HF Tubing Roller

shvl73 · Feb 6, 2009

Anyone have any feedback on this:Harbor Freight Tools - Quality Tools at the Lowest Prices ?
We've got a hoop house that has 3/4" conduit for hoops and a heavy snow collapsed it before I could clean it off. Replacements are $69 per hoop + freight and I need 5 sets.
Thanks

GaryM · Feb 6, 2009

Never used one, but it seems to me that you'd need to mount it horizontally or inverted if you're going to make some large hoops. Shouldn't be difficult, but need to figure out how you're going to do it. The way they show it, a large bend would be hitting the floor long before you were done. I guess you could mount it at the edge of an elevated platform so you had room on the outfeed.

shvl73 · Feb 6, 2009

I looked at it again and it seems to bend in an upward arc, which should be ok. The stand is extra, so I thought of clamping it to my FEL bucket or possibly making a quick stand that slid into the receiver hitch on the truck.

kidr · Feb 6, 2009

I've seen these hoops made with electical pvc.Cheaper and easier if it could work for you.

shvl73 · Feb 6, 2009

I have thought of that, though I think the galvanized conduit might be stronger. This is the first time it has collapsed and it has been up for 3 years. I've never had to clean it off before, though now I'll have to get at it, if I rebuild it.
I will look at the pvc again though. Maybe I could go a size larger, if I can get it to take the arc.

schmism · Feb 6, 2009

depending on the size of your hoop house... check out top rail for chain link fence. It typically comes in longer lengths than 10' conduit.

although i dought you could manually roll it. on the upside you could take some 1/2" conduit, roll that in to a larger handle ring and weld it to the existing one for more force

mmmmm disconnect the round handle and bolt on a hydraulic motor and run it off the tractor hydraulics... NOW your talking!

dfkrug · Feb 6, 2009

shvl73 said:
Anyone have any feedback on this:Harbor Freight Tools - Quality Tools at the Lowest Prices ?
We've got a hoop house that has 3/4" conduit for hoops and a heavy snow collapsed it before I could clean it off. Replacements are $69 per hoop + freight and I need 5 sets.

I have seen that item in the HF catalog....let us know how well it works
if you buy it.

I have used galv conduit for a lot of things, from all the electrical in my
workshop, to roll cages. I use a simple manual conduit bender for the
thin-wall EMT conduit, and a HF 12T hydraulic pipe bender for the large
diameter thick-wall IMC conduit. The pipe bender will dent pipes if measures
are not taken to spread the pressure on the pivots however.

As for your "hoop house"......can you use the pre-cut corners sold for
these kind of structures? I have seen the kind that connect to straight
sections that slip inside the ends. I have considered getting some and
trying them out for temporary shelters.