Help with 3/16 steel

[MAX climber]

how are you guys bending it???...thanks for any info

[ultimate_monkey]

solid stock or brake line??

either way i bend both with my hands, unless i want a really tight bend with the 3/16 solid, then i put it in a vice to bend it..

pretty "ghetto" in alot of guys eyes but its how i grew up "budget" fabbing and with a little effort youd never know the differance bettween mine or the guy who used a fancy pants tool to do it

[gunnar]

Heavy clamps, the edge of a 500 lb. steel table, and a big ass hammer! a torch would help, make it red, it bends easy. If you have a solidly mounted vise, and some vice grips, you can do it.

[MAX climber]

solid...and ya im on budget also, just under the age limit for getting a job so lets keep it cheap. Ive heard vice before, Do you have to heat it with a torch first??

[MAX climber]

ok well thanks guys will try it out

[ultimate_monkey]

heat is over kill for 3/16 solid not needed. put it in a vice and bend, if you want a tighter bend take a rubber dead blow hammer to it, normal hammer will work too but will mark up the surface , some times to a point u cant sand it out. i can get a band thats about 3/8 - 1/2" radius just useing my hands

[8x8]

plate is easy to bend; find a solid edge, get a rubber mallet, and as long as the bend radius is to your liking, keep it. look out your door and you'll see a great concrete curb or form for your new bend. curb, wood pile, scrap iron, etc

[SMFtwstdHICK]

Or, if you got a little cash, you could get a hand tube bender

http://www.amazon.com/dp/B001HG5YFW?...0&linkCode=asn

I have one similiar to this. I believe I picked mine up for about the same price. Can't remember. From Lowes or Home Depot. Once again. LOL, can't remember.

[Big Mike]

Even a cheap chinese tubing bender picked up at Harbor Frieght or the bargain bin at Advance Auto will give you infinitely better results than a vise and hammer or your hands, and it will cost you like 10 bucks max...

[scoutdawg]

i third the hand tubing bender it works easy and they are super cheap

[soundcolor]

Well, if you dont have the cash for the nifty tools, heres how you do it.

Tools you'll need.
1. protractor. The cheap platic see thru ones you use in school will be fine.
2. Angle finder. You can pick these up from ace hardware (or any home improvement/hardware store) for around 5 bucks. If you dont know what one is, just go in and ask, they'll show you right to one.
3. Vice grips
4. Channel locks
5. Rubber mallet
6. bench vice (any size will work.
7. hand held propane torch (the kind plumbers use)

For making radiuses and lessor angles (under around 60-70 degrees)
Use angle finder/protractor to get angle, then mark steel.
Use vice grips, and/or vice and rubber mallet/hands to bend to desired angle
For tighter bends, use vice grips to lock steel onto something strong, and sturdy (heavy table, or anything else you can find) and apply hammer... Hit until it reaches desired angle. You can also put the metal into the vice and accomplish the same thing easier. To make it even easier and to get even better bends, heat up the metal with the torch until it is glowing, and then bend. Cool off immediatly after bend with alot of water.

For tubing or rod/allthread
Get a hand bender if your budget allows, but here is a cheaper way

Same tools as above,
What you'll need extra are 2 bolts of each of the folloing sizes 1/8, 1/4, 3/8, 1/2, 3/4, 1", 1 1/2" all of them need to be at least 2.5 to 3" long.
Now what you are going to want to do is. Insert the bolts into the vice about 1" apart inside to inside. Then insert you pipe/rod in between the two bolts, and start bending. The first bolt will hold the pipe/rod in place while the other will allow you to make nice smooth bend around it Use the smaller bolts to make tighter radius bends, and the larger bolts to make longer radius bends. Be sure to use your protractor to make sure you got the angle right.
You can also use the torch here to heat up the tubing/rod, it makes it bend a little easier.

Good luck

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