Sand-bending Exhaust Tube

Anybody actually doing this? I thought this was just a myth. http://www.rorty-design.com/content/sand_bending.htm

 

you can do it but the pipe has to be full all the way, and capped off at both ends or it will still kink, and just push the sand out the ends.i used to bend peices of tubink for lowrider bike fork that way when i was a wee lad

 

Search Metalshapes posts for tech on how to do this.

 

I am just trying to understand it. I know you can bend tube by heating it, but can you actually bend headers that look descent this way? Anybody have any pics of headers bent this way?

 

I used to make all of the headers for my rotary race engines. This is how I did it, and it works. I had to have the headers bent in a certain way, and I could do it this way quicker than buying a unversal header kit and welding it together. And it was cheaper.

 

my buddy pat lash bent his exhaust with sand

 

There was a video on You Tube some time ago where they filled the pipe with sand and water and taped off the ends. They then just used a cheap hydraulic pipe bender with good results.

 

that is impressive

 

I hear people do this all the time, my one reservation would be the "capping off" part. I would assume you don't completely seal the ends, if you did that and then heat up a muddy water mixture, you'd be making one hell of a pipe bomb!

Hows that work?

 

you cant heat it too much with water in it. ever held a lighter under a plastic cup with water in it? surprisingly it doesnt melt

 

never heard of the water stuff.. but ya fill it with sand but you need to pack it really good. then heat and bend.
Dave

 

can't sweat a wet pipe either

 

i know all about that, sux. always hated doin repair calls on old copper plumbing

 

Make ABSOLUTELY sure the sand is completely dry before you use it. Wet sand in an enclosed container is a BOMB when heated hot enough to bend the pipe.

Frank

 

I helped pat lash do his exhaust pipe's on his roadster. we welded up one side then packed tight with sand and I mean packed the shit out of it.. Then we ducted tape the other end up and NOT using any water in with the sand.. DRY SAND ONLY.. then we heated up a little section at a time over a woodin buck...

 

Did you bend the headers that way as well? Or just the large radius bend?

 

just the large bends

 

Its more work than its worth. You have to dry the sand in an oven or the pipe will explode and like kill you.

I know a guy that does it regularly and it scares the shit out of me even with sand that has been dryed.

 

Link.

http://www.jalopyjournal.com/forum/showthread.php?t=140526&highlight=sand+bending

 

Lots of early hot rodders (pre-wwii) did this,....

its been around for a long time....a forgotten art.

 

Doane Spencer did this type of bending for most of his headers, I helped him with a set he made for a Lola T600 and when he was done and had them chromed (Doane loved chrome) they were beautiful!!. Dry sand, cap the ends, absolutely tamp the shit out of the sand and use a big torch and lots of time. A guy, Kiwi I think, named Pete Wilkens made all of the Titanium headers for the original Ford four cam Indy motors this way and man they were neat.
Rex

 

I've got some square tube downstairs right now that is packed full of sand. Been playing around with it for a few months, works just fine.

Your wife will shit when she comes home and finds the roasting pan full of sand in the oven. If she doesn't, you can tell her about the bellhousing you ran through the dishwasher (I suggest the pot scrubber cycle, btw)

 

My wife would kill me. I get chewed for having sand in my shoes.

 

post up some more pics please

 

Jim Humes did a step by step article on sand bending for gasser wars magazine earlier this year. If you contacted them it's very informative. www.gasserwarsmagazine.com 360-568-1709

 

I call bull shit on this statement .I forge tubing all the time with sand in it to hold the shape and also apply force with a trip hammer for texture .No explosions will happen .Maybe if you put gas in the sand it might explode .
My 2 cents

 

when i was like 12 or 13 years old me and my dad bent up a set of handle bars for a bicycle with he process of Sand-bending, we packed em full of sand and then welded caps on the end of the bars. it worked great

i think the problem with the water in the sand is when it turns to steam it wants to get out.


jeff

 

I would like to see some close ups of some bends that have been bent this way. Just curious how the bends look on a tight radius like headers.

 

You CAN heat it too much with water in it! If you have any moisture in the sand at all, you absolutely CANNOT seal both ends of the pipe, you need to have somewhere for the steam to vent. Ever seen the aftermath of a boiler explosion? Ever see the Mythbusters episode with the hot water heater rocket? You heat a pipe full of water too much, that's what you've got, albeit on a smaller scale.

 

Just drill a couple of very tiny holes in the ends to let the pressure of any steam or other vapors out and it won't be a problem. You can also just vibrate the sand instead of trying to pack it down. The vibrating probably will work way better and faster. That is what they do with concrete in formwork, they don't to pack it down, same principal. Just don't let your wife know that you did that with "that".

Actually, you will probably need a vibrator stronger than that kind. Might be able to rent something or get an old elc. motor with an out of balance weight on the shaft or something or one one of those small deburring machines maybe.