Fabrication Tools thread

Ludachris · 02-10-2009, 12:30 PM

I'm looking at pipe notching tools, bending brakes, and pipe benders now that I just bought a welder. Maybe we can make a list of good fab tools. I don't usually like Harbor Freight, but if I can save some money and get some decent tools from them while knowing which tools to spend more money on better quality, it would be nice to know which to spend the money on.

For example, I found this for a notcher but am not sure if it's too cheap a product:
Harbor Freight Tools - Quality Tools at the Lowest Prices

Let's discuss tools and all the options.

99gst_racer · 02-10-2009, 01:14 PM

I've been using this notcher: Allstar Performance

It's very similar to the Harbor Freight one. The Allstar one appears to be a bit better built, but I really do like the base mount on the Harbor Freight piece. I've been plenty happy with the Allstar notcher, aside from the lack of mounting options.

I'd like to learn more about each style of tubing bender. I'm in the market for one, but I'm not sure which is the best bang for buck in my price range.
As of right now, I'd 80% sure I'm going to buy this one: Allstar Performance

I haven't heard many reviews on it, but I might have a change to borrow one for a weekend before I buy one. The one thing that I don't like about it is that it doesn't have a degree wheel anywhere on it. But it is the least expensive hydraulic bender that I've found.

turboglenn · 02-11-2009, 08:11 AM

NOt sure if you guys know this trick, but there's a way to use water and fine sand to make a cheapo harbor freight bender work ALMOST as good as a mandrel unit... NO kinks or anything.. If you don't know or would like me to demonstrate not only the sand filloing but the modifications to the chea HF bender let me know and i'll do a pictorial write up.

As for that nothcher.. it works great! Keep your drill speed up, and you will also have to "re-mark" true "0" as teh degree guage is usually off on them. I've go a lot of harbor freight stuff that people can't believe what i can do with it... It all really comes down to tweaking and modifying the unit it's self and using it within it's bounds!

Just go some where and buy quality hole saws and you'll be set!

spoonman · 02-11-2009, 08:37 AM

I own the PRO-105 from Pro-Tools.com. This is a very well designed mandrel tube bender and is exactly what any fabricator needs if they plan on making roll cages, manifolds, or bumpers. The dies are expensive but I have around $1500 in my set up with almost every die size, although most people will never need some of the sizes. With a mandrel bender like this it does take some time to form your bend especially if you use a thick wall tube, it can also be a pain in the back using it for long periods of time.

Pipe Bending Machine, Tube Benders, Square Tubing Bender

I do not recommend the Allstar bender, these should only be used for light fabrication as they will break! They also will cause distortion in thin walled tubing.

What type of welder do you have?

twicks69 · 02-11-2009, 08:46 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by spoonman

I own the PRO-105 from Pro-Tools.com. This is a very well designed mandrel tube bender and is exactly what any fabricator needs if they plan on making roll cages, manifolds, or bumpers. The dies are expensive but I have around $1500 in my set up with almost every die size, although most people will never need some of the sizes. With a mandrel bender like this it does take some time to form your bend especially if you use a thick wall tube, it can also be a pain in the back using it for long periods of time.

Pipe Bending Machine, Tube Benders, Square Tubing Bender

I do not recommend the Allstar bender, these should only be used for light fabrication as they will break! They also will cause distortion in thin walled tubing.

What type of welder do you have?

This is the same bender that I purchased, it works great for roll cages and is easy to use. The only thing I did to make it easier to bend manually, was to make a 5' extension for the bending arm.

Great product!

spoonman · 02-11-2009, 09:09 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by twicks69

The only thing I did to make it easier to bend manually, was to make a 5' extension for the bending arm.

I did the same thing, I made a 6 inch and 12 inch extension.

Ludachris · 02-11-2009, 09:28 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by spoonman

What type of welder do you have?

I just bought a Miller Diversion 165 TIG welder... these things can be had for around $1300 new all over ebay:
miller diversion 165 tig, Manufacturing Metalworking, Business Industrial items on eBay.com

I was so excited when Miller announced this new welder - the first TIG from a quality company available for half the price of the cheapest TIGs on the market!

Spln_Hrd · 02-11-2009, 10:42 AM

I am looking at that same welder Chris. Have you done much with it? How does it work on stainless and aluminium for you?

Ludachris · 02-11-2009, 11:25 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Spln_Hrd

I am looking at that same welder Chris. Have you done much with it? How does it work on stainless and aluminium for you?

Don't have the 250V outlet installed yet to use it. I'm hoping to have that done next week when we get back from our Cali trip. I also still need a mask/gloves, an argon tank and some filler rods.

It's a Miller though. It can't be bad.

DSM Jeff · 08-18-2009, 04:17 AM

I'll add some things for doing brake lines. I picked up this flare tool kit from Eastwood when it was on sale. It beats one I spent around $400 on all day. Of course their are cheaper ones from part stores but this is for the guy who may do a variety of lines for other projects.
Professional Brake Tubing Flaring Tool

This is the more expensive one, which I managed to a lot find cheaper then this. I'm still up in the air about it. I have not had the best luck with some of the specialty flares
Universal Hydraulic Flaring Kit NOT FOR STAINLESS

As far as tubing benders, I currently have my good one at a friends house. Be very careful on what you buy. Some of the 4 in 1 claim they will bend 3/16" when its really a 1/4" die. Trust me, it'll ruin you day. There is a small tubing bender that starts at 3/16", but i forget who makes it.
Another I found is from here,
Lever Tube Bender, 3/16" Brake Line

Which speedway does have some great parts, I highly suggest getting a free catalog from them. They also carry some tools that are priced lower then many others.

For tubing benders I know a couple people who have the Pro-tools bender and enjoy it. There seems to be a lot of options. Just from using these at school I think I would spend a little more on this for a higher quality tool and dies like pro-tools. They also have a nice notcher.

For i/c piping you'll need to run a bead. At a shop I spent some time at we had one of these,
Bead Form Product Page which seem to really have gone up in price. If you don't feel the need to spend that you can find a cheaper bead roller for sheet metal. Some come with additional dies that can be used for i/c beads. I have a cheap, cheap one that isn't the easiest to use. Its made from a piece of steel so it becomes flimsy since their is no bracing. I use a c-clamp and some steel to close off the 'throat' so it doesn't twist.
Woodward Fab WFBR6 - Woodward Fab Bead Rollers – SummitRacing.com is an example of the bead roller you can use for i/c piping beads.

Gonzo · 10-30-2009, 11:23 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by DSM Jeff

As far as tubing benders, I currently have my good one at a friends house. Be very careful on what you buy. Some of the 4 in 1 claim they will bend 3/16" when its really a 1/4" die. Trust me, it'll ruin you day. There is a small tubing bender that starts at 3/16", but i forget who makes it.
Another I found is from here,
Lever Tube Bender, 3/16" Brake Line

That looks very much like a Ridgid bender. Kind of pricey, but very high quality.

v8s_are_slow · 02-01-2010, 10:15 PM

What do ya'll use for cutting pipes (and what kind of blade)? Say for example, i/c pipes or exhaust. Pie cutting, etc.? Or let's say I wanted a nice clean edge for the end of an exhaust pipe (straight or at an angle). What would I use so it wouldn't look like the end of the exhaust pipe just went through a tree shredder.

JAXWHITE1G · 02-02-2010, 03:45 AM

My shop includes a metal and wood lathes, mill, blast cabinet, pipe bender, belt/disk sander, bead roller, planishing hammer, bench top english wheel, 12"sheer, small sheet metal brake, MIG, Tig, Oxy/Acetylene welders, horizontal/vertical metal band saw, tubing notcher, and many smaller tools.
The tool I use 10 times more than the rest is the band saw. It sees use on nearly a daily basis and I would recommend one as one of your first purchases building a metal shop followed by the Oxy/Acetylene welder. The gas welder isn't showing up in as many shops as it once was but is so versatile I would not be without it. You can weld about anything with it including Aluminum. Heating and bending etc. It might be slower than MIG but more cost effective.
Just throwing in my 2 cents.

Mike

greenydsm · 02-02-2010, 05:25 AM

holy fab tools. I'd love to have all of that^

i just have a bench grinder, 6" vice, lincoln mig, big air compresser and a bunch of air tools.

I'm only 19 and i bought everything myself. I'd like to get a tig and a tourch.

I have been looking at the Miller Diversion, but for the tourch i really have no idea what to look for in one. Any suggestions?

99gst_racer · 02-02-2010, 06:53 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by v8s_are_slow

What do ya'll use for cutting pipes (and what kind of blade)? Say for example, i/c pipes or exhaust. Pie cutting, etc.? Or let's say I wanted a nice clean edge for the end of an exhaust pipe (straight or at an angle). What would I use so it wouldn't look like the end of the exhaust pipe just went through a tree shredder.

I use a Clarke metalworks chop saw. And I finish the edges with a belt sander and/or an air grinder with a small carbide bit. It works well enough. I do need a nice little band saw though. It would probably cut cleaner and be more optimal for cutting some steel.

JAXWHITE1G · 02-02-2010, 07:24 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by greenydsm

holy fab tools. I'd love to have all of that^

i just have a bench grinder, 6" vice, lincoln mig, big air compresser and a bunch of air tools.

I'm only 19 and i bought everything myself. I'd like to get a tig and a tourch.

I have been looking at the Miller Diversion, but for the tourch i really have no idea what to look for in one. Any suggestions?

My prefered Oxy / Acet system is a Smith Aircrafter. I bought mine in 1980 and love it. It has a smaller torch and is much easier to control. I like the design better than most others. After the gas welder a tig is great but I would suggest a mig first. It is much more versital and you can't use a tig on the car without removing all electronic devices. You can weld aluminum with a mig if designed for it but it's usually not a pretty weld.

Quote:

Originally Posted by 99gst_racer

I use a Clarke metalworks chop saw. And I finish the edges with a belt sander and/or an air grinder with a small carbide bit. It works well enough. I do need a nice little band saw though. It would probably cut cleaner and be more optimal for cutting some steel.

I have a chop saw but forgot all about it since I got my band saw. An 18 tpi blade or finer cuts so smooth compaired to a chop saw. Get the biggest band saw you can afford as I thought 6" would be big enough for me but when you start cutting angles you start finding limitations.
Mike

99gst_racer · 02-02-2010, 12:12 PM

Anybody have any air shears? I'm looking for an easier and cleaner method for cutting some .040" thick aluminum sheeting. I'm thinking these would be the ticket, but I've never used them before, so I was hoping someone here can provide some insight to their functionability.

greenydsm · 02-02-2010, 03:07 PM

The only experiance i have with them is using them to cut sheetmetal at a buddys house. There deffently very cool and alot better then using hand sheers.

99gst_racer · 02-02-2010, 05:54 PM

So they cut pretty clean? How easy is it to take a sharp turn while cutting sheet aluminum? I'm hoping they don't do wide radius turns only.

I think I'm going to pick some up within the next month or two when I'm ready to fab up an aluminum dash for the race car.

greenydsm · 02-02-2010, 06:08 PM

honeslty, stop at harbor freight pick the cheapest one. Try it out on some scrap, then if you like the concept, return it and buy a quality one.

And yes the do cut very clean, and if i remember you can do a pretty tight radius

JAXWHITE1G · 02-02-2010, 06:12 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by 99gst_racer

So they cut pretty clean? How easy is it to take a sharp turn while cutting sheet aluminum? I'm hoping they don't do wide radius turns only.

I think I'm going to pick some up within the next month or two when I'm ready to fab up an aluminum dash for the race car.

They are designed to cut straight only. You can make wide turns but not very good. A nibbler will work very well for your application. With a nibbler it's difficult to cut real straight without a lot of care or a guide but I would buy a nibbler. I rarely use my shears anymore. I can't seem to copy and paste a photo but search ( Air Nibbler ) and you will have a lot of choices. Mine is Ingersoll Rand. I have used it commercially for about 10 years without any problem. I have some hand Nibblers also they are great for cutting holes for odd size holes or hard to get to places.

Mike

99gst_racer · 02-02-2010, 06:16 PM

As always, thanks for the info, Mike.

matthewdesigns · 02-02-2010, 10:10 PM

I just used a shear/nibbler of this style last week, as opposed to the type you show above. It cut very cleanly, and I turned corners that were practically 0 radius.

JAXWHITE1G · 02-03-2010, 08:25 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by matthewdesigns

I just used a shear/nibbler of this style last week, as opposed to the type you show above. It cut very cleanly, and I turned corners that were practically 0 radius

I have seen one of those and would like to try it out. looks like the best choice. The nibbler that I was talking about and the sheers posted earlier both cut a track that waists material.

Mike

Redwidow · 02-03-2010, 09:17 AM

I have an air nibbler something like the one above, and it works great. It get caught up on some tight radius', but for the most part it works awesome and its great for cutting sheet metal

matthewdesigns · 02-03-2010, 09:54 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by JAXWHITE1G

I have seen one of those and would like to try it out. looks like the best choice. The nibbler that I was talking about and the sheers posted earlier both cut a track that waists material.

Mike

I liked that one as it creates no waste, and it appears to be really easy to keep the blades positioned correctly to account for wear. The blades also detach pretty easily for resharpening. If I end up buying one it'll be that style. By the way I was cutting aluminum sheet aprox 1/16" thick with no problem at all...zipped right through it.

knochgoon24 · 03-04-2010, 12:36 AM

Has anyone used a Harbor Freight drill press?
I really don't have the money to spend on a great drill press. I'll mostly be drilling aluminum, plexiglas, and PVC.

I've though about making a few really simple parts to sell, but need something to drill semi-precise (straight

) holes.

dangler · 03-04-2010, 01:52 AM

I have the harbor freight bench top drill press. It works just fine, haven't had any issues with it. Just aim where you want it. Haha.

logic · 03-04-2010, 06:11 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by spoonman

I own the PRO-105 from Pro-Tools.com. This is a very well designed mandrel tube bender and is exactly what any fabricator needs if they plan on making roll cages, manifolds, or bumpers.

I'm a little late to reply to this, but the 105 isn't a mandrel bender. It's a great tubing bender, but a mandrel bender is a very different beast, and typically quite a bit more expensive. (And the results are obviously significantly better with thin-walled material like charge and exhaust tubing.)

In the same vein as the Pro-Tools bender, on my round-tuit list is building Frank Takacs' bender (the "gottrikes" bender). It takes the Pro-Tools dies (which are fantastic), but you fabricate the bender frame yourself. The design makes it portable, and it doesn't require an open area of floor space like the 105 (and in my "shop", there's precious little of that). Long tube to bend? Roll it out in the driveway and let it go. Have arms like a little girly-man? Replace the manual pump cylinder with an air cylinder. I picked up the plans quite a while ago and have had the air cylinder sitting in a corner for quite a while, I just haven't gotten around to tracking down enough material to weld it together. A few 4x4 forums have multi-year threads about that bender, if you're curious what variations people have made on them.

In an unrelated vein, here's some tool porn. I guarantee that if you click that link, you're going to want to buy something. VanSant isn't the cheapest place in town, but be damned if they don't stock some of the coolest tools I never realized I wanted.