TheSamba.com :: View topic

Thu Apr 24, 2008 1:39 pm

I have been looking around trying to find a company that rents tube benders. All that I can find is conduit benders, and I assume that this would not work.

That has got me thinking...

"Would there be an interest in buying a bender, and making it available for rent?"

I was thinking for about $20-$30 a day, you could rent it for your project. Of course there would have to be a deposit that would cover the price if you decided to not bring it back. This would have to be either cash, or on a credit card. I would include various die sizes, and instructions too. Perhaps even a copy of some of the free software that can be found to help in the layout and design.

I am in So-Cal (Corona). If this is something that you would be interested in, let me know. If there is a lot of interest, I might just go for it.

Thu Apr 24, 2008 9:22 pm

i used a conduit bender to make my new race car. it was a nice one about 3 or 4 grand. i cant rember if i used the ent dies or rigid ones. it worked very well. i have a hossfeild one at home and it is to much work for me. hope that this helps . christian

Thu Apr 24, 2008 10:25 pm

i used a harbour frieght pipe bender to build the cage on this.i had to use a 1.25 die to bend 1.5 tube without it kinking.

Thu Apr 24, 2008 10:45 pm

tube bender / conduit bender is the same thing ...I own two greenlee benders
yes conduit and tube measures different,, but the bender doesn't know that.. This is the first thing most will hoot n holler about ... showing they have never picked up a tape and measure tube or conduit.... :roll:

Fri Apr 25, 2008 6:54 am

Bend it with conduit.. then take your mock up to a metal shop.. they'll bend for about $5 each.. no mistakes... no kinked tube

Fri Apr 25, 2008 3:23 pm

So, what you are saying that a "conduit" bender that can be found at most tool rental places will do the trick?

Fri Apr 25, 2008 3:58 pm

I disagree 100% if you want quality bends. (tubing 1.5'' outside )(pipe 1.5'' inside). that is a big difference tubing bender has a larger die. don't bother if quality and safety are important. If your into a single hoop like many. Go for it. they are useless anyway.

Fri Apr 25, 2008 9:59 pm

I have a J D squared bender, It's a pretty good deal on a bender, I think they list for about $300.00 with dies in the $180.00 to $280.00 range.
you can get good kink free bends even on some of the thinner tubing. The dies will bend 180 dregee bends.

Earthquake

Sat Apr 26, 2008 8:41 am

A local electrical contractor sold me his old hydrallic greenlee tube bender. It worked great for my .083 DOM 1 1/2 buggie frame. I used the 1 1/4 inch shoes and it made nice smooth bends. Not as sharp as some but looks good.

I made some marks and did a test bend to find how much pipe to add to my calculations and it works just great. I just use the seam or line thats on the tubing to center it on the inside. You can tweak it a little. You learn how to allow for some spring back. Sure is nice.

Check with your local commercial electrical contractors to see what you can scrounge up. Mine leaks hydrolic fluid and it was a mess so the price was right. The 1 1/2 inch shoe had been broken and repaired but worked fine. It's one of those tools that you don't use often but is sure nice to have. I spose I could get the leaks taken care of but it's not like you would use it all day everyday like an electriction.

There new benders were all electronic controlled with digital readouts and memory so they could do fast production work on the job. This thing was just collecting dirt under a bench. The electrician was someone who did a lot of work for us so he new me and what I wanted it for. It helps to have an inside line.

Good luck on your search. Ya just never know until you ask. Don't haggle on price and have cash. Like the above post suggests maybe you can help some friends with projects and pay for it.

Tubing is cheaper if you buy 100 ft at a time and try to get a cash ticket for where you work. Some pipe dealers are wholesale only but will work with you.

Sat Apr 26, 2008 12:31 pm

The H/F bender is a different story,, My guess the buggy pictured was built from .120 or thicher and yes you can see the crush on some bends..

These jd's ,, pro tools ect are direct copys of greenlee to the point you can take a pro tool die set and use it in a greenlee

Bottom line they all put a slight crush on the inside ,,, there's no way of get around that,,,
people will never know untill you use each brand,,
here where the cheaper brands win a pro tool die set,, avg about 4$200 ,, a greenlee set avg about $800

If you want quality greenlee is where it's at.. Oh,, greenlee shoes and fallow bars are Alum,,, where they others shoes are steel ,,, so one is 35 lbs, the other is 8 lbs.
If you do much bending you'll know where is matters..

yes if you can find a rental,, that rents conduit benders they work very well,, even better than the cheap brands you see on the net...

The die might have 1 1/4 emt stamped on it.. emt 1 1/4 ID = 1 1/2 OD

Sat Apr 26, 2008 7:24 pm

My comment on conduit is to use a conduit bender to mock up your bends.. then take this TEMPLATE to a metal shop for popping in the real steel.

Sat Dec 31, 2011 5:25 pm

I originally started this thread a long time ago.

I how have available for rent a bender with 1-1/2" & 1-3/4" dies.

Check out my web site at www.rentabender.com for details and pricing.

Sat Dec 31, 2011 5:48 pm

towd wrote: tube bender / conduit bender is the same thing ...I own two greenlee benders
yes conduit and tube measures different,, but the bender doesn't know that.. This is the first thing most will hoot n holler about ... showing they have never picked up a tape and measure tube or conduit.... :roll:

He is referring to "rigid" conduit not "thinwall" conduit you buy for $1.50 a stick at Home Depot.