What Is a Mandrel Pipe Bender?

Posted on Sep 28, 2020

Mandrel Pipe Bender

We often talk about our aluminum tubes with mandrel bends which offer the smallest bend radius on the market, but what does that mean? Today, we will tell you what is a mandrel pipe bender and why is it important...
 

What Is Mandrel Bending?

Mandrel bending is a method in which a steel bar is inserted into a pipe as it is bent. This technique improves the bend of the pipe without creasing or breaking it at the bend. Mandrel bending is performed on a machine such as a CNC tube bender. This bender is the perfect choice for bending thin tubes without any deformation on a small radius and therefore we can offer you top-shelf products.

:: Read more : What Is a Mandrel Tube Bender?

 

Why Is It Important?

The best way to look at pipe bending is to compare it to a simple plastic straw. If the straw is completely straight, it is very easy to blow air through it as there are no restrictions. But let's say you decide to bend the straw 90 degrees into an “L” shape. Now it will be very difficult to blow air through the straw as the hole in the elbow of the straw will change from a round one to a very narrow slot. This is exactly how the pipes in your car's intake and exhaust systems work.

Mandrel bending works similar to flexible straw. When the straw is bent, the flexible part of the straw expands to maintain a circular opening regardless of the angle at which it is bent. When an exhaust or downpipe is manufactured with mandrel bends, the steel can extend out of the bend and compress on the inside of the elbow while maintaining the nominal pipe diameter. Exhaust gas follows fluid dynamics, so if you want to eliminate backpressure while maintaining exhaust gas velocity, the bend of the mandrel allows the hot exhaust gas to flow with less turbulence.

 

Our Mandrel Bend Radius

Our mandrel bends have the smallest bend radius on the market; most mandrel bends are 1.2D. They have been specially designed to avoid the problem of wrinkling along the inside of pipes and tubes during the production process. The mandrel remains in a fixed position as the outer radius of the pipe is pressurized, causing the pipe to stretch to the desired bend. Overall, keeping the shape we have to offer you.

Since mandrel bending is one of the most accurate and cost-effective metal forming processes, our tubes can be used for almost anything. From connecting hoses to intercoolers, coolers, air intake, turbochargers, intercooler systems to any D.I.Y.

 

Our Products

Our team of experts ensures high-quality results according to our customers' needs with a wide range of aluminum mandrel bends that are polished and ready to use. Whatever you need, we have pipes for you.

 

Improved Design

Pipe mandrel benders are more durable and versatile than traditional outdated "swing arm" technology. The bending axis is located directly below and supports the pressure die, eliminating the need for tie rods and preventing material slippage. The bending force exerted by the spindle is counteracted by a pressure die which is monitored and automatically adjusted continuously to achieve a constant pressure throughout the bending cycle. The internal design of the Giga Bender series features large spindle and bearing diameters for the greatest rigidity. Tube mandrel bender CNC tube mandrel benders are designed using the latest technology and machine tool standards. The load capacities are assessed on the basis of the material size as well as the section modulus, which enables the customer to determine the actual machine performance for the application. If you are considering purchasing a mandrel bender for pipes, tubes or profiles with high strength, consider the advantages of a mandrel bender.

 

Traditional Swing Arm Clamping Difficulties

The clamping die of the rocker arm benders is mounted on a bracket resting on a guide built into the top of the rocker arm. The arm assembly wobbles as the bending die rotates.) The crimp die, when closed, inherently induces a huge shifted load on the bending die. This can cause the bending die to tilt. As the bending die rotates, this tilt causes a constantly changing out-of-plane relationship between the bending die and both the pressure die and the wiper die. The older the machine and tooling, the worse the condition. When the bending die tilts under the clamp load, the top portions of the clamping surface actually detach from the workpiece, resulting in a reduced clamping nip.

Since extremely high clamping and bending forces are required to bend large workpieces, this tilting phenomenon necessitates the use of overhead track rods, center posts, multiple clamping bolt patterns and flange-mounted bent dies on swing arm benders. The knee clamp closure mechanisms used on most swing arm benders generate an undefined excessive clamping force at its dead center before it reaches beyond the lock dead position. When mechanically fastening a hydraulically actuated device it is not possible to use hydraulic gauges to measure the actual clamp.

As the size of the benders increases, the rocker assembly becomes disproportionately bulky to apply the necessary clamping forces and accommodate up to 5 x D. The main swing arm bender beam is at right angles to the die ram. These bending machines use a fixed main frame for functions related to the variable positioning of the workpiece axes - functions such as supporting a 3-axis carriageway and mounting a mandrel extractor. Heavy loads exerted by larger workpieces are borne by unnecessarily complex and / or intermediate mechanisms. In addition, the arm and clamp become collision obstacles as the pipe is moved between bends. This difficulty can only be solved by a swivel clamping mechanism or a separately rotatable coaxial rocker arm and main shaft - each more complex and weaker, compromising the outdated machine design. The elimination of clamp interference by mechanical means increases maintenance costs and reduces reliability.

 

C-Axis Construction

C-axis movement uses a single two-speed hydraulic cylinder to operate the bend and retract function, easy to adjust, minimize the dimensions of the bending head, reducing the overall machine footprint. C-axis driven by two chains directly connected to the axle, eliminating sprockets and axle play. For safety the return pressure of the bending is controlled to 50 bar. The axis of the bending head moves to adjust the centerline, keeps the axis aligned with the mandrel carriage. The axis of the bending head adjustable for the radius of the center line of the previous one ensures the alignment of the axis. CNC models have motorized axis alignment for bending head alignment and workpiece loading and unloading. Powered centerline radius adjustment of the bending head allows the mandrel table to remain stationary and rigid. All cast parts are certified GS500 steel Spheroid design. Multiple design improvements and patents eliminate dated mechanical systems and unnecessary mass.

 

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