Bender for 1/4" Schedule 40 pipe

admin

I need to bend a bunch of 1/4" Schedule 40 pipe nipples. The nominal OD is 0.405". These are 304/304L stainless so they may not bend easily.My Imperial bender does tubing but the pipe is too large. Already checked and they don't make pipe dies. I also doubt the bender would survive long doing pipe anyway.Does anyone know of a bender that can do small pipe?I thought about threading some 3/8" tubing but the nominal OD for for 1/4" pipe is larger This may turn into a build your own project but I'm in a rush to get this job done so if I can find an off the shelf solution that would be better.Any thoughts would be appreciated.
Reply:How long are the "nipples" (I think of a nipple as being real short), and what degree of bend are you trying to make, what radius?My #4 DiAcro bender can bend that size pipe.Rex
Reply:My mistake. It's 1/8 pipe, not 1/4... lost my brain between the shop and the office The nipple is 2.5" long. The bend is 45 degrees. This is a sample part I made from tubing. The thread formed ok but it is clearly under diameter and a little loose. I suppose the correct sealant may solve that.Another option I'm thinking about is skipping the thread entirely and use some type of glue to hold the part in place. This part goes into a 6061-T6 aluminum part. It is very low pressure. Maybe something like Loctite 620? Attached Images
Reply:Someone once gave me some an alloy of bismuth. It was used for modeling and molding.  it melts at about 200 degrees F and is solid/metal at room temp.  Perhaps you could support your pipe internally and bent it.
Reply:hi, would you be able to use a threaded ss 45 and 2 ss nipples to make it work ?? What about a ridge gear bender ?? You maybe able to bend say 1/2" , 3/8"  pipe, cut lengthwise and then lay the 1/8" inside using the smaller pipe like a bending shoe.Or would one of those harbor freight tubing rollers work ??. i know you can get them for around 150.00 but not sure if it would work for your application.  tubing roller http://www.harborfreight.com/tubing-roller-99736.html  i know they sell small dies for this too.Take the tube to hf and tell them you want to try it on their floor model !! http://www.harborfreight.com/3-piece-die-set-66598.htmlthis  http://www.millerwelds.com/resources...7&d=1246641911     good luck
Reply:Originally Posted by BD1hi, would you be able to use a threaded ss 45 and 2 ss nipples to make it work ?? What about a ridge gear bender ?? You maybe able to bend say 1/2" , 3/8"  pipe, cut lengthwise and then lay the 1/8" inside using the smaller pipe like a bending shoe.Or would one of those harbor freight tubing rollers work ??. i know you can get them for around 150.00 but not sure if it would work for your application.  tubing roller http://www.harborfreight.com/tubing-roller-99736.html  i know they sell small dies for this too.Take the tube to hf and tell them you want to try it on their floor model !! http://www.harborfreight.com/3-piece-die-set-66598.htmlthis  http://www.millerwelds.com/resources...7&d=1246641911     good luck
Reply:Another option I'm thinking about is skipping the thread entirely and use some type of glue to hold the part in place. This part goes into a 6061-T6 aluminum part. It is very low pressure. Maybe something like Loctite 620
Reply:forhire,can you get a 10mm die set for your bender- 10mm tube is very close to your 1/8" pipe OD?Cheers,Kevin Morin
Reply:Originally Posted by mrmikeyWhatever you use for sealant make sure it is made for s/s (the 620 might be, dunno). If not it won't cure or at least not properly. Ran into a similar problem doing one of our centerline trucks a few years back. We redid all the plumbing with 2" s/s pipe as they were going with water based paint and it leaked like a seive. Ended up we got hold of the proper sealant from Loctite as well as a primer to use on it, number escapes me at the moment unfortunately.....Mike
Reply:I went ahead and cranked out some dies to make a mini bender. I didn't take very long. I might move the lower dies out a little to see if I can get a smoother bend. Tomorrow when I can get some more pipe I'll test a few more configurations.Picture 1: The large die.Picture 2: Making the small lower dies.Picture 3: The setup in the arbor press.Picture 4: The results. I'm looking for 45 degrees.Picture 5: The inside view. Attached Images
Reply:Smooth hole and smooth tubing.
Reply:Originally Posted by mrmikeyIf you want to use the adhesive route I wonder if it would be any advantage if you knurled the pipe and drilled the hole in the aluminum undesize.....Mike
Reply:Thanks to everyone who made suggestions. The bender I built is working perfectly. I was a little concerned about the them being stainless but my tests this morning look great. I have it setup on the arbor press which makes it very fast to bend the nipples. I added a base to the bender and a bolt and nut assembly to create a stop. This produced bends that are the same every time.  Attached Images