Tubing Bender build....

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I am in the process of building a few formula car frames and I decided I needed a tubing bender. I looked around at buying a manual bender like the JD2 or the Pro Tools which are great if you have a garage/workshop that you can mount them in the floor. Which I have neither so I needed one that was portable. I read on here of a site that sold plans for a air/hydraulic bender that was portable.http://www.gottrikes.com/Tube_Bender.htmI bought the plans and have started to look for all the materials. It is all 2"sq. tubing and 5/8" plate. I have most of the materials in my steel rack out back.....Wait thats outside and it's 6 degrees out...... oh well I'm off to freeze.I will post the progress as I can.G.
Reply:I have the same plans.... just saving up for a better welder.  I am curious to see how this thread goes.  Looking forward to the updates.
Reply:I'm started on building this bender too. Mine's fabbed with 1/4x2x4 rectangular because the price was right...free. I just haven't had time to get things welded together. Got most of the machining done and the plans are very well done.If you get a line ondies that will work and aren't made out of gold let us know. I haven't bought the ram or dies yet. The ram is cheap but the dies are pricey. Maybe there's somebody out there with the equipment to fab dies at a little lower price?Anyways, keep us updated how the build goes for you.AlA man is judged by what's between his legs...always ride a good horseMiller DialArc HFLincoln Classic 300DThermal Arc 181iPowermax 45Scotchman Ironworker(2) BridgeportsOkomota Surface GrinderAutoCAD 2010
Reply:You can put hydraulics on the jd2 and protools bender, also.  Then, they won't need to fixed.  You might want look around for used benders with dies you desire.  It might be cost effective to purchase a used bender with the dies you need rather that purchasing new dies.  You can still make your bender.
Reply:People seem to be happy with the GotTrikes bender.  If you don't have the facilities to drill or mill the holes and machine the fittings a kit might make sense.  I got a JD2 because I needed to work on the car, not on the tools.    If you are looking used for name brand benders they are out there but hold the price pretty well.
Reply:It is a great bender I'm using mine Sat.Dave ReberWadsworth Ohio
Reply:save the heart, head and back ache the JD2 is really a great deal. For the price you pay you cant get a better deal.I keep my bender on my welding table[IMG][/IMG] [IMG][/IMG][IMG][/IMG]Last edited by riceburner; 01-29-2010 at 06:51 PM.
Reply:Originally Posted by riceburnersave the heart, head and back ache the JD2 is really a great deal. For the price you pay you cant get a better deal.
Reply:If you manually pull with the JD2 you WILL need to anchor it into the ground.  If you don't count your time and have all the tools and skills it's not too difficult to make a bender.  A new JD2 Model 3 with a die is between $450 and 550 depending on the die.  No dies are included. The bender is $295 (and I called everywhere I saw that sold them to find a cheaper price, no luck) and it takes between a week or two for them to make it unless you find someone with some in stock, which I understand is rare.
Reply:Originally Posted by riceburnersave the heart, head and back ache the JD2 is really a great deal. For the price you pay you cant get a better deal.I keep my bender on my welding table[IMG][/IMG] [IMG][/IMG][IMG][/IMG]
Reply:Its a positioner that I turn with my knee.[IMG][/IMG]Last edited by riceburner; 01-30-2010 at 04:38 PM.
Reply:Good luck finding a used JD2 or pro tools bender.  I have been looking for a few months with no luck.  I have joined about 3 other off road forums hoping to locate a used bender but have had no luck.  Found a JD2 on craigslist for $200 with a die, but it sold in 10 minutes.  It was in Arizona i believe and who knows if the guy would have even been willing to shipped it to me.Best price i was able to find after weeks of searching is tubetek.net.  Bender plus one die of your choice for $355 shipped.  Can't beat that price anywhere.  I have no used his bender, but have read reviews from other guys who say it works great.  If anyone ends up purchasing one from TubTek, mention my name.  i am trying to get Cliff the owner to give me a deal if i recommend some people.
Reply:Ok it was 6 degrees when I went out to get my steel.
Reply:those tubes look more like 90's from here
Reply:I like your table. I'm starting to make my own this week and was wondering if you could take some more pictures of your wheel set up? Thanks Looking for some other Ideas other that just for casters. I have a pair of heavy duty air dolly wheels that I might use.]Lincoln PT 225 Tig
Reply:Originally Posted by adamsmith007Good luck finding a used JD2 or pro tools bender.  I have been looking for a few months with no luck.  I have joined about 3 other off road forums hoping to locate a used bender but have had no luck.  Found a JD2 on craigslist for $200 with a die, but it sold in 10 minutes.  It was in Arizona i believe and who knows if the guy would have even been willing to shipped it to me.Best price i was able to find after weeks of searching is tubetek.net.  Bender plus one die of your choice for $355 shipped.  Can't beat that price anywhere.  I have no used his bender, but have read reviews from other guys who say it works great.  If anyone ends up purchasing one from TubTek, mention my name.  i am trying to get Cliff the owner to give me a deal if i recommend some people.
Reply:Originally Posted by dstevensIt's not a JD2.  The variety of dies is pretty light as well.   The 355 price is for tubing up to 1.5" / 4.5 CLR die.There are some guys in Fullerton, CA that make a vertical style bender.  The CLR on the dies are pretty big and due to the design it can't do 180* bends (though I would think most people don't bend that anyway, I don't)  You can find them on eBay for about 300 and if you chose the make offer the guy will throw in the shipping.On edit, apparently my math skills aren't too good tonight, I would have saved about $260 with the TubeTek (not the 60 I originally posted)...DOH!!!!    He seems like a pretty savvy guy, has a commercial scale fab shop.  Thread at Pirate from a couple of years ago...  http://www.pirate4x4.com/forum/showt...+Bender&page=1  If you are in the market it's worth a look.
Reply:Ok its been a while but been working 12hr days at the real job. Just finally got to my long weekend and started on the bender I have all but one 20" piece cut yesterday I had a case of frozen nose and the wind was picking up so I figured I'd wait till today to cut the last piece of tubing.G.
Reply:Hi AllGot tikes is a fantastic bender I built 2 and if you got to the site mine is the first picture.The second one has the hydraulic/air ram from HF.  It is portable and very easy to use.  One plus is its horizontal and you can use the normal angle indicators when bending tubing.  I also added a clamp to use for bending past 90 degree and a roller instead of the slider guide.Frank had upgraded with some simple changes to the original design.have funtom Attached Images
Reply:Ok guys I have a question for all of you that have much more experience than I have.My Hobart 210 is out of order. The only other welder I have is a lincoln SP-100 with .030 flux core wire.I want to get my bender done but don't know if I should use the Lincoln. I plan on doing bevel welds on the tubing and the plate. Do you think I should wait till my 210 is fixed?
Reply:Originally Posted by gbmetcalfOk guys I have a question for all of you that have much more experience than I have.My Hobart 210 is out of order. The only other welder I have is a lincoln SP-100 with .030 flux core wire.I want to get my bender done but don't know if I should use the Lincoln. I plan on doing bevel welds on the tubing and the plate. Do you think I should wait till my 210 is fixed?
Reply:Thanks Rhyno!I plan on using a 30 degree bevel with a .030 gap and am sandblasting the tubing to clean it up.I also plan on doing a pre/post-weld heating of both parts being welded. I'll get a good root weld then run a couple of cover passes.
Reply:Originally Posted by gbmetcalfThanks Rhyno!I plan on using a 30 degree bevel with a .030 gap and am sandblasting the tubing to clean it up.I also plan on doing a pre/post-weld heating of both parts being welded. I'll get a good root weld then run a couple of cover passes.
Reply:Doing some beveling of my tubing getting it ready to weld.G.
Reply:I did some test welds with the little welder today. I'm not getting enough heat and penetration kowI did some test welds with the little welder today. I'm not getting enough heat and penetration with the little welder, so I will wait till my 210 is fixed.G.
Reply:Originally Posted by gbmetcalfI did some test welds with the little welder today. I'm not getting enough heat and penetration kow
Reply:Originally Posted by gbmetcalfI did some test welds with the little welder today. I'm not getting enough heat and penetration with the little welder, so I will wait till my 210 is fixed.G.
Reply:Got all the tubing beveled, got the plate cut, found out my 210 is waiting for back orderedParts. So Ipurchased a hobart 187
Reply:Got the Hobart 187 up and running. I really enjoy having a welder that will do what I want it to do. I started a cart for both the Hobart and the little Lincoln for the simple reason I dont like lugging them around. I did do some more work on the bender. Wanted to get all the drilled holes done. It is a labor intensive part of the process.I have a very small mill and the 7/8" drill is all it can handle. Had to step up to that diameter. Center drill, 1/4, 1/2, 3/4, then the 7/8.The beginning of the cart: Man I hate working outside in the snow...All the bender tubing all cleaned up: Got to thank my son for that, Thanks Matt!Bender uprights drilled:G.Last edited by gbmetcalf; 03-06-2010 at 09:06 AM.
Reply:IMG]http://i556.photobucket.com/albums/ss5/texastrendz/IMG_52261.jpg[/IMG]just finished mine, just need to spray it.
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Reply:Got another installment of the Bender build....We had a few real nice days up here so I was able to get outside and do some welding.Useing a  1" hitch pin from Tractor Supply, I ordered a couple 7/8" long hitch pins for the tubing part of the die.I have the swing arms in the drill press as I type. and the ram is on order.G.
Reply:What kind of formula cars are you planning on building?
Reply:I have one vintage formula vee, one current formula vee and a formula first in the works.the vintage design:the formula First/Vee designThe Formula First/Vee main frame railsG.
Reply:Cool!I run a FV too.  Your chassis looks really stout.  I don't think you need 2 fuel cells.  My 4 gallon under the seat provides an hour of run time.  Be sure to plan where you are putting fire suppression and the battery too.  What kind of rear suspension are you running?  Where is the steering box going?Jim
Reply:I plan on using a 4 gal wedge cell under my seat also.I want to use a BRD rear suspension and I have yet to figure out the steering box.G.
Reply:Drilled the swing arms yesterday.Had to go to the drill press... My little Mill stripped a gear.G.
Reply:OK I did something stupid the other day while working on my bender.....I had re-positioned the bender so I could run a bead on the underside of the flags on the uprights and I had taken the ground lead off the bender to move it. I forgot to re-attach it, but the scary thing was I was still able to run a bead down the seam with the ground lead four feet away from my work material!Ever have this happen to you?It made me think of what could have happened!G.
Reply:I certainly never experienced being able to weld with the ground lead 4ft from the work.   Something for sure was allowing the circuit to close.  My friend has a damp concrete floor during high humidity or excessive rain that we watch close. Will be anxious to see the other comments.GeezerPower Mig 255C185 TIGBlue 175 MIGRanger 8 Kohler 20HP1974 5K Lincoln/Wisconsin Powered (Cherry)Victor/Harris O/AK 487 Spool Gun
Reply:We sandblasted and painted oilfield frac and concrete trucks a lot.  We painted electrostatically.  I always thought that the tires were an insulator until I started painting electrostatically.   Also the concrete floors.  The earth cable didn't need to be connected to the metal we were painting if it was on the concrete.  The paint would go directly to the metal with only the tires touching the floor and no "ground" cable attached to the rig.  We only ever had to worry about overspray on the floors. Never on the inside of the building.  I am/was always amazed how we could spray one side of a pipe and the other side was also painted. magic!  Of course I learned real quick to make sure I was not closer to the end of the spray gun than my target.  You could see the paint make a U-turn and come straight at you.  It always went directly to my hair.  I had some strange color hair some days.  Omaha orange and Haliburton red mostly.
Reply:I added a little meat to the flags on the bender. the plans call for 5/8" plate but all I had was 1/2" and after much thought and wanting to be true to "my normal" design thought process... I added another thickness of 1/2" plate to the flags.The rusty 4" piece of 2X2 between the uprights is just a spacer.I have to weld up the end of the swing arm, and the ram mountings. I have some casters to weld on to the legs and then it is ready for paint. I'm thinking maybe Viper yellow and Napa blue, kinda like.........G.
Reply:Finished up the swing arm today.Check out my welds let me know what you think.....Ran the beads with my Hobart 187, settings 7 - 50, wire fluxcore 30....G.
Reply:IIRC, what makes rubber black... is CARBON...and we all know what carbon brushes are used for.What kind of shape it the work/ground lead in??? looks like it was touching the metal in the pic... might have arced through it???Last edited by pandinus; 04-03-2010 at 01:50 AM.
Reply:Originally Posted by pandinusIIRC, what makes rubber black... is CARBON...and we all know what carbon brushes are used for.What kind of shape it the work/ground lead in??? looks like it was touching the metal in the pic... might have arced through it???
Reply:Might have been half asleep when I posted that one...lots of rubber products are somewhat conductive because of the Carbon Black used to color them...Although looking at the post now I immediately realized that the "insulator" on the wire most likely is using non conductive coloring... OOPS  lol... Still there is a small chance there was a nick in the wire jacket and it was conducting where it touched the metal... just trying to save face here lol Attached Images
Reply:I looked over the wire and there was no nicks in the coating, but it is a very thin layer as opposed to some I have seen.G. Originally Posted by pandinusMight have been half asleep when I posted that one...lots of rubber products are somewhat conductive because of the Carbon Black used to color them...Although looking at the post now I immediately realized that the "insulator" on the wire most likely is using non conductive coloring... OOPS  lol... Still there is a small chance there was a nick in the wire jacket and it was conducting where it touched the metal... just trying to save face here lol
Reply:Originally Posted by gbmetcalfI did some test welds with the little welder today. I'm not getting enough heat and penetration with the little welder, so I will wait till my 210 is fixed.G.
Reply:I took a day to work on my welder cart, seeing I'm waiting on my ram for the bender! Harbor Freight decided not to e-mail or call me that my ram was on back order they sent a postcard 3rd class mail.....which I never recieved! Now that I have waited 10 days with nothing from them untill I asked today. I have to re-order and wait 10 - 14 More days! Is there any other place out there to get a 8 TON air / hydraulic long ram jack for my bender?Ok I'm done pissin n moanin....... here are some pics of my cart.Last edited by gbmetcalf; 04-05-2010 at 05:48 PM.
Reply:try http://www.northerntool.com/shop/too...5561_200305561