FridgeFreezer Posted August 15, 2014 Share Posted August 15, 2014 I thought this opened up a few possibilities for the price of a cheapo pressure washer - not the first time I've heard about it being done but the first video I've seen of someone trying it: Hydroforming with brilliant nutter Colin Furze Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
landroversforever Posted August 15, 2014 Share Posted August 15, 2014 I watched that the other day. Great idea, I couldn't help but think about DIY Waterjet cutter? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hybrid_From_Hell Posted August 15, 2014 Share Posted August 15, 2014 Love Furzes stuff....young excentric nutter Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
landroversforever Posted August 15, 2014 Share Posted August 15, 2014 Love Furzes stuff....young excentric nutter Didn't know you had kids Nige 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hybrid_From_Hell Posted August 15, 2014 Share Posted August 15, 2014 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hybrid_From_Hell Posted August 15, 2014 Share Posted August 15, 2014 Educational too....all about towing here : Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CwazyWabbit Posted August 15, 2014 Share Posted August 15, 2014 Educational for safety as well Nige, in fact this video proves he a relative of yours Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CwazyWabbit Posted August 15, 2014 Share Posted August 15, 2014 Back on topic though, Mr Freezer what things could you envisage making using hydroforming? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Team Idris Posted August 15, 2014 Share Posted August 15, 2014 Two stroke exhaust pipes We tried it with ally (Darren Clark did) and it was a perfectly viable part, except it didn't look too good. But the turbo air wouldn't have cared, just the customer..... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FridgeFreezer Posted August 18, 2014 Author Share Posted August 18, 2014 Back on topic though, Mr Freezer what things could you envisage making using hydroforming? Not sure really, as mentioned above it's great for 2-stroke exhausts (which is where I'd heard of a mate-of-a-mate doing it), also as mentioned they use it a lot these days for car bodyshells so I'm assuming they inflate the metal into some sort of mould. For smaller, complicated parts I wonder how heavy duty the mould would have to be - could you whittle it from wood, or a plaster cast of a part, or 3D print it (with some reinforcement)...? Not sure I have a specific use in mind. I guess things like tanks (fuel/water/whatever) to fit in funny shaped nooks and crannies are the obvious one. Exhaust manifolds and funny shaped bends etc. Could make a very bling stainless shower tray for the camper I suppose! Usually making nice curves / rounded shapes in metal is quite hard, hence why so much stuff ends up with square edges and angles, maybe this would open a few doors. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CwazyWabbit Posted August 18, 2014 Share Posted August 18, 2014 I suppose it would be a good source for curves/domes etc to be welded into other parts being made. Interested in the moulding idea, I guess strength of the mould would be directly related to both the metal thickness and the amount the metal will need to stretch to follow the details. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
David Sparkes Posted August 18, 2014 Share Posted August 18, 2014 Following the previous two posts, also got me thinking, but I was struggling to think of anything which enabled 'home hydroforming' to achieve something worthwhile. It seemed you had to bend metal, then cut out the bit you wanted, scrap the rest, then perform ANOTHER welding operation to incorporate your bent metal into a finished product. Expensive and time consuming. My next thought was along the lines of making a mould and forming the metal to the internal shape of the mould, but making moulds isn't easy, so the process again becomes Expensive and time consuming. PLUS, did a domestic pressure washer produce enough power to force metal into a mould, thus smoothing out the wrinkles seen in the free form 'disc' exercise? (MAYBE, if the metal was aluminium sheet rather than steel sheet). Eventually I recalled Autospeed carrying an article on hydroforming, and as they pretty much push the boundaries on DIY they might have something relevant. Unfortunately not, the articles were about production use of hydroforming. Even though the articles date from 2001 they show, in general terms, how hydroforming is used in the 'real world'. (Can I imply You-Tube videos tend to portray the unreal world?). Hydroforming - Part 1The case study might be relevant to those installing intercooler or radiator pipework, etc Hydroforming - Part 2While researching, I've thought of two applications which might be usable in the DIY sphere. Correctly shaped trumpets for air induction into a pipe. NACA ducts. In both cases the shapes are not too complex, and the required external moulds should be fairly easy to fabricate, possibly lending themselves to small scale 'production', rather than the one-off requirements that tends to categorise DIY. For the moulds I'm visualising 'shaped wood (MDF?)' contained within a square / rectangular / circular steel outer casing. HTH. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PaulMc Posted August 21, 2014 Share Posted August 21, 2014 Colin's latest hydroforming project . Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
simonr Posted August 21, 2014 Share Posted August 21, 2014 I heard of someone copying a car door (of unknown type) by taking a plaster of Paris mold of the door inside a metal frame, laying a sheet of metal over the top then clamping another thicker, reinforced bit of metal to the frame, sandwiching the sheet with a length of O ring type material to effect a seal. Pump it up and the sheet deforms into the mold - much like vacuum forming except for metal. I don't know how well it worked - but it has potential for making new panels! It also has no welding and minimal wastage. Plaster works well in compression, so long as it is fully contained in the frame and it includes appropriate 'draft' angles at any steep edges. Si Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cackshifter Posted August 23, 2014 Share Posted August 23, 2014 Thats ok for a start, but you have to allow for it to spring when the pressure is released.. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
landrovermanuk Posted August 31, 2014 Share Posted August 31, 2014 Somebody used to make boat hulls by digging a hull shaped hole in the ground. Weld some ally plates together in a rough hull shape. Drop it in the hole fill it with water then dropped a stick of dynamite in it. The resulting explosion finished the shape.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
simonr Posted August 31, 2014 Share Posted August 31, 2014 That sounds kind of cool! Unfortunately, I don't have a stock of Dynamite to try it with! (Probably for the best, thinking about it) Si Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
landrovermanuk Posted August 31, 2014 Share Posted August 31, 2014 That sounds kind of cool! Unfortunately, I don't have a stock of Dynamite to try it with! (Probably for the best, thinking about it) Si I think it was Australia.... Our rules on explosives are a little bit of a spoiler for home experiments...lol Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bigstevemex Posted September 28, 2014 Share Posted September 28, 2014 Chap called Derek Huxley used to make racing 2 stroke pipes this way Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mo Murphy Posted October 11, 2014 Share Posted October 11, 2014 It used to be quite common for 2 stroke expansion chambers to be made like this. Mo Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.
Note: Your post will require moderator approval before it will be visible.