Ive got to build a floor for my 34 http://www.jalopyjournal.com/forum/showthread.php?t=857397 I'm planning on buying a bead roller to do it but I'm not sure the best choise of dies. They are expensive and I don't want to buy dies that I wont use. What are the STAPLE few sets of die's you guys use around your shops? Thanks Brad
We have 1/4, 3/8, and 1/2 inch round dies and seem to use the 1/2 most, especially for the type of things you are describing. We use that one a lot more than the other two. Don
Step up to the plate and order a bead roller from Baileigh Industrial,they have a good stand and it comes with 6 sets of dies. HRP http://metal.baileighindustrial.com/bead-roller-br-18m-18
Hotrodprimer I am planning on buying a Baileigh unit but I was going to get power fed one and it doesn't look like it comes with die's which is why I was wondering what the staple Dies to get were. Brad
I don't know if the dies are interchangeable with the unit your buying but you might just buy a bead roller from HF an use the dies.
Not familer with Baileigh selection, I use and love my Mittler's. Besides the round (I use a 1/4", mostly on race car tin, and a 5/8 for early Ford stuff), a step die is a must have, especially on floors. The other dies I use all the time is a tipping die and a tank roll. We also make our own, often they don't make one to do exactly what I want.
I have a mitler brothers bead roller and I use a 7/8 die most of the time on early cars into the 40s . It was the biggest one they could supply me off the shelf at the time. They will make bigger ones to order but I think any bigger and it would have a hard time with 16 and 18 gauge. 1/2 and 1/4 also come in handy in a few places on early cars but manly on later cars id say 50s and up. Posted using the Full Custom H.A.M.B. App!
Hey, If your building floors, and their usually built from 16 gage or thicker, you'd want the 1/2'' or bigger. The 1/4 '' & 3/8'' would probably be of some utility for '' decrative '' work, but not for use on a ''real'' floor panel. There are some tough choices of what machines to buy out there, today! Baighly (sp) & Mitners (sp) both make good products!
We have a ProTools motorized roller and it has worked great for over 8 years and lots of beads. A while back I built a flat table for it to support the work (with lots of helpful suggestions from HAMBers) and that makes it a one man operation now. Don
In my humble oppinion, as I own a HF roller and have done the much needed structure up grade myself, added a steering wheel adaptor (a big help, but still a 2 person affair) and finally a power motor, great! But I am still stuck with a 18" throat, and limted dies, I do have the HAMB tipping die, really a MUST! BUT! In retrospect my advice is this, you doing one car? Got friends to help? A HF is okay....and it will match your beginning skills, myseld included. But if I were to only know after doing several cars, I would buy a Baleigh or HD36" MB, they do offer a myriad of dies. Good Luck!
I use the offset die more than anything. I think it's an 1/8 inch. If you can only buy one, buy a 1/4 inch and then you only clamp it down part way to get a nice soft 1/8 inch offset.
Probably. Just basically a step down. By adjusting the pressure, and even moving one of the dies outward a little more than it should, I can make the shape quite different.
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