Flange Making Tool Thingumy wotsit for Tubes - Help

[Hybrid_From_Hell]

I have a need ( No, not that one ) to take bits of maybe ali tube maybe steel tube say 1.5-3mm thick wall

(Steel thinner ali thicker) and cut to a length and then shove a "Rim / Rib / Flange thingy on the ends.

I have seen the mickey mouse ones that would stuggle on a loo roll, there are a couple of machine shop sellers

of s/h kit near me, but unsure what I am asking for if they are huge, power 3 phase or a windy handle and big vice mounted ??

....or could I make one ?? (rather not !)

I have taken a picture of what I am after with my iPhone but, seeing as Apple is near incompatible with almost everything

else on the planet I will have to email it to myself onto a PC then save it then upload <scream gently>

Anyone able to give me some info re the above ??

Nige

[SmasherWebbs]

Have a look on reed's they might have what your looking for.

http://www.reedmfgco.com/

[steve b]

Hi Nige

I think they are called rib rolls , I think the HoF's had one/made one during the last build thread on here , would be fairly easy to make with a lathe etc . The wheels need to be small enough to fit the smallest tube you will need to put a ring onto

cheers

Steveb

[robertspark]

What you are looking for (I think) is a "beading tool" ????

Such as these: http://www.earls.co.uk/earls/accessories/tools/beadingtools.html

Price listed here: http://www.matcotools.com/catalog/product/F2AV12-50/10-PC-TUBE-BEADING-TOOL-KIT/ suggest you sit down first.

I would think that one of these would be the easiest to make....

Two small ball bearings (same as used for a bicycle handle bars to frame), and a pointed bolt, within a theaded sleeve or larger bolt.... if that makes sense.

Or these: http://shop.useful-tools.co.uk/hand-beading-tool-4-p.asp

Or these: http://www.aircraftspruce.com/catalog/topages/parkerbead.php

Or one of these:

[Hybrid_From_Hell]

No good so far

Tubes could be 3 inch od or even bigger

Anyone ?

Nige

[CwazyWabbit]

Novel idea for a cheap bead roller (taken from http://www.rx7club.c...ad.php?t=842624)

Not sure how you grip pipe to turn it though

[missingsid]

IIRC you are looking at are also known as swage or swaging machine?

Most I have seen are for thin sheet for boddy work or air condittioning duct work.

They do not look cheap though.

Marc.

[integerspin]

All the above things will do the job, I made one specailly for doing pipe, I have several

home made bead rollers for beading and edging panels. The limit is usually how small they

will go or are they rigid enough.

[markt]

http://www.frost.co.uk/automotive-engine-and-mechanical-tools/bead-form-for-metal-tubing.html

http://www.frostrochdale.com/swaging_machines.php

[FridgeFreezer]

Like this?

I might know where there's one you could borrow

[robertspark]

I'll ask the daft question, could you not just weld a bead on the end of the tube?

something such as form a circular ring using a welding (flux removed) or tig filler rod around the tube, then weld the ring in place. The purpose of the bead is to aide in stopping a hose blowing / slipping off the end of a tube (don't polish the tube ends!). And the hose is held on by the jubilee clip, interference fit between the hose and the tube forms the seal, not the bead albeit it may aide in the process.

Even if you braze a ring on the end it will serve the same purpose unless you want a showroom finish?

thats my 2p / logic anyway right or wrong.

[integerspin]

If your have a set of rad or intercooler pipes you want to bead your welcome to use my bead roller

.It's crude, won't do under soemthing like an inch[the bottom roller is made from 1" bar] and

I haven't used it on thicker than 2mm ali tube. Here are some rad joiners that I beaded.

[Hybrid_From_Hell]

Mmmmm

They kooky damned good

Could you please post up pics of yer home made device please Mr

Nige

[integerspin]

It was made from scraps, the gears are from a montego starter. There is to much overhang, but the bits of

metal were already the lengths you see and I intended on cutting the shafts down so there was as little overhang

from the bearings as possible.

The bottom roller rides in a couple of Suzuki wheel bearings, the top one has a conveniently the correct size[sort of] bit of

steel tube at the back. The front sliding bush is the old bronze nut from the cross slide of my lathe[the thread in it had gone].

So you stick the tube in, tigten the hex bolt you see at the top, it pushes the front bearing down, then wind the handle[if it had one].

Hope thats of some help, I have sevral others, this is the nicest looking!

[stuck]

What are the bits from that actualy put the ridge into the tube?

[integerspin]

What are the bits from that actualy put the ridge into the tube?

You need a lathe to make them. The top one was an old roller from my bead roller that lived in the

hedge, the bottom roller I turned the profile directly on the bit of steel I used as the bottom shaft..

[landroversforever]

Nige, to get the photos off, just plug it into your PC and use it like a USB pen . Simples as that meercat says!

[simonr]

Nigel, I'm kind of surprised you didn't just make one!

You have pretty good machining capability IIRC and it would only take a few hours to knock something up!

Si

[mickeyw]

Nige would have to make one out of cardboard first Anyone for cardboard gearcutting?

[simonr]

I can cut metal gears - so how hard can cardboard be!

Si

[CwazyWabbit]

You should be able to print these http://woodgears.ca/gear_cutting/template.html on cardboard and cut them out lol

[mickeyw]

That's brilliant.

I know all that can be done on Solidworks but that's a handy resource for non-CAD types. Better keep it handy for when I need to built a wooden Toy Rover

[simonr]

Unfortunately, I found that if you actually profile mill the gears from the SW Toolbox, they don't run terribly well! However a set of gearcutter wheels on an index head or 4th Axis and they run very smoothly!

I think the built in gears are fine for simulations but not if you want to make a gearbox.

Si

[dirtydiesel]

Try one of these nige,

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Pipe-Beading-Tool-Intercooler-Piping-Bead-Form-Tubing-Aluminium-Tube-Set-Kit-/221006535528?pt=UK_CarsParts_Vehicles_CarParts_SM&hash=item3375041b68

[richp110]

Hello all, I was also in the same position looking for an affordable bead former and I came across this idea on a hotrod forum i think it was. I suppose it would be possible to make a die holder that would allow a variety of tube sizes to be accomodated. However for a 50p carboot set of mole grips and a lunch break (extended) to make them its much cheaper than the commercial variants.

I would reccomend including a backstop into the u section like I have (so the bead is concentric). adding a locknut onto the pressure adjuster part of the mole grips ensures the same extent of push - thus a uniform bead. I used a thick washer to make the former that pushes onto the tube from the inside and a holesaw to make the die and a lump of boxsection.

Steel tubing needs to be annealed first, as does alu tube (fairy liquid rubbed on before heating - when it goes black its roughly right temp, theres many other techniques such as a sooty stick and temp indicator pens etcetc) within the scope of a gas hob or camping stove.