I saw a bending jig on ebay that I would like to try building myself instead of paying almost 400.00 dollars for it. The biggest die that comes with the jig is 6" in diameter and the base plate is 9" in diameter. I can obtain all of the round stock for the jig except for the 4",5",6" and the 9" base plate. Maybe someone on here can help me out??? The dies and the base plate should be cut from 3/4" thick. I'm tryin to do this as cheap as possible but I don't have a scrap yard anywhere around me that sells metal back to the public and if I buy the steel new from a welding shop or what ever and have them cut it out for me I'm looking at pretty close to $400.00. I guess what I am looking for is someone that has some 3/4" plate that can cut these dies out for me.

Why not use short sections of 4, 5, 6, 8 inch pipe or round bar?

Hope that works.

What would work best would be round stock in the diameters needed. And a lathe that has the capacity for those sizes. Chuck them up and drill a hole, with a 3 jaw chuck it will center itself, no lay-out required.

That guy sells alot of those benders, I wonder how useful they really are. I see it collecting lots of dust if it were in my shop

Seems like finding a piece of round 3/4"plate the right diameter on any scrap pile is a non starter.   However a nice square piece of plate near the correct size might be findable and workable.  The corners of a square plate could be trimmed to form an octagon for a close approximation to round.  

 

If your welding table is 3/4" plate why not build it into one corner of the top ?    Or if really desperate laminate a couple of pieces of  plate together to form the base..    

There is no need for the base to be round.  That's simply what the maker has available, and makes the whole thing look "right".  

 

While the bending jig is rather useful for making repeatable curves, there are better designs out there.  

 

Personally, while I like the idea, I would rather use a square table that has a series of holes in a grid pattern so that I can use it to make compound bends around multiple radii, like a serpentine finial you see on gates and railings.  You can still bend simple curves, but it opens the door to other uses.  Using sections of pipe to supply the radii is far easier and cheaper than using solid stock.  A lot of the time, you can find piping in 1' sections at the flea markets and re-sale stores.  Pots and pans can also be repurposed.

This is pretty obviously a home made bender and for $400 you should be able to find a Hossfeld (sp) or similar commercially made bender. Keep an eye on Craigslist and eBay you could get lucky. Another place to look for is old schools/shop classes closing, fab shops, especially ones specializing in decorative work, etc. having sales or auctions. Don't forget to tell EVERYBODY you know or run across from the checker at the local 7-11, your Pastor and Parishoners, your kids' teachers and class mates, etc. You get the idea.

 

For one offs I've used plywood for the ID die and simply clamped a roller to a bar handle in the right place. Sure it won't last for more than one or two bends but if you can take the smoke and flames you can soak it in oil and it'll last longer.

 

Frosty The Lucky.

you should try a local steel vendor, I probably am spoiled to have about 5 within a half hours drive. they have large band saws that will slice off pieces of steel that are large diamater like that. if they have a decent saw they could cut pretty square.  then there is no need for the pieces to be faced on the lathe. then maybee a drill press for the center hole?

 

This bender is an easy build with a drill press, and welder.  I built one of these a few years ago.  It works very well.  Besides the pipe dies, I use dies that I made by bending strap iron to the right diameter.  If you need a heavy duty unit, it can be scale up.  If you are interested I'll post pictures of  mine.

 

 

 

Old Metal Bender.pdf

Some good info in here.  Larry, I would be interested in some pics of your bender for sure.

That is a pretty slick copy of a small Hossfield bender

 

 

This bender is an easy build with a drill press, and welder.  I built one of these a few years ago.  It works very well.  Besides the pipe dies, I use dies that I made by bending strap iron to the right diameter.  If you need a heavy duty unit, it can be scale up.  If you are interested I'll post pictures of  mine.

 

 

Here are some picture of my bender attached to the side of my hydrualic press. The last three are of dies that I've made.  As you can see they don't have to be anything fancy most of mine are just throw togethers.  The football shaped ones can be used as feed along dies to make rings. 

Good stuff.  Thanks, Larry.  I think I know what my next project is.

I keep coming back to this simple fact; things are always easier if you don`t insist on working in a vacuum.
If you find and join the local club or guild in your area you`ll surely meet everyone you need to know as far as getting on top of both techniques and materials.

Well worth the price of admission (the annual dues) and far,far cheaper when many hands are involved in both the making process and the buying of the materials.

That is a pretty slick copy of a small Hossfield bender

Actually, the OP's bender is a pretty slick copy of a DiAcro bender. LarryM's bender is a pretty slick copy of a Hossfeld.

Both makes have instructional booklets available online that can give all sorts of ideas for homemade dies and fixtures.

Fciron,  You are right both Hossfeld, and DiArco have websites.  They have downloads of there catologs which you can use to learn to use these benders.

 

Larry  

Note if you can find a place that does structural steel work you may find a source of heavy steel disks that are cut out and *scrapped*. Also in VA I'd check around ship building and repair yards if you ever travel near the coast.