taking a look in the "inspirational pics" thread, i saw the "cotton chopper" survivor gas rail that Rand Man posted... wow if that car could talk?!?! anyhow, the roll hoop is welded from straight sections of round tube, and not mandrel bent. i have been kicking around the idea of building a bender from one of them HF pipe benders, mostly cause i have the thing and it come with the dies. anyone see trouble with cut and welded roll bars/cage and safety? setting aside the obvious "make sure your welds penetrate" and the rest of the normal caviats? T
I used a HF bender. It is a pain. I spent a lot of time grinding out one of the pipe dies to fit 1 3/4" tibing. I got the job done, but you cant make a very tight bend. If I use it again. I will try filling the tube with sand. A welded section hoop might not pass tech. I would e-mail that photo to MO- Kan or your local track and ask them.
yea, i kinda figured... i think i am seriously going to do some "trial and error" engineering on that HF bender, work with some sand and heat... it puts out plenty of force enough to bend the tubing, but it has a tendancy to flatten the stuff out on the outside of the radius thanks!
My main hoop costs me $20.00 to bend at a local roundy round shop. He cussed the thing, they are used to bending .95 and mine was .130.
If you can get by with 1 1/2" dia. tubing I can bend that with my Hossfeld. No dies for the oddball NHRA 1 5/8" dia.....1 3/4" either.
I couldn't justify buying the dies necessary to bend 1 3/4" dia. tubing.....wouldn't be enough demand. However....if a group wanted to pay for the dies, I'd bend the (you furnish) tubes for free. I had the 1 3/4" dies back in the 80's. Did the cage on an Altered drag car and the headache rack for this truck.....that was all.
1 3/4" rollbar tubing is now standard in the dirt circle world. That's where the demand is (in my part of the country).
BRING YOUR TUBBBBING WE WILL BEND FREEEEEEEE..... http://www.bobhindmanroadsters.com BOB ONE OF THE HORNETS
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