tube bender

[jimpat]

we broke our tube bender and need to get a new one or good used one. I want an hydrolic operated one. We bend mostly chrome moly tubes so it should be sturdy.
Any advice you can give me on the make or seller will be greatly appriciated
jim

[Dillon]

http://www.jd2.com/

[KitRacer]

My vote is w/ JDD as well

[TimHayosh]

Here's a vote for a different unit. It's the only one I have ever used. I am a complete know-nothing rookie fabricator, and this thing made it pretty easy! I think it's in a different price range than the JD2.

http://www.pro-tools.com/hb302.htm

[deleted]

call Curt LeDuc

[spedy1]

You should try Mckenzie's they stock the JMR bender. It is full hydraulic and on a stand with three dies for under $2500.

[bajakirby23]

we got plenty of jds benders here at baja racing products let me now if you want them we are the only distrebuter on the west coast. http://www.race-dezert.com/vb3/attachments/old/images/graemlins/cool.gif

[CRAIG_HALL]

What your budget will determine-how nice you can get .If its high I have an Ercolina bender and love it.I've used hydraulic and non hydraulic JD benders as weel as an older Leduc hydraulic bender. Ercolina Bender (http://www.topbender.com)

[slimjim]

i am shopping for a bender also, and i am looking to get the least expensive unit that will still make a quality bend. i have been looking at the jd2, and now the pro-tool. can the pro-tool bend 180 degrees? is there another make i should look at for low-budget bending?

[V8Ranger]

The pro-tools one shot won't bend 180 degrees but their other model might.

[AZmiik]

I was just looking at stuff in general today when I came across this company. Looks like they make some nice stuff.

Baileigh Industrial (http://www.bii1.com/)

One nice thing is all of thier die sets interchange through out thier product line.

Mike

[properprerunner]

I was looking at that one too, but they claim that it only bends up to .095 wall mild steel tubing.

[jeff]

I've got some time on the LeDuc style bender and it's a pretty good machine but in my opinion there are better/nicer/faster/cheaper machines out there. LeDuc uses the old Hossfeld design and it's right up there with the horse and buggy in terms of antiquity. The dies are really expensive and can be very hard to find should you need a replacement in a hurry. One of our 1-3/4" main shoes snapped (bad casting) and it took two weeks to get a new one. The die builder was totally cool and sent out a new main shoe free of charge, he even beefed up his design for us to help prevent future problems. For the money I think you can do better. I like those semi-automatic $10,000 Ercolina units but "oh my gosh" are they expensive. It'd be super bitchin to program a bend and then hit the go button though.

For low-buck I think it's next to impossible to beat the JD or ProTools benders. For the price of one of those units you can be ahead of the game and spend your money on tube instead of a tube bender.

Aloha

[Baileigh Inc]

I was just looking at stuff in general today when I came across this company. Looks like they make some nice stuff.

Baileigh Industrial (http://www.bii1.com/)

One nice thing is all of thier die sets interchange through out thier product line.

Mike

Thanks ;)

[fatnbald]

just replaced my model 3 with the model 32 and am very happy so far. was happy with other unit, just needed to bend thicker walled material.

[randy s]

http://www.jd2.com/how much for the girl????

[tmathews]

Also try http://www.jancy.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=products.showProducts&cat=33

[Baileigh Inc]

i am shopping for a bender also, and i am looking to get the least expensive unit that will still make a quality bend. i have been looking at the jd2, and now the pro-tool. can the pro-tool bend 180 degrees? is there another make i should look at for low-budget bending?

Wanna bend 180 degrees in one shot with a manual bender? :cool:

[dlbcheckmate]

I bought a used Greenlee Smartbender 855. I've only bent a few sticks but seems good, makes repetative bends a snap. Has anyone used and bending programs with these?

[atomicjoe23]

Here's a vote for a different unit. It's the only one I have ever used. I am a complete know-nothing rookie fabricator, and this thing made it pretty easy! I think it's in a different price range than the JD2.

http://www.pro-tools.com/hb302.htm

The JD2 Model 3 and the Pro Tools 105 are equivalent benders at equivalent prices. . .the JD2 Model 32 is slightly more expensive than the Model 3, but cheaper than the Model 4 with increased bending capacity over the Model 3.


i am shopping for a bender also, and i am looking to get the least expensive unit that will still make a quality bend. i have been looking at the jd2, and now the pro-tool. can the pro-tool bend 180 degrees? is there another make i should look at for low-budget bending?

The Pro-Tools Model 105 can do 180* bends. . .you just need to make sure that you order 180* dies with it. . .make sure you specify any time you are ordering a bender that includes a die or ordering dies in general. . .otherwise you might end up with a different die than you wanted.

I'm getting a JD2 Model 32 sometime this coming year, but I have used a Pro-Tools Model 105, JD2 Model 3, and a Hossfeld (didn't care for it at ALL. . .the JD2, Pro-Tools, and Hossfeld are all the same design, but the Hossfeld I used kinked everything it touched). I couldn't tell the difference between a 105 and a Model 3 in use or if you just stood them next to each other without a label on them. . .I'm choosing the Model 32 because of the increased tube diameter capacity.

[rharriman]

You didn't say what you had but you might be able to get a part or make a new part with the drawings on my site. Near the bottom there are some prints for 3 different benders.

http://rharriman.com/LawrenceRacing/LERacingReferences/Index.html


Or find one in the catalogs. There is a good thread on DR on adding a hydraulic cylinder to your manual bender that you might want to check out, If I come accross it I will post a link to it for you..

Good Luck

[atomicjoe23]

I've changed my mind on the bender I'm gonna get. . .I saw these in the latest issue of Crawl. . .and I like them a little better. . .plus they use the same dies as the Pro-Tools Model 105, JD2 Model 3, and JD2 Model 32. . .the largest model can bend up to 2.5" x 0.250" tubing. . .

[TheBandit]

I've changed my mind on the bender I'm gonna get. . .I saw these in the latest issue of Crawl. . .and I like them a little better. . .plus they use the same dies as the Pro-Tools Model 105, JD2 Model 3, and JD2 Model 32. . .the largest model can bend up to 2.5" x 0.250" tubing. . .

I don't understand, what bender did you see in crawl? Was there supposed to be a link or picture?

[atomicjoe23]

I don't understand, what bender did you see in crawl? Was there supposed to be a link or picture?

sorry I left the computer and someone else hopped on my session and just hit the post button. . .

It's the ProBender tube benders. . .the Pro 3 (upt 1.75" tubing) is equivalent to the JD2 Model 3 and Pro Tools Model 105, then they have the Pro 4 is good up to 2.0" x 0.120" tubing and then the Pro 32 is good for up to 2.50" x 0.250" tubing. The cool thing is that they are vertically oriented like the TubeShark so they take up less space and it's easier to keep them in plane when setting up for a bend (not fighting gravity) and you can use an angle finder to get the desired bend instead of a degree ring. . .so more accurate as well.

Here's a link. . .I want the Pro32. . .and it's about $300 cheaper than either the JD2 or the ProTools models all set-up for air over hydraulic operation.

http://www.probender.com/products.asp?cat=41

[TheBandit]

Yes, I have seen the ProBenders. They are similar to the Got Trikes design, but use the arm geometry directly from the Pro Tools and JD2 benders. The cylinder is a Harbor Freight air-motor equiped ram. It's not a bad way to go if you like vertically oriented benders.

[atomicjoe23]

Doesn't seem like there should be much difference between the bend a vertical and horizontal bender produces. . .the several thousand dollar TubeSharks are vertical. . .and I like the fact that you can use an angle finder instead of a degree wheel. . .

. . .don't like to hear it's a HF hydraulic ram though. . .guess I can run it till it wears out and replaces it. . .those cylinders aren't very expensive to replace. . .like $50. . .so that's not bad at all.

[Baileigh Inc]

I don't understand, what bender did you see in crawl? Was there supposed to be a link or picture?

The latest issue has quite a few benders in it. Including our RDB-050

[randy1123]

I have the JD2 bender and love it.
One thing I want to add to it are adjustable feet and a leveling kit.
I use magnetic levels and prop the feet up, and this is getting old. Does someone have a good idea or kit to add a good set of easy to level feet? otherwise, I will need to fab them up.
I move it into position in my garage (which has a 0.5% slope to it) then try to level it. It does not stay there when I am done, so I need to keep the wheels and raise the leveling feet up.
Any ideas?

[Baileigh Inc]

I have the JD2 bender and love it.
One thing I want to add to it are adjustable feet and a leveling kit.
I use magnetic levels and prop the feet up, and this is getting old. Does someone have a good idea or kit to add a good set of easy to level feet? otherwise, I will need to fab them up.
I move it into position in my garage (which has a 0.5% slope to it) then try to level it. It does not stay there when I am done, so I need to keep the wheels and raise the leveling feet up.
Any ideas?

You need an angle level

http://www.bii1.com/images/accessories/angle-finder-main.jpg

[TheBandit]

Doesn't seem like there should be much difference between the bend a vertical and horizontal bender produces. . .the several thousand dollar TubeSharks are vertical. . .and I like the fact that you can use an angle finder instead of a degree wheel. . .

Vertical and horizontal benders both have their own space limitations when bending multiplane or large parts. I personally prefer horizontal benders because there is space all around the bender (up, down, and side-to-side) for a muti-plane part to swing. The vertical benders generally are close to the ground and therefor don't have a lot of room in that direction. I can think of a few parts on my exocage where that would have been a big problem (fender bars and hoop over my bumper). Also with a vertical bender if you have a large single plane part like a roll cage hoop, you may end up running into the ceiling, but since they are often portable you could bring them outside.

Lots of people have vertical benders and really like them. It's up to you to decide what you like.


You need an angle level

http://www.bii1.com/images/accessories/angle-finder-main.jpg

x2

If you have a plane of bend bracket and angle finder, you don't need to level the bender at all. Put it on the end of the tube that isn't swinging around. For single plane parts, you just make sure the angle finder reads the same for every bend.

[atomicjoe23]

I have the JD2 bender and love it.
One thing I want to add to it are adjustable feet and a leveling kit.
I use magnetic levels and prop the feet up, and this is getting old. Does someone have a good idea or kit to add a good set of easy to level feet? otherwise, I will need to fab them up.
I move it into position in my garage (which has a 0.5% slope to it) then try to level it. It does not stay there when I am done, so I need to keep the wheels and raise the leveling feet up.
Any ideas?

You cold just make up some feet that you could level yourself using acme threaded rod (I say acme because it's a lot easier to jack things up with acme threads than screw threads) and an acme threaded nut and then weld the feet to the bottom of your bender frame. . .if it's on rollers you could make the mounts outboard of the bottom of the frame so that you can thread them up to roll the bender around and then thread them down to level it and get it off the rollers.