2" Square tube bender

[norbie454]

I tried to build a 2" square tube bender using my wood splitter but I seem to be doing more crushing rather than bending. Not sure but I am thinking I need a larger radius push die with a more robust center section and maybe some side plates. if anyone has done this before and been through the growing pains with any suggestions I would greatly appreciate it. Here are a few photos to show what I am up against.

 

[Rustyiron]

I think your on track with a bigger radius and side plates. 2" tube is asking for a lot of stretching on 3 sides. I'm not sure it can be done without one side being disformed, even my factory "ROPS" is misformed on the inner side of the radius. I wonder how much structural integrity is lost with this?
I have bent tube like this by slicing 3 sides (every 1/2" or so) with an abrasive chop saw and bending/welding then a heck of a lot of grinding.

 

[kenord]

I built a die for 1 inch it worked ok but it took a lot of trial and error,
It is 6 inch with (if I remember right) about 3/8 sides and a 1/4 inch hump in the center, I turned it on my lathe , I saw on u tube some people just weld a1/4 inch rod in the center, It starts the crush that is required , so the metal has some place to go, the sides of the die, keep it from expanding. I don't think I could have gone any smaller than 6 inch , or just would have crushed the tubing,
for 2 inch a lot bigger radius would be required,and at least 1/2 inch or larger hump in the center, How thick is the tubing your trying to bend?
I was bending thin wall , I think .063 , I tried bending by hand , but ended up using a hyd cylinder.
I was bending a full 90 degrees. there are quite a few examples on u tube , even using plywood as a die, good luck and let us know how it works out.
have fun, stay safe,
Rich

 

[vidio1]

Look at the name brand tube benders for their minimum die radius. There is a minimum radius for all tubing depending on type and thickness. Take those as an extreme minimum, I.E. go a couple sizes bigger if you can as your bender design is less than ideal.

 

[davedj1]

II think you will have to contain the two sides as well. Instead of pressing it, try like a tubing bender and draw it through.
Introduction to Square Tube Bending @ Trick-Tools - YouTube
Hand bending 1" square 18 gauge steel tubing to a 4-1/2" radius - YouTube

 

[Redlands Okie]

Not a expert on tube bending but i have seen several deals like this where they fill the tube with sand to help prevent the crushing.

 

[norbie454]

Thanks for the info the video shows me where I need to make improvements I will make a new push die this week and let you all know if I get better results.

Fear of the unknown is greater than fear of the event.
Norm David 1972

 

[norbie454]

I made a new die and got the 2" square tube with .125 wall to bend the 2 identical pieces are bent at 30' and the longer piece is bent at 40' I have a photo of the ATV log arch welded I painted it today and will post later under a new heading of ATV log arch so if you are interested stay tuned

 

[Billrog]

Nice job. Thank you for the thread I've bent a bit of square tubing but never neat, now I've learned something for next time from the posts here.

 

[Raspy]

Norbie,

That is really a nice job! I've seen square tube with those kind of bends but never knew what the bender looked like. All of that was done very accurately.