Bending Brass Stuffing Tube

[Don T.]

Are there any special tricks you guys use for bending the
stuffing tubes? Do you just use heat or what?

Thanks,
Don T.

[Doug Forrester]

Hi Don
I'm sure there are lots of methods successfully used by different people. This is what has worked well for me for many years. First thing I do is mark with pencil the general area that I want to bend. Then I heat that area with a propane torch until it's quite hot (not yet glowing red) and I let it cool slowly. Oh yeah, I usually hold the brass tubing with a piece of wood dowel in one end. After it has cooled and had the temper removed from the heated area, it is quite easy to bend with your hands. I usually keep on hand, a selection of pieces of flexshaft (different diameters) and I use them inside the brass tube to prevent any collapsing during bending. That's about it. I don't worry about rehardening the brass tube - its never been a problem.

[Don T.]

Thanks Doug,

That's pretty much what I figured, but I didn't think about
the slow cooling to remove the heat treating.

Don

[Climate]

I have used Doug's idea and it works great.

Another method is to fill the tube with fine sand. this keeps the tube from kinking as well.
K&S makes a tubing bender thingy. It consists of a bunch of different sized long springs that you slide over the tube. Also to keep it from kinking.

If you want to re-temper the tube after it has been bent, simply re heat it to about the same point, and quickly dunk it in cold water or oil. This will scatter the molecules in the material and restore the hardness.

[J Tracey]

I simply put the teflon tube in the brass tube, insert the flex cable and use a 4 inch piece of PVC pipe to bend the brass around. This gives it a good radius for the bend, and lets you chech for binding as you do the bend. Works every time.

[Don T.]

All very good information!

Thanks a bunch,

Don Templeton