MetalworkingFun Forum

What some people don't realize going into a project like this is how much hoses and fittings are going to cost them. I am sure Greg knows all about that but a lot of guys build a machine and then have to hose and wire it and find out they will have nearly as much in that as in the rest of the build. All those fittings for hydraulic add up fast. 4,5,6,8 dollars here and there and it is not long before you have several hundred dollars in only fittings not counting hoses.

Great job on the processor Greg. I am building another one very soon. I have most all the bits and pieces for it including a V6 Deutz 144hp diesel motor. Now I just need to find the time.

Isn't it funny how most things come down to money and time...

Have the log stop pretty much wrapped up.
Needed a valve to dump the fluid feeding the motor on the log advance. Found a couple of sections from a stackable valve but no manifolds. The manifold side of the valve will only see tank pressure so I made them out of aluminum.



When the log hits the stop arm the shaft slides along and opens the dump valve.



As the saw comes down a cam lifts the stop arm out of the way.




The brake that fixes the arm to the shaft can be moved along it to set the length of block you want to cut, up to 29 inches, the splitter opens 30.

(03-11-2016, 06:01 PM)f350ca Wrote: [ -> ]Going to pass on that one Al but planning to make a tubing bender for some 1/2 inch stainless tubing I have. Hope to make most of the lines with it and a short hose at the end.

I have made several benders in different radii for .5" tube.

The one I put the most time into designing the clamp is also the more precise of the bunch, and will put the beginning of the bend exactly where you want it.

I also made large radius dies for a different bender chassis, and that does't work as well because there is a long follower die and a short follower die -- I'm guessing the original designer thought the extra friction of the long follower would keep the tube stationary while bending. It doesn't, it really needs a clamp.

On my "someday" list, I want to build a manual, 20:1 geared, mandrel bender equipped with a digital readout.

(03-17-2016, 03:30 PM)Roadracer_Al Wrote: [ -> ]

(03-11-2016, 06:01 PM)f350ca Wrote: [ -> ]Going to pass on that one Al but planning to make a tubing bender for some 1/2 inch stainless tubing I have. Hope to make most of the lines with it and a short hose at the end.

I have made several benders in different radii for .5" tube.

The one I put the most time into designing the clamp is also the more precise of the bunch, and will put the beginning of the bend exactly where you want it.  

I also made large radius dies for a different bender chassis, and that does't work as well because there is a long follower die and a short follower die -- I'm guessing the original designer thought the extra friction of the long follower would keep the tube stationary while bending.  It doesn't, it really needs a clamp.

On my "someday" list, I want to build a manual, 20:1 geared, mandrel bender equipped with a digital readout.

Al
Opportune time to post that, I was looking on the net at designs last night. Some just have a hook to hold the fixed end. Any chance of posting some photos of your design. I was going to start on it today but got side tracked making the hydraulic tank.

Thanks

Not only do I have photos, I have plans.  I'm astounded that I am this organized, I probably built this thing 15 years ago.  :)

There are some things I'd change:

One is the thickness of the vice tab - I bent some .5" solid bar, and it bent the 1/4" tab.  I'd make it 1/2".  It would be a lot tidier bolted onto the bender body.

If you're planning on bending solid bar, the pivot pins need to go up to 5/8".

The other change would be to make the clamping "ear" either bolt or weld onto a lathe-turned inner die -- this particular design required a lot of time cranking a rotab while cutting with a 1/2" ball end mill.  At the time I designed it, I didn't have a lathe which would swing 6", so I used the mill.

I had planned to weld some vise grips to the clamp bar, but never got around to it.

The handle is just a 3/4" pin that slips into the handle carriage welded to 3' of black iron pipe. I discovered that the pipe wasn't stiff enough, so I added a bridge much like what you'd see on the apron of a large brake.







http://www.levelfive.com/BENDER/BenderPlans.zip

With the tools & skills I have now, I would make the pins out of drill rod and ream the holes because as it was built, there is enough play in the drilled holes & hot-rolled pins to allow the roller to get a bit out of track with the inner die, marring the tubing. You have to be careful when you begin the bend that everything is correctly lined up and that you pull on-axis with the bender or it will rub off some wickedly sharp little splinters from the tube. Better pins and better fit would probably resolve this. In fact, there might be a little upgrade in this bender's near future.

Hope that's useful to you.

WOW Thanks Al,
Was hoping for photo's sure didn't expect to get plans.
You have a hole drilled in the body for a handle, when your bending tube do you think the two handles would work for 5/8 tube, some of my runs will be long so might be hard to get to the vice?
The groove you have in the body for the tube is half the tube dia deep, I was thinking of going a little deeper with straight sides to support the tube. The dies for my pipe bender do that. Do you think its a good idea or will it be hard to get the tube out after its bent, and is it necessary.
Like the roller follower, rather than a shoe, Has to be a LOT easier to pull around.
Keeping the follower aligned hadn't crossed my mind. What if I made the centre pin big enough to bolt the arms to. Say 3 inch dia. That would allow me to hold the blank on the outside while I bore that hole, then grab the blank in that hole while I cut the outside profile. Was thinking of having to make a mandrel to hole it for the outside cut.
Once again THANKS.
Have someone else project I need to do today, hope to get at this tomorrow.

(03-18-2016, 10:07 AM)f350ca Wrote: [ -> ]WOW Thanks Al,
Was hoping for photo's sure didn't expect to get plans.

My pleasure. Glad you can make use of them.

(03-18-2016, 10:07 AM)f350ca Wrote: [ -> ]You have a hole drilled in the body for a handle, when your bending tube do you think the two handles would work for 5/8 tube, some of  my runs will be long so might be hard to get to the vice?

Not sure I'm following this sentence. Do you mean make the clamping tab "L" shaped so the bender can be positioned differently for long runs? Yes, that would be cool.

Or, do you mean making this a portable field bender instead of a vise-mounted deal? More like one of these:



IMHO, it would be pretty hard to use solo. Perhaps with a helper. Don't forget that the handle swings in direct relationship to the bend being made - the handles may be 180* opposed and 6' apart. If you can reach both handles and put enough "Oooomph" on it to produce a bend under those conditions, I'd hate to run into you in a dark alley.

(03-18-2016, 10:07 AM)f350ca Wrote: [ -> ]The groove you have in the body for the tube is half the tube dia deep, I was thinking of going a little deeper with straight sides to support the tube. The dies for my pipe bender do that. Do you think its a good idea or will it be hard to get the tube out after its bent, and is it necessary.

While it may look like you can bend more than 180* on this bender, and yes, you can... but you can't get the tube out if you do. You have to have more than 180 to over-bend and account for spring back, but it doesn't need as much as I have given it.

The deep walls may also help keep the tube more round during bending. The tube will absolutely expand around the "neutral axis" as you bend it. I'm not sure if it will stick or not. Here's my thinking - it's easy enough to make the inner die have deep walls, and it's easy enough to trim the walls off if they cause a problem. You'd only have to remake the follower roller.

(03-18-2016, 10:07 AM)f350ca Wrote: [ -> ]Like the roller follower, rather than a shoe, Has to be a LOT easier to pull around.

Yes, the idea was to both ease the effort, and to make it a "pull" bender which holds the shape of the tube better.

(03-18-2016, 10:07 AM)f350ca Wrote: [ -> ]Keeping the follower aligned hadn't crossed my mind. What if I made the centre pin big enough to bolt the arms to. Say 3 inch dia. That would allow me to hold the blank on the outside while I bore that hole, then grab the blank in that hole while I cut the outside profile. Was thinking of having to make a mandrel to hole it for the outside cut.
Once again THANKS.
Have someone else project I need to do today, hope to get at this tomorrow.

YES! I like that idea. This is a 3" radius bender, so maybe a 2" center pin would be the right size, but absolutely, maintaining the arms in parallel would greatly improve the quality of the bend. That would make another really excellent and very "do-able" modification to the bender.

Hope this helps.

The portable concept was what I was wondering about Al, but after I found the 8 inch dia 1 1/4 thick torch cut out I was thinking of using I gave up on that thought. The weight of the blank would bend the tube.
The deeper grove was for tube support, will maybe slope the sides at one or two degrees to help it come out. As you say its easy to machine if off if the tube seams to stick.
Will be giving it a go today. Was thinking I'd need a 5/8 ball nosed milling cutter to machine the straight section and clamp when it dawned on me, I'll have the form cutter ground for the lathe, it will work in the shaper.
Thanks again.

Got a start at the tubing bender.
Found a 5/8 carbide button insert in some tooling I got from my uncle. Its a round cylinder, no clearance angles, maybe for a milling head?  Made a holder for it, roughed away as much material as I could with a parting tool and had at it. As you can see copulus quantities of cutting oil got the job done. See why machines always look a mess.


Sawed and milled away some extra bits and tig welded in the clamp area.