advice on bending brass tubing

[english electric]

Hi all

 

im after some advice on the best way of bending brass tubing ?

im after bending it 90 degrees to make 0 gauge lights for my layout, plan is to make them working lights as well

thanks in advance on any tips provided

[bertiedog]

I assume small bore fine wall brass tube, what you need is low melt solder, or Cerrobend, and the clue is in the name. Cerrobend melts at about 70c, much less than boiling water, and will not tin to the brass on its own.

 

The tube is sealed at one end and with a funnel of cardboard at the other the whole tube is filled. Now this will not be easy with such small tube so you heat the tube gently as the metal enters and when the flame is removed the air that was driven out presses the metal into the pipe.

 

Another way is to pop the whole tube into a bath of molten Cerrobend and push it under the surface, the air is driven out and then you slowly raise the tube horizontally and it remains full of the Cerrobend.

 

The tube is then shaped when cold, it will not collapse due to the Cerrobend, and then you warm the lot in a flame or boiling water, and the metal runs out, or can be blown out by attaching a silicon tube to one end.

 

All the Cerrobend or low melt solder is retrieved, little is wasted, and can be use again and again.

 

For pipes above 1/8 or so there are springs that can be inserted that do the same, or form tools that stretch the outer part of the turn, the traditional plumbers bender. These come in from about 1/4 inch or larger.

 

The simpler approach maybe to use thick wall copper pipe available down to about 2mm diameter, this can be bent without collapse to nearly as tight a radius, far farther than brass can without Cerrobend metal.

 

Frys and others supply Cerrobend or purchase a lot of the very low melt solder, it is the same stuff, bar a few degrees melting point.

 

Hope this helps,

 

Stephen.

[Adrian]

Hi all

 

im after some advice on the best way of bending brass tubing ?

im after bending it 90 degrees to make 0 gauge lights for my layout, plan is to make them working lights as well

thanks in advance on any tips provided

 

What diameter tube are you using? and what radius bend do you need to make? I'm not that keen on brass as it isn't that brilliant for bending - it work hardens pretty quickly. You might find it easier to use copper tube, slide some plastikard rod inside the tube then just use your fingers to bend the tube around a bar of the right radius, remove the plastikard rod and trim to length.

 

Regards

 

Adrian