Subject: Re: tube bending questions

From: [email-masked] (Geoffrey Merryweather)
Date: 22 Sep 1993 04:54:15 -0500

> Don't the springs go in the tube to keep it from kinking?  Has anyone treid
> filling them with sand?

  Abetter bet than sand to pack the inside of the tube is salt. You can then
just pour hot water down the tube to get out any salt left inside after the
bend is finished.
Geoff
- Geoffrey Merryweather
Fax (0064) 9 2360639
EMail:  [email-masked]
"By the hammer and hand all the arts do stand"
   - Motto of The Worshipful Company of Blacksmiths

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From: [email-masked] (David Jenkins)
Date: 22 Sep 1993 10:12:54 GMT

In article <[email-masked]>,
[email-masked] (Geoffrey Merryweather) writes:
|> > Don't the springs go in the tube to keep it from kinking?  Has
|> anyone treid
|> > filling them with sand?
|> 
|>   Abetter bet than sand to pack the inside of the tube is salt. You
|> can then
|> just pour hot water down the tube to get out any salt left inside
|> after the
|> bend is finished.
|> Geoff
|> - Geoffrey Merryweather
|> Fax (0064) 9 2360639
|> EMail:  [email-masked]
|> "By the hammer and hand all the arts do stand"
|>    - Motto of The Worshipful Company of Blacksmiths
|> 
|> 

-- 

I would be reluctant to put salt follwed by water into a steel tube. 
This seems to be asking for trouble!

Sand is good enough for most jobs - plug the end with a wooden dowel,
pack in the dry sand, top off with another plug _WITH A HOLE IN IT_. 
Doing this allows you to anneal the tube if necessary, or use heat to
assist the bending process (the hole stops the top plug popping out).

Alternatively, you can use either Woods metal (if you can get it, and
can afford it), solder or lead to give a more even bend.  Wooden plug
at the bottom, as before, but be absolutely certain that the tube is
dry before pouring in the metal - it's a good idea to pre-heat the
tube anyway, to stop the molten metal solidifying halfway down.  When
you've finished, take out the plug and re-heat (make sure there's
something to catch the metal ;-).

Take all the usual precautions when handling molten metal - if you
don't know what they are, look 'em up.

David Jenkins

* All incorrect spelling and faulty grammar is intentional.   *  
* Corrections are superfluous and will be ignored.  So there. *         
*

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From: [email-masked] (John De Armond)
Date: Thu, 23 Sep 93 05:11:09 GMT

>just pour hot water down the tube to get out any salt left inside after the

Not with chrome-moly or stainless unless you'd like a handful of 
chloride-induced stress cracking in a bit.  Chlorides and 
chrome bearing steels are a no-no.  Besides sand washes out just as
well as salt would.

John

-- 
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