A Budget Way to Build a Tube Bending Die 

Where did you get the STL and the Plasma file from?

Howd it go?

@@robertflexen9302 It exploded his whole shop!

Wow! I never thought that the plastic would be strong enough??? Depends on what you want to bend. JD's even says it can't bend seamless DOM tube. Lots of people use ERW or electrically welded tube, it has a seam inside and is MUCH more easy to bend because it is MUCH less strong. I need to bend both. So I only use steel or aluminum dies. I build dune buggies and race cars and would use both DOM and ERW. But in any high speed use such as racing or a roll cage that your life could depend on what do you want to do? ERW or DOM? On a kids dune buggy that goes 20 mph ERW is fine but I probably would still make the main roll cage hoop out of DOM then use ERW for the rest. If your building a small buggy that will use a 90 hp snowmobile motor and will go 100 mph then come apart and kill you when it rolls and flies end over end, you going to build that with ERW? Not me, I am going to use DOM tube. Then there is 4130 chrome molly tube. Super strong, super expensive and hard as hell to bend. Best race cars are built with it specially in the EU. So these plastic fantastic dies don't actually seem so whiz bang great after you think about it. At least not to me. Build cheap dies? I would find some 1/2 aluminum plate sandwich it together with steel outer plates then use a home made fly cutter to do the profile I wanted such as 1.5 or 1.75. But I am a machinist so I can do that. I also save up $$ and then buy good steel dies but find used ones. Decently good aluminum dies are easily available even used on ebay. I have used them to build a simple bender that did struggle but could bend DOM tube. While bending the DOM tube the aluminum die had no problems, my 8 ton jack did though. Should have used a 20 ton air/hydraulic jack. Build a good bender with strong dies. Then if you need to pay for it rent it out. Or charge by the bend. After I built my first bender and word got out, I had lots of new friends who needed to bend tube, everything from exhaust tube to DOM tube. I said bring the beer and your tube and lets do it. Thinking back I should have charge them $$ not beer but oh well. They all still owe me favors now. Racing is like that, more people you know the more you can get done for cheap.

More info on your mods please?

en argentina tienen harbor freight?

@@beno.- no se. Pero si buscas “Harbor Freight pipe bender” vas a tener una idea de cómo es y probablemente encuentres algo similar por ahí. No es una herramienta muy sofisticada y se puede hacer una usando un gato hidráulico.

A CNC Plasma cutter kid nice, but far from necessary. If you feel a CNC cut part is important, sub it out. This piece can be made entirely by hand, it may take a little more time.

​@@paulkotowski4006 Its all about efficiency and repeatability. If you are doing a 1 off sure but if you have to make 5 of something this saves you time. I run a router CNC, CO2 laser and 3d printers I can make parts to sell and tools for my shop at the same time.

Just a heads up, most public libraries have 3d printers available for public use

We built the tube bender, more information about it will be available in a future video.

In about a month or so they will be available.

@@jdsgarage701 Any luck getting these die plans on the product page for sale yet?

I’d be interested in purchasing the plans and print file as well. Have all the tools to do this just horrible at the computer design

It's a homemade bender.

We've got a bit more testing to do but eventually yes.

YES! 👍😎👍

It will be in the next video regarding the dies.

Currently it is not but it will be soon.

I thought DOM was a manufacturing technique that could be used with a variety of alloys

@@neffkI suppose it can, but when someone uses the word DOM in the USA in fabrication circles it refers to steel tubing. I have been a fabricator and welder since 1967, and have never heard the term describe anything else. Next time you are in a steel supply place, ask to see DOM and see what they show you.

The printed cores are not available. The files to make your own will be soon.

If you purchase the steel at a reliable steel supplier it is much cheaper. Around $6-$7/sqft for 1/4" both plates fit onto 1sqft of material. The die uses around 300g of PETg which goes for around $15/kg. You don't have to remove the follower, it makes it easier to remove the tube when you make large bends.

Not currently but they will be soon.

Overhand angles are too large to print it in a single piece.