Ernie Leimkuhler wrote in
rec.crafts.metalworking on Sat, 01 Jan 2011 02:20:54 -0800:

I would love to set up a wire straightener so I could convert all the
spools of fancy wire I have into TIG rods.

I did that once at work from advice I got from RCM. It was a lot
easier that I thought.

At work we have several swiss lathes. They have bar feeders that take
12ft. bars and feed and support them. The entire bar rotates in use.

We had a job that was to be made out of 1/8"dia. OFHC. The copper
took a long time to come in so we had the lathe set up for another
job. The due date was fast approaching. When we opened the cardboard
tube that the copper came in, we found that the copper bars were bent.
Some in several places. It would take too long to re-order more
stock. Then I remembered what someone on RCM said about how piano
wire is straightened. Since we had nothing to lose, I took a piece of
10" X 3/4" PTFE (teflon) and drilled a 3/16" hole through the length.
With a few scraps of wood blocks I clamped the teflon in a vise with
two blocks on the ends and one in the middle(opisit the other two).
Clamping down on the vise bends the teflon. The copper is lubed
lightly and fed through the hole in the teflon. From the other side
the copper is chucked in a hand drill. As other people hold the bar
lightly in their hands the bar is drawn through the teflon as it
spins. The bend in the teflon needs to be enough to bring the bar to
its yield point. As the bar passes the bend, it is bent and then
un-bent.
Worked great! The bars came out as straight as you could ask.

I'm sure the same thing would work for straightening your MIG wires
for use as TIG rods.
--

Dan H.
northshore MA.