[Yeti]

I want to make my own front rear bumpers and sliders, the sliders i'd rather have square tube but for the bumpers I want to know what the best ways to bend tube are. I have a conduit,smaller pipe bender thats just a round bender part with a bar sticking off it, will this do it good enough or are there alot better ways? Im sure there are but what are the cheaper of the better ways?

Can I get bends done by someone else and then I cut and weld it all together?

 

[Ted]

I want to make my own front rear bumpers and sliders, the sliders i'd rather have square tube but for the bumpers I want to know what the best ways to bend tube are. I have a conduit,smaller pipe bender thats just a round bender part with a bar sticking off it, will this do it good enough or are there alot better ways? Im sure there are but what are the cheaper of the better ways?

Can I get bends done by someone else and then I cut and weld it all together?

Get a JD-2 tube bender.

http://www.medfordtools.com/mb3.html

 

[supahonkey]

Hey man. No, the conduit bender isn't strong enough. My shop has the capabilities to bend steel to your specs. If you wish to do it on your own, you need to pick up a bender such as this one: http://www.medfordtools.com/mb3.html This is a tube bender by JD2 called the Model 3. This cost around $300.00, and that isn't including dies. Expect to spend around $120 bucks per die. By the time you pay someone to bend all of your tube (considering the time spent to draw out the design, driving to the steel bending place, making sure your designs are correct) you might as well just buy the bender. This is the best bender for the price. Also, check out pirate4x4.com. They just posted a write up on their main page about the secrets of pipe bending. Hope this helps you out. Take care.

Brenton Rettig
Indy FabWorks
2638 S County Rd 800 E
Plainfield, IN 46168
317.850.6519

 

[Yeti]

Thanks for that link, im reading it all right now good stuff... Yeah I wish I had some hidden cash under my mattress or something.

 

[rojodiablo]

There are LOTS of tricks to bending tubing for your truck. A few things to think about is how strong, and how straight?? So, you might want to stick to .095 or more for 1" dia. and, .120 for 1.25" and 1.5" tube. If you want to bend 2" tubing, make a template of your outside shape, if possible, and take it to a shop who will bend it for you. You CAN heat and bend tube... it has been done for about 100 years. And any chopper shop will make a fool of you if you say they can't do it. Your major bends can be bought online, or from a shop near you, I am sure. Use I.D. sleeves for your connections if you do it this way, as the joint becomes more durable than just butt welding, especially with mig welding. Don't be afraid to heat steel, it is how it got formed in the first place. The problem is with spot heat and cooling. Try to resist wetting down welds and the local areas; it can make them brittle. Especially with Chromoly... preheat to about 300f and then let the weld cool off on its' own. It takes more time, but the tube is very strong, and has a great spring quality to it. For bending tube, especially thin wall tube, I have had good success using sand... PM me, and I'll explain the process to you. Good luck!!