over the winter- just set it outside overnight.

 

[Imwalkin]

here at my metal supply store you can by circle rings but a 2-3 inch dia is very tight. i would make them out of solid then weld them to your tubing.

 

[fasteddie24]

I agree w/Jack. Bending square tubing is a *****. Try solid bar.

 

[metal1313]

i gotta explain that using solid bar would simply be to heavy. i know its far easier to bend, as i have done lots of bending in the past few months on certian projects. but weight is a major issue for gates leading in and out of every room downstairs in my house. i live in a victorian/colonial revival house, built in 1875, so Nothing is square and plumb. if they were i know i could align the hinges with zero bind and make a 300lb gate swing super easy, but with all the out od square, twisting door frames and such the ligther the better. if i had a way of welding aluminum id use it, and use solid for the bends.

what ive decided to do is to do a very simple frame work, simple arch top and decorative pickets from king metals. with s simple jig i can get the bend i want in square tubing very easily.

on a side note, has anyone made or found simple round tube dies for benders like the hf bender? i just got one, for free, and would love to use it to bend some handles up for a project.

 

[Bigger Hammer]

I actually have a side biz doing just what you are trying to do. Interior custom metal dog gates. For what you are trying to do, I'd just order the prebent tubing from king or others out there. I have ordered 1 1/4" elbows from www.sharpeproducts.com and they were very cost effective. If you aren't ever going to need to do this again, pre bent is the way to go rather than mangling up a bunch of bends that don't match.

That being said, I just made up a die for my home made bender to do 1" square tube on a 7 1/2" radius. It was a real bear to pull the bend but they turned out really nice with minimal deformation on the inner and outer walls. I made the die convertible so I can pull plates out of it to use for 3/4 or 1/2" tube as well. With a little tweaking on my bender setup I think I can make it much easier to pull.

 

[metal1313]

i need a die like that for some other projects around my house and yard.

 

[Bigger Hammer]

i need a die like that for some other projects around my house and yard.

I will try to remember to grab the camera when I go out to the shop tonight and snap a couple pics of the die and my fugly bender.