Bending a brass tube...

[martin]

Ive found that some of the Octura teflon liners are a bit tight in the tube, very simple remedy i was given is to stretch the liner which reduces the o/d of the liner & it will then slide in ok. Ive stretched .098 liner 2" on a 1foot length, this dosnt close the liner down to much either onto the flex.

[Fluid]

I don't want to get into the quench VS nonquench argument, but I stopped annealing shaft tubing after one turned into a pretzel. Annealing does soften the shaft and that can result in the pretzel shape aformentioned.

I have never heated brass or copper tubing or used sand or salt to bend it. I can make a 4" diameter bend with 3/16" without collapsing the tube, you can too if you try. Just go slowly.

If you want to harden brass, do not heat then quench in water - this softens noble metals. From a hobby site:

"If a metalsmith heats brass to the point where the atoms possess sufficient energy to rearrange themselves back into well-ordered layers, and then rapidly cools the metal -- a process called tempering -- the metal returns to its softer, more pliable state."

http://www.ehow.com/how_7937058_temper-brass-metal.html

I soften brass shell casing all the time, quenching works well for that.





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[Marinetechal]

I went to the Bearing service shop and purchased a long return spring that fitted snug over the tube, anneal then bend and definitely no kinks.

[sailr]

I stopped using teflon liners a couple of years ago. Much less drag and one less thing to worry about!

[bigwaveohs]

Bending a stuffing tube

I've done it both ways (with and without heating) and heating seem to be the easiest. There is no need to get it "red" hot or to quench it in water. Heat it with a propane torch until it discolors (starts to blue) in the area you want to bend, and then let it cool naturally on a concrete floor or firebrick. It doesn't take long and bends without kinking.
JMHO

[properchopper]

I've done it both ways (with and without heating) and heating seem to be the easiest. There is no need to get it "red" hot or to quench it in water. Heat it with a propane torch until it discolors (starts to blue) in the area you want to bend, and then let it cool naturally on a concrete floor or firebrick. It doesn't take long and bends without kinking.
JMHO

Dat's how me doez it.

[martno1fan]

Just install flex and bend SIMPLE,no need to heat,this is soft brass thin walled tube were talking about here not steel lol.Never had a tube kink doing it this way EVER cmon guys keep it simple its not rocket science.

[785boats]

That's basically how I do it too Marto1fan.
I, like you & Jay, have never heated stuffing tubes to bend them. It's easy enough to to without going through all that rigmarole.

[Boaterguy]

i have put significant bends (more than enough for a stuffing tube on even the farthest back motors) in tubes and had no issues whatsoever, I never heat, just like sailr said, one less thing to worry about messing up.

[worriedsick4u]

pipe bender.jpg
I'm new at this but I found this 1/4 OD bender at Lowes for $4.99. Works great. No heating. No sand. Just insert pipe and bend.

[JIM MARCUM]

My above comments need revision. Unfortunately, what I learned about tempering stainless steel, steel, & sheet metal as a sheetmetal journeyman does not apply to brass.

Tempering of brass with heat & quenching makes it softer & easier to bend. That was counterintuative for me. Once tempered or anealed, brass will stay soft. However, softer brass will wear out faster & the stuffing tube will have to be replaced sooner.

The only way to re-harden brass is by using rollers or hammering it (not so good for tubing).

The bottom line is - if you can bend your stuffing tube with out tempering it do it. JIM

[JimClark]

Need to get me one of those

[ATTACH=CONFIG]69020[/ATTACH]
I'm new at this but I found this 1/4 OD bender at Lowes for $4.99. Works great. No heating. No sand. Just insert pipe and bend.

[JIM MARCUM]

Exactly where in Lows do you find these benders? I tried several Lowes searches w/o success. Do they go by another name? JIM

[worriedsick4u]

Plumbing dept. Comes in a pack of 4 different sizes. Coppper tube bender. Didn't find them online either. Just went to the store.

[worriedsick4u]

Exactly where in Lows do you find these benders? I tried several Lowes searches w/o success. Do they go by another name? JIM

Here's one on Amazon
http://www.amazon.com/Wolverine-PST0.../dp/B000BPNMTU