Tube Bender's (1 Viewer)

[nat]

I had a long drawn out e-mail back to you but in the process of getting a few links for you it got deleted.

So here you go
I have the Pro-4 with JD Square dies
ProBender.Com Tel:763.315.5019

My dies are 1", 1.5" and 1.75 tube and 1" square tube
All purchased from Poly Performance on a 15% off sale, free shipping over a certain $$$ purchase.

I have two things I dislike about the Pro Bender
1. no degree wheel, I find myself bending short, then removing and fitting a piece then re-bending a degree or more.
The digital degree tool is s*** for tube, its a flat face that does not attach well or securely to round tube. The zero option has proved to be a pain in the ass.
It can be bought for alot less at Harbor Freight.
2. The pins to release the tube if its a long piece of work are tight and a pain to remove, If you have a large piece way up in the air like a cage loop and release it it can swing to the side and might hurt you or a truck, you have to plan for it:whoops:

I really like the ability to move the bender around the shop.
I like the simple air/hydro system, its a Harbor Freight ram, if it fails its 60$
I have a spare in my engine hoist if needed.
The dies have to bought from another vendor, they all cost the same price, I looked for a sale/shipping deal.

Get a better release knob than the OE ram release knob.

If I did it again I would of done Air Hydro horizontal bender with degree wheel and maybe on a cart. I dont like not being able to move stuff in my shop.
I had a fixed JD 3 manual bender, what a bitch with it in the middle of my old garage.

I do like Swag Offroads solution............JD2 JMR Protools tube bending fabrication 4x4
Troy builds bad ass stuff....

Is space the only reason? I am looking to get a bender soon too. I saw JD2 has the model 3 on sale for $295. Seems liek a good deal. I would probably just put threaded inserts in my concrete pad and remove the tool when I was done.

 

[Mace]

Is space the only reason? I am looking to get a bender soon too. I saw JD2 has the model 3 on sale for $295. Seems liek a good deal. I would probably just put threaded inserts in my concrete pad and remove the tool when I was done.

That's exactly what I do. It does get kind of annoying putting it in and out tho.
even more so when you drop enough "stuff in the bolt holes that can rust and stick..

But, it's cheap.


BTW, the bender is cheap, the dies are what kills you.

 

[nat]

I know the dies are expensive, bummer, but necessary.

I would accumulate them slowly anyway. The first I need is either 1.25" or 1.5" to make a rack for my M101A2.

 

[woody]

I've rolled my FJ40 over 50 times.

The WORST of all of those was an unexpected 1-3/4 barrel roll. The truck landed on the passenger side, facing the other direction, in 3' of water.

We both walked away.

1-3/4" .120 wall DOM - that cage is still installed today (sans a few replacement bars).

By the same note, I wear a seat belt. Even moving a car across a parking lot.

My life is worth the added cost of material that meets certain specifications. I've had enough second chances to not push my luck.

Heck, the cage I'm building for my RZR will be 1-3/4" .095 DOM.

DOM will handle multiple impacts, and multiple incidents. The stock cage FJ40 cage will likely save you the first roll. It won't survive 50.

 

[OyajiJon]

Mace, thanks for replying to my question. Confused, as usual, I read the whole conversation as being wishy washy.

For the record, I've paid a very reputable local builder to fabricate/install my "armor" as my welding ability/material knowlege is nil (just starting), and I won't trust my family's safety to it. Furthermore, I refuse to skimp when it comes to safety items.

I appreciate this thread.

 

[calstyl2]

Is space the only reason? I am looking to get a bender soon too. I saw JD2 has the model 3 on sale for $295. Seems liek a good deal. I would probably just put threaded inserts in my concrete pad and remove the tool when I was done.

You have the tools and skills at work to make a nice hydro conversion, Id say go for it, look for a free shipping day or sale from Poly Performance.
My floor anchors failed doing a bend in some thick 1.5 DOM, that was ugly and it fell once before I had it bolted in and damn near killed my puppy.

 

[crushers]

with out the proper gear then yep, that is what i am saying ...
of course 30 years of mountain wheeling doesn't really count for much on this forum.

 

[Mace]

You have the tools and skills at work to make a nice hydro conversion, Id say go for it, look for a free shipping day or sale from Poly Performance.
My floor anchors failed doing a bend in some thick 1.5 DOM, that was ugly and it fell once before I had it bolted in and damn near killed my puppy.

I did some 2" .250 wall chromo in a JD2 that was bolted down. It was REALLY hard to do but it did it. And no puppies were killed in the process

I probably killed a kitten later that night tho..

Air over hydro is slow but effective and pretty cheap.
Couple of interesting designs.

pics of my air/hydro jd2 bender - Pirate4x4.Com Bulletin Board
http://www.4x4blog.com/jd2-model-3-air-over-hydro-tube-bender-videos/

 

[Turtle]

Conspiracy rant

Oh.... here's a can of worms.
The planet is overf@#king populated.
Mace, you're right!
Crushers, you're right!

If/when I have kids, they will never be able to tell a story that starts with, "I was standing on the bench seat beside my Mom/Dad, when XYZ happened.

Thats because someone wanted to make a buck, or to stop paying out bucks, and had the laws put in place, that force kids to be in the back seat, in a mini Nascar seat.

It wasn't to save the kids.

It was Money!

If it was because someone lost a loved one, there was someone else supporting them from behind... hoping to make money.

Don't get me wrong,

It sucks when people die!
It sucks when people get hurt!
It sucks when kids die!
It sucks when kids get hurt!

I wouldn't wish it on my grade 8 bully, or his family. And I hate him!

But it needs to happen!

I don't want anyone to die or get hurt, or hurt anyone else.

It just happens!

And no amount of critisizing, debating, good or bad intentions, good or bad beliefs, or praying to the right or the wrong god(s), is going to change that!

Your milage will always vary!
Sometimes seatbelts will kill you!
Sometimes helmets will kill you!
Sometimes looking out for someone elses safety, will kill you!

And sometimes you'll be in a rollover in a FJ40, as a passenger, and the owner might not have had time to reinstall the seatbelt on that side. But as it goes over, you simply call down the spirit of, "The Amazing Spider-Man" (TM). And climb out the side and end up standing on the Passenger side of the truck, which is now pointing to the sky, and yelling down to the driver to see if they're OK. (They were, So was I... sorry)

OR

The exact opposite of all those things.

You pays your money, you takes your chances.
or, you cant afford a lottery ticket, but you win the 10 mil anyway.

Sorry for the hijack, I dislike pointless arguing. I think I'm going with a JD2.

Cheers!

Now watch, someone won't read this whole message, and take one simple point and blow it way out of proportion...

 

[crushers]

Chris,
nice to hear from you again, i hope life is treating you well. it has been years buddy.

great post. let me know how you like the JD2 when you get it.

cheers

 

[Trollhole]

 

[crushers]

i like your mount stabilizer ...

 

[Lake Rat]

2" .120 wall DOM shouldn't be a problem bending with a JD2 should it?

 

[Mace]

2" .120 wall DOM shouldn't be a problem bending with a JD2 should it?

Nope, works great..

 

[77TPIFJ]

what a great topic ...

 

[DWNUNDR]

takacs cycles bender...

 

[Mace]

Unfortunate thing about that style is that it won't bend much past 90*

 

[Chop Shop]

I have a Hossfeld universal bender, a JD2 with a hydro conversion built by me, and a Ben Pearson muffler machine also.

I stated building cages and bumpers 10 years ago with a HF kinker/bender.

I laugh when I read how many comments on how bad it sucks. Shows folks skills very quickly or their need to jump on the wagon.
While not my first choice as I have much better tools to work with now and have for years, a good ol HF bender will do the job just fine if you can use tools and are somewhat handy. If you cant use it then you not magikly gonna bend awesome tube just cuz you bought the $1000 bender instead.

Hey tool guy, the pic you posted with the "dimples" on the corners of the bends on that tacoma could have easily been avoided. Ya take a 3 inch long chunk of some ol scrap angle iron and weld it to the rollers to make a V shaped slid instead of a dimpling roller that doesnt roll.

Theres 6 dies with a HF bender, theres also 6 holes for the rollers to fit in. Notice a pattern here? Smallest die gets used with the rollers in the lowest spot while the largest die will need the rollers in the top position and ETC.

Sand is dumb and a waste of time. The bend will just push the sand elseware in the pipe.

To keep PIPE from splitting or kinking you need to turn the seam to the side.

When ya bend something the inside gets pushed/shrunk and the outside gets pulled/stretched.
Pipe kinks when it gets pused/pulled to much and the seam is the weakest part so if the seam is not inside or outside then it will not deform as much. If the seam is on the outside of the bend it will pull/stretch and rip the pipe midbend. If the seam is on the inside it will kink/buckle more easily.

Ya can also cut the sides of the bender as close to the roller holes and get it to bend a 90 out of a 90 turned 90 from each other without the machine getting in the way. My jd wont do that.

But enough of my babbling about benders. A coulple .02 on steel/metal/tube/pipe etc

I am presently done redoing my cage on my wheeler with my JD2 and 1.5 inch .120 wall DOM.

The HREW cage didnt even make it a year before getting so deformed and ghetto to the point its not safe.

Anyone who doesnt think there is a substantial difference between PIPE (cheap s***) and REW and DOM is sadly mistaken.

If anyone thinks the differnce is not much I can post some test pics of pipe vs rew vs dom is the compactor and the results are VERY CLEAR.

Pipe is ok for sliders and such but I prefer DOM around me. Pipe is also commonly thicker and heavier.

HREW is OK for cages on race cars and things that generally are junk after a hit. They absorb a bit of energy and disperse it throughout the chassis. Then the chassis is discarded and a new one built.

I didnt like my tubing moving everytime I rolled/flopped.

I have seen DOM take years of abuse without roll/flop damage and little dents popping up all over rub areas.

 

[Chop Shop]

There is a reason why people call it the "tube kinker"

Do you want your bumper to look like this?

Ill see your bad taco HF bender built bumper and raise you one well built HF bender taco bumper. Still in?

I built this bumper out of a mix of different sized pipe about 7 or 8 years ago. Shock hoops too. Notice any kinks or dimples? Thats normal ol schedule 40 cheap pooper.

 

[Chop Shop]

Last edited by Poser; 01-14-11 at 06:35 PM. Reason: Removed pic; Nice plate Dbag...

Better?