Never used the one from harbor freight, but I have always left the pipe in the rollers when tightening down for the next pass. roll one direction, tighten down, and roll in the other direction. I love the honesty in your videos !
Yeah same here. Always leave it in the rollers and just go back and forth. The twist is coming from not putting it back in exactly the same spot every time. Or from what I've done it works anyway. Good job and keep the videos coming. Enjoy watching them.
To avoid the twist put two verticle uprite gides on the outfeed about 1 1/2 feet from the roller to guide it plump as you roll. The twist comes from it leaning from one side or the other when you get about half way done. Love your site.
That’s exactly right. The rollers are a few thou out of alignment from the factory. A ratail file in the roller spindle holes judicially applied and some ‘outfeed’ stanchions and you’d be almost perfect. Clamp it to the table, weld it, heat the whole ring even with a propane torch and hit it a few times with a hammer and it will be flat.
Do an alignment before you use it. Use some thin shim washers to get the three rollers aligned. Also drawing a line straight down the length of the tube that use can use as a guide when rolling can help. Use a straight length of angle iron placed on the tube as a guide to draw the line. Then when rolling keep the line top dead center to stop the tube from rolling in a spiral.
Not sure if you guys gives a shit but if you guys are stoned like me atm you can stream pretty much all the new series on InstaFlixxer. I've been watching with my gf for the last few months =)
Good video, and very honest review. Everyone who has offered suggestions has made some good points, it's a little bit of everything to get this roller to roll straighter than it does. I've been using this model for a few years now. I mostly make complete circles. Here is what I have found: 1. Eliminate as much side-to-side play in the bottom rollers. Use washers, shims, machine bushings. Fender washers are usually thinner than regular washers, you can drill out the center to match the roller shafts. While shimming try to align the bottom rollers as much as possible. Use a straight edge along their sides to try to get them parallel. 2. Line up tubing seams either UP or DOWN, depending whether you want the finished seam on the outside or inside of the bend. 3. Roll the piece of tubing Back and Forth without allowing the tubing /stock to exit the roller. *Your stock should always be in contact with all 3 rollers. You will lose about 6" off of each end, so add at least 1 foot to your starting stock length for a complete circle. 4. Same amount of turns on the Top Nut as you roll, until you get close to the final desired radius. Example: Start-1 Turn, 1 Turn, 1 Turn, 1 Turn, 1/2 Turn, 1/4 Turn - Finished 5. For long pieces get a helper or build outfeed guides. Another person, when available, to hold onto larger lengths, makes a big difference. Even if you are controlling some of the variables above, the weight of long piece of stock will start leaning to one side or another. 6. Once a twist starts to develop, it magnifies as you keep rolling, so a slight twist on first pass or two will become a big twist after several more passes. First few passes are important. Even with all of this, I still sometimes get a little bit of twist, it just happens.
What I have seen is you roll it to the right and then roll it back to the left without removing the pipe. Someone said to check the alignment on the bottom two rollers. Love your videos, you do great work.
I used to work for a company and we rolled all kinds of steel. We did pipe i-beam and lots of angle iron. The way the machine was set up was not to roll up but sideways. What I mean is that maybe if you set your machine on its side with the turning wheel on top......you might get a better formed and rolled tube but your gonna need 2 or 3 pipe stands with adjustable rollers. Level your pipe and have your rolling machine about waist high for comfort. I hope this helps you Allen. You have great videos and I love All the information you share with us out here. Keep up the great work and I wanna say that you always seem to build a badass pit/smoker and a great design.
The twist your talking about happens because as you start your second pass your pipe isn't in exactly in the same position as it was on the first pass. To elminate this put a reference mark with a sharpie in center of pipe and a mark on top of roller frame so pipe is always in same position ! If your pipe turns just a 1/16th of an inch on your second pass in a 48" circle the end will be 3"s off on the ends! that's were the So called comes from . Hope this makes since & helps you out!
You can also lay your rolling down so that you are rolling your hoop horizontal instead of vertical. That way you can keep it parallel to the table and it will come out flat. It is a lot easier to control your hoop horizontally and sticking up in the air 5 ft
Your craftsmanship and welding skills are top notch Allen,on my Santa Maria I put a full tray of clean Play sand below my charcoal grate ,so ashes and burnt wood coals cool off in the sand and keep my steel below in top notch shape.i also spray mine and outside of Santa Maria with canola oil too keep that pit seasoned and rust free,will last a lifetime.
Great video! Another guy on these videos, solved the bend problem by putting the roller on it's side fastened to a frame. Hand wheel up, of course. Added extra adjustable rollers to support the tube as it's being rolled, horizontally. This also compensates for changing the size of the rollers. Shim those rollers so they don't wobble. As a lot of people said, keep it in the blender, Uh... bender. go back and forth, till completely cooked. Oops, Uh... done. Weld it up.
Hello Allen, Swag Offroad sells dies that will prevent the twist in the rolled tube. They also sell other kits to help make the rolling of the tube easier. But with your cutting skills you could possibly cut out you own plates. Check out their SWAG Off Road Machined Harbor Freight Tubing Roller Dies video plus their other videos on the Harbor Freight Tubing Roller modifications. As always great video and thanks for your honesty.
Great work Allen. Try inverting and mounting the roller upside down. Gravity will hold the curves vertical and level as they are formed into rings. Just make sure that you mount the roller level and square on the table or fixture. Also, the roller would have to be mounted upside down in a higher place, such as a 2nd floor balcony or maybe on some fabricated stairs for the roller.
I know exactly what you mean about the twist. What I started doing and it made a big difference in eliminating the twist is:: Instead of feeding the pipe through the same direction each time is to not take it out of the pipe roller/ bender and feed it back through the opposite direction back and forth and never take it out of the machine. I've noticed a big difference and the tubing dosen't have the same amount of twist . Hope this helps. Nice work by the way.
Allen don't take the pipe out till your ready to mend it together you won't have any twist I have one and never have any twist thanks for your videos keep up the good work buddy.
One thing no one has mentioned is when the guy at the steel yard picks up the 20' foot lenth of pipe or tubing with the forklift it can put a slight bow in the material. Not having the bow aligned with the rollers can cause it to miss align also.
I can imagine that even the slightest tilt on the „Exit“ side could cause that. But it‘s really hard to control a large Diameter Ring to stay perfectly in line with the rollers, I think that‘s the reason the Maschine i used at work is flat, so you are able to support the section you roll
i built a set of guides to keep the ends from turning when they exit. thats where the twist comes from.the weight of the piece turns the steel in the roller then the roller starts to follow the twist. keep the tube in the roller when you adjust down. the guides i built are on a screw like a vice. thinking about adding felt to cut down to so when i can lower the tolerance without grabbing the pipe. when they do twist, i clamp down to a table and add a little heat. great videos man. thumbs up.
I have always left the pipe in the roller. Roll one way tighten roll it back the other way and so. You have to make sure it runs straight on the first few passes. I seen in the video you stopped and went to the end and tried tweak it back straight. If ya dont get the first couple of passes straight your going to have that twist in it.
I know this video is older but a correction o twisting is to make centerline marks maybe every foot apart down the lenght of the tubing whatever your bending and keep the marks centered in the rollers as you creep the tubing thru and bend it. I bent up some 11/2 aluminum tubing into sled rails and that minimized the twist there will always be a little...Nice job either way.I wish they had that rollerbender 20 years ago when I built my Time Machine sled rails. I used a 12 ton pipe bender with outer rollers and a die I made out of oak and aluminum .... GP
Guys try this. When you want to bend the tubing put the weld line up in the roller, this will give you a reference line to ensure its rolling straight and the weld will help keep it in line better.
Just wondering if you solved your twist problem. If not, I'd like to offer a suggestion. Before starting, Use string or angle iron to mark a straight line on the pipe. Then, as you roll the parts through the tubing bender, make sure the line stays against one of the wheels. I think part of the twist if becauses as you roll the material, it is shifting slightlys, because of the weight of the material. You're clearly much better at welding and material handling than I am, but I did notice in the video that the material was shifting slightly as it was rolled. EIther way, thanks for the great video. :)
Try marking a centerline on first roller and centerline on pipe. With each pass, make sure centerlines line up exactly. If it is off even a little bit, it will put a twist in it. Wish I had one. Nice work.
Allen, another great video! Thanks for the information and all the replies you received were very informative. Looking forward to more of your smoker builds! Keep ‘em coming!
Thumbs up. Best bends weve don is welds on side and sittin up not in the shoes 90° off th shoe. You have an art at doing angles in your videos .You gave , great tips 👍
Mount a rod on each side sticking up in the air. Use those as guides, your allowing the pipe to twist just a little as you roll it. I welded flat metal to the bottom of the guides. That way I could move it in and out with different size tube. And that allowed it to be bent true. Or mark one side of the pipe. And always keep it straight up. You will see it start twisting that way also.
Place a clamp with a bar to level on the tail and keep track of level. Also, check to see if the rollers are the same distance from the frame, 1/16 of an inch will roll the pipe.
To fix the twist, get some clamps at harbor freight while youre there so when you weld the ends held down on the flat table, it is even and then tack the ends first then finish it when it looks good to you.
Hi enjoyed your video, had mine for about 6years, but never set it up or used it. Giving it to a friend who is younger more busy than me. I had big ideas, but they never materialized. I think on the twisting you mentioned, if maybe the re entering if the tubing was exact that could help, like having tube marked so as to repeat the exact spot tube enters roller, also supporting tube in an exact location so as to relieve stresses of it entering roller, not letting it go backwards and forward, maybe with some sort of ball bearing heavy steel arm. Just thinking. Thanjs for video.
You can make the harbor freight roller more accurate. Make sure the dies are centered to the machine and each other, make a center line on your tubing and on the dies, anytime you need to pull the tubing out and reroll, make sure you line the center line back up. Also if you want to do more with the roller do check out Swag Off Road, I added the wings and bottle jack modifications to mine and am ready for the pipe threader electric motor if I ever wanted it
was up man i watch your videos i really enjoy them. but i got to say these keyboard commandos telling why shit aint working with this bender is funny. i have been a fabricator for the past 30 years. i own this bender. i even went as far as going to swag off road to buy the conversion kit to make it electric driven. the thread cutter i bought through harbor freight. here's a link to swagua-cam.com/video/OM_QyvTCsyk/v-deo.html. i realized why it twist the first moment i used it. when you start the rolling, and about to get to the end of the bend, you need to turn the bolt head that applies the pressure, half turn to increase the pressure and roll it backwards. you cannot take it (the tube) out of the roller. when you remove it from the roller it will not realign it self thus creating the curve in the bend.you roll one way apply pressure and reverse the direction. you need to keep rolling the tube it will eventually curl the tube into a circle or loop. one last thing... the amount of pressure that is applied on the downward pulley will determine how tight the turn radius will be. if minimal pressure is applied it will be loose. if more pressure is made it will be tight. always make sure the complete radius is measured and allow at least a foot on each end to be discarded. KEEP UP THE GOOD WORK I ALWAYS LOOK FORWARD TO ANY VIDEO YOU CREATE. KEEP ON INSPIRING THOSE WITH INTEREST.
ANY TIME I AM NOT THE BEST IN THE WORLD BUT I BEEN TAUGHT BY SOME OF THE BEST. AND I HAVE MADE A CAREER OF IT. I KEEP LEARNING THOUGH. I HOPE ALL KEEPS LEARNING. KEEP ON KEEPING ON MY BROTHER
If you put a reference line on the tube before you start rolling, it will be much easier to keep the tube plumb. The twist is coming from the tube going through the rollers at differing angles.
I have rolled a bunch of pipe and angle iron you will have to support the end of the pipe as you roll it thru with a hoist the weight of the pipe pulling down is causing the roll.
the twist is from one of 2 problem ether the rollors are not aligned right or the weight of the pipe up in the air is leaning a little and causing misalignment as it reenters the roller. thanks for sharing
When I was making hand wheels for valves I wouldn't take the pipe out I would leave it in. I also used to make a little sleeve goes inside the pipe makes welding a little easier
I have the same one started out having the same issue then I spoke to a guy at work who said don't take it out just tighten it down and roll in opposite direction the twist is due to the passes not being consistent the slightest of movement of the tubing will cause the twist.
Hey bud. Thanks for the video. Ran into the problem of the bend as well. Fixed it by shimming the U channel opposite the wheel, on the inside between the frame n U channel. The weight of the wheel causes it to naturally bend right. A few washers later n problem solved. Thank u again n hope this helps
I’ve seen them roll it thru, then roll it backwards through, never taking it out of the roller. maybe the twist is when you take it out and feed it back in it may be at a slight twist at that point.
Roll it round. That offset will not hurt it. Clamp it down tack it together weld it up Sand it smooth. Now with the complete ring back in the roller and reroll it it will round up and flatten out.
I think you need to add washers to your 2 bottom rollers to keeping from moving back-and-forth. That should Keep you from having that curvature in the piece you're working on
Don't take the tubing out of the roller... just back up after the adjustment and run it back through. We had one of these at work and that's how we beat it. It'll still be a bit off, but it's manageable.
Some of the twist may be from the tubing itself. If it's pulled or welded, the tubing will be stretched and squeezed . The metal tends to get weak spots which allows it to twist ,, sag,,, just my suspicion . I agree if the rollers aren't in alignment they will help the twist , but lots of time it's just the way the tubing is made. Heat on the tubing I bet would help it to relax and lay flat . Just my thoughts
Old fashion high quality USA built someday will be gone,I respect highly your skill,building with your hands,from scratch is a art that takes many years too come too your level,you are blessed sir.
I've never used one of these. Im just using my imagination here. Instead of taking the martial out and reinserting it into the roller. Can you roll to the end and reverse the roll? Never taking the material out until complete.
Put a mark..go back same witness mark on the roller and the tube..The other way still use the mark...Go forward tighten go backwards..dont ever ermove it till you are done..lose the mark lose the aalignment
So can you reverse the pipe and put the end you just rolled last and put it in first to counter the twist I see in the video you always put in the end first that you rolled first. Try flipping it each time tell me if it works !
When you roll your pipe the end you start first reverse it through the roller the opposite direction Tighten the rollers one turn every time you put the pipe through it no matter which direction please let me know if this helps or make a video
The torge compression of going through the tube roller automatically causes it too go off center because the metal is under pressure, being bent into a unnatural position.it’s like a spring that is cut .
Don't remove the tubing from the machine when you make adjustments. Every time you put the tubing back in it it's out of alignment. Leave it in till you are done rolling it.
Just curious about whether you think this roller can put a 10" radius bend into 2" 16ga exhaust tubing - with the tubing filled with sand or not? I'm trying to come up with a way to recreate the exhaust pipe on my 1926 Franklin car that seems to have been mandrel bent. Thanks!
if you make your cut from the underside and cut a small wedge out of it then push it down the gap will close up a lot easier to weld. You may be getting a twist in your ring becasue its un supported in the air so it will want to go to one side or another.
I think the twist is happening because you're taking the tube completely out of the roller, so it's not going back in completely straight. Just keep it in the roller and go back and forth when bending the tubing.
Don't take the pipe out of the rollers until you are done. Alignment posts on both sides will also help prevent 'twist' on large pieces (like the one in the video). Index marks on the pipe can help, too. Yeah, at 2:30 when you took the pipe out of the roller, and walked around it to re-insert the pipe...I gasped. I saw your problem instantly (and it's the BIG ONE to cause twist, too).
i agree with stump and yourolddog also if u have a log straight peice of angle iron lay the pipe in it and use a sharpie toi draw a straight line length wise of the pipe.. this acts as a visual guide ..
This may well be completely wrong but just an observation - the drive wheel axle of the HF bender looks too long to me - (see how it sticks way out from the body of the bender like five inches? ) and at 1/2" diameter the axle looks too skimpy to be able to prevent a lot of runout as the wheel is turned. So maybe that runout in the axle might translate into a slight twist or skew in the actual die that it is driving? If the drive axle was shorter (drive wheel closer to the die) and made with a larger diameter steel (or even tubing like a lathe spindle) it might run more true. Good work though as usual - you always find a way to get the final result looking awesome..
The twist is coming from the rollers not being properly aligned, say front to back if you are looking at it. If it is just slightly off then it will do that. The harbor freight stuff isn't exact tolerances.
Check your Rollers the outside lip make sure they all the same size and I can’t slide left or right you might have to put big washers or make some washers to take up the dead space
keep the pipe plumb on thr feed end and maybe take off the big turning wheel and replace it with a slow drive motor to make the drive . Will save a lot of work.
Be nice to rig up some sort of a power feed with a remote so you can focus more of your attention on keeping your ring perfectly in line and vertical with the rollers to avoid the twist.
Never used the one from harbor freight, but I have always left the pipe in the rollers when tightening down for the next pass. roll one direction, tighten down, and roll in the other direction. I love the honesty in your videos !
Same thing for me, but I like to have a helper "catching" the exiting end to keep it from wanting to lean.
Yeah same here. Always leave it in the rollers and just go back and forth. The twist is coming from not putting it back in exactly the same spot every time. Or from what I've done it works anyway. Good job and keep the videos coming. Enjoy watching them.
StumpGreenwoodSC someone else told me to leave it in and just roll back and forth too, so I'm going to try that next time
@@Allensweldingwoodworking Any luck with eliminating the twist by leaving it in the roller?
@@bigbubba74allin20 0
To avoid the twist put two verticle uprite gides on the outfeed about 1 1/2 feet from the roller to guide it plump as you roll. The twist comes from it leaning from one side or the other when you get about half way done. Love your site.
Do u have a picture of it?
That’s exactly right.
The rollers are a few thou out of alignment from the factory. A ratail file in the roller spindle holes judicially applied and some ‘outfeed’ stanchions and you’d be almost perfect. Clamp it to the table, weld it, heat the whole ring even with a propane torch and hit it a few times with a hammer and it will be flat.
Do an alignment before you use it. Use some thin shim washers to get the three rollers aligned.
Also drawing a line straight down the length of the tube that use can use as a guide when rolling can help. Use a straight length of angle iron placed on the tube as a guide to draw the line. Then when rolling keep the line top dead center to stop the tube from rolling in a spiral.
See SWAG off-road. The problem was fixed with 2 key ways but maybe two set screws might work
Not sure if you guys gives a shit but if you guys are stoned like me atm you can stream pretty much all the new series on InstaFlixxer. I've been watching with my gf for the last few months =)
Good video, and very honest review. Everyone who has offered suggestions has made some good points, it's a little bit of everything to get this roller to roll straighter than it does. I've been using this model for a few years now. I mostly make complete circles.
Here is what I have found:
1. Eliminate as much side-to-side play in the bottom rollers. Use washers, shims, machine bushings. Fender washers are usually thinner than regular washers, you can drill out the center to match the roller shafts. While shimming try to align the bottom rollers as much as possible. Use a straight edge along their sides to try to get them parallel.
2. Line up tubing seams either UP or DOWN, depending whether you want the finished seam on the outside or inside of the bend.
3. Roll the piece of tubing Back and Forth without allowing the tubing /stock to exit the roller. *Your stock should always be in contact with all 3 rollers. You will lose about 6" off of each end, so add at least 1 foot to your starting stock length for a complete circle.
4. Same amount of turns on the Top Nut as you roll, until you get close to the final desired radius. Example: Start-1 Turn, 1 Turn, 1 Turn, 1 Turn, 1/2 Turn, 1/4 Turn - Finished
5. For long pieces get a helper or build outfeed guides. Another person, when available, to hold onto larger lengths, makes a big difference. Even if you are controlling some of the variables above, the weight of long piece of stock will start leaning to one side or another.
6. Once a twist starts to develop, it magnifies as you keep rolling, so a slight twist on first pass or two will become a big twist after several more passes. First few passes are important.
Even with all of this, I still sometimes get a little bit of twist, it just happens.
What I have seen is you roll it to the right and then roll it back to the left without removing the pipe. Someone said to check the alignment on the bottom two rollers. Love your videos, you do great work.
I used to work for a company and we rolled all kinds of steel.
We did pipe i-beam and lots of angle iron.
The way the machine was set up was not to roll up but sideways.
What I mean is that maybe if you set your machine on its side with the turning wheel on top......you might get a better formed and rolled tube but your gonna need 2 or 3 pipe stands with adjustable rollers.
Level your pipe and have your rolling machine about waist high for comfort.
I hope this helps you Allen.
You have great videos and I love All the information you share with us out here.
Keep up the great work and I wanna say that you always seem to build a badass pit/smoker and a great design.
The twist your talking about happens because as you start your second pass your
pipe isn't in exactly in the same position as it was on the first pass. To elminate
this put a reference mark with a sharpie in center of pipe and a mark on top of
roller frame so pipe is always in same position ! If your pipe turns just a 1/16th of
an inch on your second pass in a 48" circle the end will be 3"s off on the ends!
that's were the So called comes from . Hope this makes since & helps you out!
Thank you
You can also lay your rolling down so that you are rolling your hoop horizontal instead of vertical. That way you can keep it parallel to the table and it will come out flat. It is a lot easier to control your hoop horizontally and sticking up in the air 5 ft
Your craftsmanship and welding skills are top notch Allen,on my Santa Maria I put a full tray of clean Play sand below my charcoal grate ,so ashes and burnt wood coals cool off in the sand and keep my steel below in top notch shape.i also spray mine and outside of Santa Maria with canola oil too keep that pit seasoned and rust free,will last a lifetime.
Great video! Another guy on these videos, solved the bend problem by putting the roller on it's side fastened to a frame. Hand wheel up, of course. Added extra adjustable rollers to support the tube as it's being rolled, horizontally. This also compensates for changing the size of the rollers. Shim those rollers so they don't wobble. As a lot of people said, keep it in the blender, Uh... bender. go back and forth, till completely cooked. Oops, Uh... done. Weld it up.
Hello Allen, Swag Offroad sells dies that will prevent the twist in the rolled tube. They also sell other kits to help make the rolling of the tube easier. But with your cutting skills you could possibly cut out you own plates. Check out their SWAG Off Road Machined Harbor Freight Tubing Roller Dies video plus their other videos on the Harbor Freight Tubing Roller modifications. As always great video and thanks for your honesty.
How much is the kit
Great work Allen.
Try inverting and mounting the roller upside down. Gravity will hold the curves vertical and level as they are formed into rings. Just make sure that you mount the roller level and square on the table or fixture.
Also, the roller would have to be mounted upside down in a higher place, such as a 2nd floor balcony or maybe on some fabricated stairs for the roller.
I know exactly what you mean about the twist. What I started doing and it made a big difference in eliminating the twist is:: Instead of feeding the pipe through the same direction each time is to not take it out of the pipe roller/ bender and feed it back through the opposite direction back and forth and never take it out of the machine. I've noticed a big difference and the tubing dosen't have the same amount of twist . Hope this helps. Nice work by the way.
Allen don't take the pipe out till your ready to mend it together you won't have any twist I have one and never have any twist thanks for your videos keep up the good work buddy.
One thing no one has mentioned is when the guy at the steel yard picks up the 20' foot lenth of pipe or tubing with the forklift it can put a slight bow in the material. Not having the bow aligned with the rollers can cause it to miss align also.
Leave the pipe in.. don’t remove from the rollers it will work in both directions.
I can imagine that even the slightest tilt on the „Exit“ side could cause that. But it‘s really hard to control a large Diameter Ring to stay perfectly in line with the rollers, I think that‘s the reason the Maschine i used at work is flat, so you are able to support the section you roll
i built a set of guides to keep the ends from turning when they exit. thats where the twist comes from.the weight of the piece turns the steel in the roller then the roller starts to follow the twist. keep the tube in the roller when you adjust down.
the guides i built are on a screw like a vice. thinking about adding felt to cut down to so when i can lower the tolerance without grabbing the pipe.
when they do twist, i clamp down to a table and add a little heat.
great videos man. thumbs up.
I had to align the rollers, there was some slack in them and I installed
A couple shim as needed to straighten the roller out. It helped a lot...
Exactly!! Some people scoff at these adjustment ideas but it’s amusing to me because they work!
I have always left the pipe in the roller. Roll one way tighten roll it back the other way and so. You have to make sure it runs straight on the first few passes. I seen in the video you stopped and went to the end and tried tweak it back straight. If ya dont get the first couple of passes straight your going to have that twist in it.
I know this video is older but a correction o twisting is to make centerline marks maybe every foot apart down the lenght of the tubing whatever your bending and keep the marks centered in the rollers as you creep the tubing thru and bend it. I bent up some 11/2 aluminum tubing into sled rails and that minimized the twist there will always be a little...Nice job either way.I wish they had that rollerbender 20 years ago when I built my Time Machine sled rails. I used a 12 ton pipe bender with outer rollers and a die I made out of oak and aluminum .... GP
Guys try this. When you want to bend the tubing put the weld line up in the roller, this will give you a reference line to ensure its rolling straight and the weld will help keep it in line better.
Just wondering if you solved your twist problem. If not, I'd like to offer a suggestion. Before starting, Use string or angle iron to mark a straight line on the pipe. Then, as you roll the parts through the tubing bender, make sure the line stays against one of the wheels. I think part of the twist if becauses as you roll the material, it is shifting slightlys, because of the weight of the material.
You're clearly much better at welding and material handling than I am, but I did notice in the video that the material was shifting slightly as it was rolled. EIther way, thanks for the great video. :)
Try marking a centerline on first roller and centerline on pipe. With each pass, make sure centerlines line up exactly. If it is off even a little bit, it will put a twist in it. Wish I had one. Nice work.
Allen, another great video! Thanks for the information and all the replies you received were very informative. Looking forward to more of your smoker builds! Keep ‘em coming!
Good honest video about the roller and great job on the firepit!
Thumbs up. Best bends weve don is welds on side and sittin up not in the shoes 90° off th shoe. You have an art at doing angles in your videos .You gave , great tips 👍
Looks like you are fighting gravity. Mount it upside down and let the weight of the tube pull it back into alignment.
yep i just posted the same
Thanks for your humble honesty and your videos.
Mount a rod on each side sticking up in the air. Use those as guides, your allowing the pipe to twist just a little as you roll it.
I welded flat metal to the bottom of the guides. That way I could move it in and out with different size tube. And that allowed it to be bent true. Or mark one side of the pipe. And always keep it straight up. You will see it start twisting that way also.
Place a clamp with a bar to level on the tail and keep track of level. Also, check to see if the rollers are the same distance from the frame, 1/16 of an inch will roll the pipe.
To fix the twist, get some clamps at harbor freight while youre there so when you weld the ends held down on the flat table, it is even and then tack the ends first then finish it when it looks good to you.
Hi enjoyed your video, had mine for about 6years, but never set it up or used it. Giving it to a friend who is younger more busy than me. I had big ideas, but they never materialized. I think on the twisting you mentioned, if maybe the re entering if the tubing was exact that could help, like having tube marked so as to repeat the exact spot tube enters roller, also supporting tube in an exact location so as to relieve stresses of it entering roller, not letting it go backwards and forward, maybe with some sort of ball bearing heavy steel arm. Just thinking. Thanjs for video.
You can make the harbor freight roller more accurate. Make sure the dies are centered to the machine and each other, make a center line on your tubing and on the dies, anytime you need to pull the tubing out and reroll, make sure you line the center line back up. Also if you want to do more with the roller do check out Swag Off Road, I added the wings and bottle jack modifications to mine and am ready for the pipe threader electric motor if I ever wanted it
Tip for tube rolling put seam in pipe on your bottom rollers and also you dont have to take it out jist adjust top roller and roll back other wAy
Mick Hulsen thanks, someone else told me the same thing, I've been going at it wrong
like your work and videos very much keep up the great work.. what dou you think of your lincoln welder??? any chance of a review video.??
was up man i watch your videos i really enjoy them. but i got to say these keyboard commandos telling why shit aint working with this bender is funny. i have been a fabricator for the past 30 years. i own this bender. i even went as far as going to swag off road to buy the conversion kit to make it electric driven. the thread cutter i bought through harbor freight. here's a link to swagua-cam.com/video/OM_QyvTCsyk/v-deo.html.
i realized why it twist the first moment i used it. when you start the rolling, and about to get to the end of the bend, you need to turn the bolt head that applies the pressure, half turn to increase the pressure and roll it backwards. you cannot take it (the tube) out of the roller.
when you remove it from the roller it will not realign it self thus creating the curve in the bend.you roll one way apply pressure and reverse the direction. you need to keep rolling the tube it will eventually curl the tube into a circle or loop. one last thing... the amount of pressure that is applied on the downward pulley will determine how tight the turn radius will be. if minimal pressure is applied it will be loose. if more pressure is made it will be tight. always make sure the complete radius is measured and allow at least a foot on each end to be discarded.
KEEP UP THE GOOD WORK I ALWAYS LOOK FORWARD TO ANY VIDEO YOU CREATE.
KEEP ON INSPIRING THOSE WITH INTEREST.
ALOHA RANDOM VLOGS thanks man!!! I will definitely use those tips!! I appreciate it!
ANY TIME
I AM NOT THE BEST IN THE WORLD BUT I BEEN TAUGHT BY SOME OF THE BEST. AND I HAVE MADE A CAREER OF IT. I KEEP LEARNING THOUGH. I HOPE ALL KEEPS LEARNING. KEEP ON KEEPING ON MY BROTHER
ALSO HERES A LINK TO THEIR NEW BENDER THAT THEY MADE www.swagoffroad.com
IS THERE A WAY WE CAN COMMUNICATE? HERE'S MY EMAIL imyourhuckleberry808@gmail.com
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If you put a reference line on the tube before you start rolling, it will be much easier to keep the tube plumb. The twist is coming from the tube going through the rollers at differing angles.
To get rid of the twist you can try to put it back to front occasionaly.
I have rolled a bunch of pipe and angle iron you will have to support the end of the pipe as you roll it thru with a hoist the weight of the pipe pulling down is causing the roll.
Makes sense! I don’t use it much now but I’ll keep that in mind next time I do.
Nice looking work! Cool fire pit
I enjoyed your video. Are you able to use it on square tubing? Thanks
the twist is from one of 2 problem ether the rollors are not aligned right or the weight of the pipe up in the air is leaning a little and causing misalignment as it reenters the roller. thanks for sharing
When I was making hand wheels for valves I wouldn't take the pipe out I would leave it in. I also used to make a little sleeve goes inside the pipe makes welding a little easier
try leaving it in the roller, and check that the dies are aligned and have no side to side slop. awesome work!
I have the same one started out having the same issue then I spoke to a guy at work who said don't take it out just tighten it down and roll in opposite direction the twist is due to the passes not being consistent the slightest of movement of the tubing will cause the twist.
Hey bud. Thanks for the video.
Ran into the problem of the bend as well. Fixed it by shimming the U channel opposite the wheel, on the inside between the frame n U channel. The weight of the wheel causes it to naturally bend right.
A few washers later n problem solved. Thank u again n hope this helps
I dont use it much but I'll definitely try that next time I use it, that bend is the main reason I dont use it much, thanks
I’ve seen them roll it thru, then roll it backwards through, never taking it out of the roller. maybe the twist is when you take it out and feed it back in it may be at a slight twist at that point.
Roll it round. That offset will not hurt it. Clamp it down tack it together weld it up Sand it smooth. Now with the complete ring back in the roller and reroll it it will round up and flatten out.
Use washers to center all 3 rollers. That helps with the twist.
Have you tried not taking the pipe out of the roller just increase the bend and then roll it backwards to it and then roll it forwards to it
How do you adjust the radius. I didn't pick it up in the video if you explained it
I think you need to add washers to your 2 bottom rollers to keeping from moving back-and-forth. That should Keep you from having that curvature in the piece you're working on
Thanks!
Don't take the tubing out of the roller... just back up after the adjustment and run it back through. We had one of these at work and that's how we beat it. It'll still be a bit off, but it's manageable.
Is there any way you can shim the rollers left or right, like the others have said it is a alignment problem. Keep the videos coming..
Some of the twist may be from the tubing itself. If it's pulled or welded, the tubing will be stretched and squeezed . The metal tends to get weak spots which allows it to twist ,, sag,,, just my suspicion . I agree if the rollers aren't in alignment they will help the twist , but lots of time it's just the way the tubing is made. Heat on the tubing I bet would help it to relax and lay flat . Just my thoughts
Old fashion high quality USA built someday will be gone,I respect highly your skill,building with your hands,from scratch is a art that takes many years too come too your level,you are blessed sir.
I've seen the roller laid on its side and shimmed the tubing to the centerline of the rollers ( plate on top of the table)
Great idea. I'll try it. Thanks.
I've never used one of these. Im just using my imagination here. Instead of taking the martial out and reinserting it into the roller. Can you roll to the end and reverse the roll? Never taking the material out until complete.
Put a mark..go back same witness mark on the roller and the tube..The other way still use the mark...Go forward tighten go backwards..dont ever ermove it till you are done..lose the mark lose the aalignment
You can also add some shim washers on those rollers and take the end slack out of them
So can you reverse the pipe and put the end you just rolled last and put it in first to counter the twist I see in the video you always put in the end first that you rolled first. Try flipping it each time tell me if it works !
As you roll the ring check to see if the ring is truly plumb and vertical. If not adjust accordingly and continue to roll.
Did you try turning the pipe feed one end then put pipe in backwards ( other end and roll it ) then switch ends each time you roll it
Use the right size rollers for the pipe
Did you figure the roller out? It's on my list of tools but I'd like to know if a few modifications will fix th he problem.
When you roll your pipe the end you start first reverse it through the roller the opposite direction
Tighten the rollers one turn every time you put the pipe through it no matter which direction please let me know if this helps or make a video
Try alternating which end you start through the roller each pass
also watch were you put the seem, the seem is different from the rest of the pipe. always put the seem on the inside.
Imo, if you don't have it exactly *plumb* on every pass, you're going to see a bit of a twist. It's inevitable.
Not to criticize, love your vids!
did you try reversing your in-feed and then out feed rollers? you can exchange it for a different one and try that.
The torge compression of going through the tube roller automatically causes it too go off center because the metal is under pressure, being bent into a unnatural position.it’s like a spring that is cut .
Suggestion Allen,make another cut on center 180,flip 1 side and reweld,have you ever try that it will work.you do beautiful welding sir.
i'm a little late, just wanted to great video, all you need is a "off set conduit bending level" it cost a few bucks
Add washers to take out the slop between the rollers and frame
Don't remove the tubing from the machine when you make adjustments. Every time you put the tubing back in it it's out of alignment. Leave it in till you are done rolling it.
Try putting guide in front and in back to keep the tubing going on same plane
Just curious about whether you think this roller can put a 10" radius bend into 2" 16ga exhaust tubing - with the tubing filled with sand or not?
I'm trying to come up with a way to recreate the exhaust pipe on my 1926 Franklin car that seems to have been mandrel bent.
Thanks!
if you make your cut from the underside and cut a small wedge out of it then push it down the gap will close up a lot easier to weld.
You may be getting a twist in your ring becasue its un supported in the air so it will want to go to one side or another.
Is it still twisting on ya? Did you have any fixes for that roller?
I think the twist is happening because you're taking the tube completely out of the roller, so it's not going back in completely straight. Just keep it in the roller and go back and forth when bending the tubing.
to stop the twist flip the pipe around and bend equal amounts on each side
possibably the problem is in the alignment of the dies. try alternating the ends for each pass. just thinking out load
Don't take the pipe out of the rollers until you are done. Alignment posts on both sides will also help prevent 'twist' on large pieces (like the one in the video). Index marks on the pipe can help, too. Yeah, at 2:30 when you took the pipe out of the roller, and walked around it to re-insert the pipe...I gasped. I saw your problem instantly (and it's the BIG ONE to cause twist, too).
Allen. Looks like the upper roller is sitting a bit crooked. Try loosening some of the bolts and realigning the rollers. You are a hard workin man.
Nice info I bet you will get it all figured out.Keep up the great video's
i agree with stump and yourolddog also if u have a log straight peice of angle iron lay the pipe in it and use a sharpie toi draw a straight line length wise of the pipe.. this acts as a visual guide ..
Yea I agree too, I didn't know all the tricks to it but have gotten a lot of tips on here
Try spraying the rollers and tubbing with wd 40.
This may well be completely wrong but just an observation - the drive wheel axle of the HF bender looks too long to me - (see how it sticks way out from the body of the bender like five inches? ) and at 1/2" diameter the axle looks too skimpy to be able to prevent a lot of runout as the wheel is turned. So maybe that runout in the axle might translate into a slight twist or skew in the actual die that it is driving? If the drive axle was shorter (drive wheel closer to the die) and made with a larger diameter steel (or even tubing like a lathe spindle) it might run more true. Good work though as usual - you always find a way to get the final result looking awesome..
I think the bottom rollers are moving side to side as you roll use some washers to make sure they're lining up properly and try it again
Spectacular job.....keep up the good work....
Swag offroad sales stuff for that roller to make it work better
Once that pit hit up like cast iron it sucks up that oil real nice.love too have a pit like that but you live a long way from me.im in California.
The twist is coming from the rollers not being properly aligned, say front to back if you are looking at it. If it is just slightly off then it will do that. The harbor freight stuff isn't exact tolerances.
Thanks for the review, fire pit looks good too.
Check your Rollers the outside lip make sure they all the same size and I can’t slide left or right you might have to put big washers or make some washers to take up the dead space
I want to create a 6.5Ft or 7ft diameter copper ring, how much copper pipe would I need to make something of that size?
7 ft = 84inches then 84x3.1416= 263.8944 inches for 6.5ft 78x3.1416= 226.1952 inches
Just a thought go back and forth in the roller adjusting tension
keep the pipe plumb on thr feed end and maybe take off the big turning wheel and replace it with a slow drive motor to make the drive . Will save a lot of work.
I didn't think turning the wheel was much work at all. Have you done this?
Try alternating the feed from one end to the other, or tilting the ring.
Usta Evde 8 milimetrelik demirleri tekerlek yapabileceğim bir makina yapabilir misin?
Be nice to rig up some sort of a power feed with a remote so you can focus more of your attention on keeping your ring perfectly in line and vertical with the rollers to avoid the twist.
they make a power feed. SWAG offroad there on the intenet. and the twist is him not the roller.
Going to weld a nut in the center of that wheel and see what happens