Cadflat Tube Bender Project.

[Oddbod]

Here is the YouTube link that inspired me to make a radius cutter.
The language is Greek as far as I can tell, but it is really self explanatory I think.

Please feel free to tell me what you think.

Russ.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VJPEqSGGTmk

[Oddbod]

I am not sure how successful this will be, but without this or similar, I will not be able to machine the concave radius curve that is required to make my tube form.

It is just made from scrap and consists of a piece of 10mm thick 90mm wide flat bar bolted/clamped to my lathe bed, which I am hoping will be capable of supporting another piece of flat bar as a bridge between it and my tool post carriage.

The bridge will provide the support platform to carry my radius cutter gizmo once finished.
The bridge has an alignment guide against the large flatbar and seems to be happy to slide in and out as required.
It appears user friendly in training, but under fire I am not sure yet how it will react!!!

[Oddbod]

Sorry, I've been off the radar for sometime as I hurt my shoulder which has limited my progress.
Anyway, I have managed to make a under table roller bearing guide.
My version really only adds the side bearings and I have stuck with the original configuration of the back of blade bearing at 90 degrees to the blade.
Lack of space was the problem for the back bearing modification.
However if somebody set their mind to it, I am sure it would be possible, just a lot more work involved...

[Oddbod]

Done with my bandsaw now.
Adapted an old saw table guide I found in a scrap bin which will work for my needs.
Then added a cable hook as I now have an extra long power lead on my bandsaw so it can easily reach the dedicated power outlet which ensures the blkade runs in the correct rotation since it is a 3 phase motored saw.
So back to the main game real soon...

[Oddbod]

I'm not making much head way lately.
Been way too hot in my shop.
Most days over 40 degrees C forecast, but way hotter than that in my shop...

[Oddbod]

Never made it back to the main game of my tube bender, as I got distracted with another side project that had been on my mind for quite a while, but components were not available from my usual sources.

Well, that changed the other day when I got a pair of trailer jockey wheels for $10 each.
I chopped the wheels off and added a foot and a couple of pieces of angle iron to the sides and with a coat of paint and some Tek screws, I now have some drop down legs that prevent my guillotine from rolling and also takes the weight off the wheels.

I scored all 8 of those double roller castor wheels in another deal for $20 which included the metal that I recycled into the current configuration.
I hate waste...
They will carry weight, but it just seemed dumb to expect them to sit in the one spot mostly with all that weight on them.

With that behind me, I head directly back to my bender project and continue to pray for milder weather.

[Esteban]

Your creativity and resourcefulness are inspiring.

Very interesting to follow your builds.


Esteban

[Oddbod]

Thanks for your kind words Esteban.
My hope is that what I do may inspire others to have a go at things that they otherwise may not have considered possible.
Obviously, knowing your limits and capabilities is also a good consideration, but many folks under estimate themselves.

Anyway, I am going call today fruitful Friday, as I have finally gotten my big chunk of metal running in my lathe and my radius cutter setup to make my initial cuts.
I probably was over thinking this task, but I guess it was better to err on the side of caution with so much at stake.

I tried making my own cutter tip out of what I thought and do believe to be tool steel, but it failed not because the shape was wrong for cutting, but it just wore out so darn quick. It did cut quite well, but just was too soft.
I fear, I could have affected its hardness while shaping it...

Not to be beaten, I had a small set of ebay cutters in a set and decided to sacrifice one of the holders by grinding the stem down in size to fit the square hole in my radius cutter post.
That way I could also replace cutting tips as required.

I installed this cutting tool into my radius cutter and while not perfect, it does cut quite good.
Initially, I discovered that my tool body/frame was flexing, which was annoying , so I braced it with a spine gusset and and another bracket gusset which improved accuarcy and performance.

It had been mentioned to me previously, that in my small lathe I should expect chatter/vibration during cutting.
So far I have not, but early on I experienced a little gouging by the cutting tip, but it turned out that my cutting tip had come loose or was not fully tightened from the start.
That fixed, I have been able to remove an impressive amount of metal during each cut when compared to my lathe size and capability.

I am figuiring I am removing about 3mm depth every 45 minutes.
I have about 9mm removed to date.
The time taken is related mostly to the fact that I have had to run a slow speed due to the large diameter of the project and also because of the small amount of HP I have to turn such a large mass while cutting.

What is obvious now, but I had not really given any thought to, is that the deeper I cut into my radius, the greater the surface area I am having to cut.
This said, even though the surface area is increasing, so is my improved ability and confidence, so between that and as I have cut in I have increased my lathe speed slightly which is now giving me a better cut in a shorter time, so I remain at about 3mm for 45 minutes.

Heat from cutting is minimal which is good and a surprise benefit although I actually hate it, is the laser cut line across my cutting face which clicks on each rotation, this turns out to be a great breaker of swarf, so I am not getting a continuous feed of swarf that can be annoying and clog up my cutter.

I do believe that, if I had the ability to maintain a faster speed, then chatter might have been an issue...

[Oddbod]

I am pleased to report that my major machining project of the bending form for 48mm (1 7/8") OD tube has been completed.
I still have much housekeeping and cleaning up to do and in this current hot weather where I am located it ain't much fun in my shop.
Once tidied up, I will start this same process over again for 44mm (1 3/4") OD tube and that will satisfy the goals set by me at the beginning of this project.

There always remains the possibility that I may produce other size forms, but for now that will do me.
I must confess to not enjoying this process all that much.
The main joy comes from finishing each one, which means one less to do!!!

I dont see any point documenting a similar repeat machining exercise, so I will be off the radar for a while or until I have some further progress to report.
No doubt the 44mm form will require less material to be machined off and now having a little experience behind me I guess it will proceed quicker this time...

My buddy is keen for me to do a 1 5/8" form that suits exhaust pipe for making extractors, but for now I have shied away from doing any more forms.

Once these forms are done, I anticipate the need to machine some roller guides, so with a bit of luck I am hoping one pair of these roller guides will suffice for all tube sizes that are in the range that I am working with.

In the meantime, the drivers side electric window on my 1960 F100 has stopped working and sadly for me it has left me with an open window. Not the best situation since I run a/c in it and of course it is difficult to secure when I leave it any where.
So if anybody happens to be a electric window guru speak up.

Initially, I figure the auto electrician who wired the electric windows for me cut the wires a tad short and door movement was pulling on the wires. A couple of slams of the door and jiggle of wires blindly in the door inner space seemed to work in the past.
However, this time I discovered the wire lead with a small plug on the end had disconnected and dropped away from the window motor.
I spent the morning cutting the plug off and extending the wire loom by about 6 inches to ensure that there would be no tension during door movement. I put my cell phone camera in the door space tpo determing where the plug was and its orientation and felt I was good to go for a reconnect.
I reconnect and no response, the window winder did not operate...
Hmm, scratching my head, I took a test light and connected across the removed plug and when the switch was activated the light came on, so I figure my power supply to my electric motor is OK.

Anybody have any thoughts as to what else I should be looking for?
The F100 is used often but nothing like a regular car and hence the electric windows have not seen all that much use.
If the motor is shot, are all motors similar or do I need to look harder to find a match?
The electric window setup came as a universal fit kit off eBay a few years ago and I would hold my breath expecting any help from the Seller even if I could locate him, plus that was purchased when I was in the States and now I am not...

[RiverPatrol]

Good luck with the electric window motor. I'm not familiar with them, but if the existing setup was a universal fit kit then there is certainly something similar out there. Hit eBay with a few variations of search terms. I found a seat adjuster repair kit for a 2001 GMC Jimmy that way, it never showed up on a basic seat adjuster search.