bending pipe?

[BrokenBiker]

just a thought...is there a way to bend a pipe without the use of a pipe bender or a spring?

ive been asked to make a straight through exhaust for a mates mk3 escort banger racer, but neither of us have a pipe bender and he wants a 2 inch bore from manifold to end

any ideas?

 

[hotrodder]

Search the site for 'sand bending' although for a banger racer i'd just approximate bends using angled cuts aka lobster back bends or find some old exhaust and cut 'n shut

 

[BrokenBiker]

i was considering lobster backs but too much maths involved. i know how to work it out, but im not a fan of maths at the best of times lol

i was thinking without a bender, and as its a banger, to just cut 1 angle and weld i.e. cut 30deg off one of the pipes and weld to the other, making 30deg bend.

i know its not the correct way and it may hinder performance a tad, but after all its just a banger for sunday fun lol

 

[KemppiFrog]

Decide each bit of the bend, then halve the angle for the cut. So for a 30deg bend, cut 15deg and reverse the tube =30deg. Personally,for a banger, I would find some old stuff at the scrappy and use the bends, with slight adjustment at the joins. And tack it on the car.
KF

 

[BrokenBiker]

ive just sourced a mk3 escort full exhaust for 12 quid that just needs a few holes patched up, so im gonna see if he'll go for that instead, will be cheaper than buying the pipe too

 

[hotrodder]

i was thinking without a bender, and as its a banger, to just cut 1 angle and weld i.e. cut 30deg off one of the pipes and weld to the other, making 30deg bend.

Yeah, sorry by 'approximate' i meant just eyeball the cuts. As KF said cut both pieces though or you'll end up with a huge mismatch in circumference

 

[BrokenBiker]

yeah i realised that after i said it lol

but he has agreed to buy the scrap exhaust off fleabay so i'll just patch that up and bolt it on

did just download a lobster back calculating program i found in the bending box section thread

works very well, very easy to use, and it has a measurement display so you dont really need a printer either. just mocked up a 30mm dia 105deg bend with 3 sections and it worked first time using thin plastic.

very chiffed with this one