"mlcorson" wrote in message
oups.com...
I've got some 3/8" un-deformed reinforcement rod to bend in a 7"
radius bending in 180 degrees until the rod is running parallel to
itself. I only need 6 of them as part of a sculpture I am doing. I
thought I would get a 7" diameter piece of pipe maybe with a flange
and weld a post along the pipe, heat the rod, insert the rod between
the post and pipe and bend until the desired bend is achieved. The
bends need to be reasonably duplicated. I haven't gone to the junk
yard yet, so I don't know what my chances of finding the right piece
of pipe are going to be right now. The recycle center (aka junk yard)
where I go has a lot car and truck wheel parts, rotors, pipes, rails,
and other classic steel junk. Is there is better way to do this? Maybe
a better choice of assembly parts to build the jig?
-Mike

It sounds like a 14" rim from a car would work well for a bending jig.(Or
13" to allow for springback) Or did you mean 7" diameter? I weld a small
tab to hold one end of the rod fixed and use a pipe the rod will slip inside
of to form the bend- advancing the pipe as the bend is formed. I have a vice
mounted on a pipe outside my shop to clamp the rim in.
Steve