Poor Mans Review - Harbor Freight Planetary Ring Roller

[@piercer4882]

to help keep the piece straight, run it through completely one way, spin it 180 Deg. and run it through again. rotate the part every pass and it will help compensate for it going through crooked

[@philipprigmore8723]

Looks like it will do the job for you. LOVED the blooper. You should put more of them in at the end of your videos, cause you are not only teaching me how to be a better blacksmith, but I love the entertainment value of your videos also. So, keep up the teaching, but more on the fun side also. Remember, laughter is the best medicine. Have a great day.

[@orvie29]

great video chandler. i really enjoy all your videos. because what ya see is what ya get ya dont act like ya know it all and your willing to fail on camera in front of all of us to teach us and learn something. please keep up the videos man. getting a notification that you posted one make my day man

[@re-purpose1st213]

Hey mate great work, I have the same one I'm in Sydney Australia. With the round stock I hold one end with vice grips each time I pass it through until it stops spiraling. Once I got my head around it I love it.

[@luchism6283]

Here's a couple of suggestions that worked for me. I have a vice mounted on a post so I fashioned a bracket and bolted the roller to it and then put the roller in the vice. The handle clears one side of the vice jaws and the rollers are clear on the other side. That way I can turn the handle with my left hand and stand and watch the material along its length as it goes through the rollers. When rolling 1/4 rod it always wants to corkscrew. I clamp a pair of vice grips pliers on the end of the stock and hold them in the same orientation as I roll the rod. This will keep the curve in plane and not corkscrew.

[@eldinwebster2155]

I love it. You couldn’t be MORE LIKE ME. I just head in to a project and play it by ear.

[@bradmarks2315]

Liked your video.... I purchased one a few weeks ago and put it together yesterday. Before using it I noticed a lot of play in one of the rollers and made a shim to take out most of the slop and instead of putting the roll pin back in, I used a 5/16" bolt so not to have a permanent installation. Also greased the zerk fittings and some WD40 on the threads helped with the tightness. It worked pretty good rolling a 3" ring from 1/8 x 1/2 flat steel. A little more practice will make it better...

[@99PMoon]

I'm glad that you are making jigs from them. That device was designed by Torquemada. The last forge I worked, my boss had me doing 1/2"× 1 1/2" flat stock, then box tube, and 10 gauge wall 1" tube in the same week.

[@bryanmeier8251]

You would be surprise when using 1/4” solid rod . You can tack weld the rod to any diameter pipe you need to make multiple rings and coil up the rod around the pipe then take a cut off wheel on a grinder and cut them across and weld loop rings back together

[@jimzivny1554]

The roller is a good starting point, mine is probably 8(?)yrs old, I've broken it a few times but learned a lot, even though I now have a more expensive roller I still use it for small stuff. I took the rollers off and ran them against a very stiff wire wheel to break the sharp edge of the cross-hatch pattern. Keep it greased and lube the adjusting screw every time you bolt it down to make stuff, it'll keep it alive.

[@karm65]

The rollers are flexing causing the sideways curve. when the piece comes out flip it around to the part that was on the outside is on the inside.

[@ferrero129]

when you rolled it one way bring it back at the same settings but also once its close together you can weld the ends and put it back into the roller to make it even. nice seeing that your still making videos :P

[@gjones002charter]

I have one, used it today to roll 11 inch circles, works great. Have not tried round stock yet.

[@tonytully4943]

The adjuster on mine was ridiculously tight as well. Turned out that the black plastic. I took a steel bar, heated it up with a propane torch and melted/carved out the plastic until the threads cleared

[@duanecreativemachine]

You will have better luck spinning the piece around after every pass. The deflection is making the material squeeze out the front and also slightly putting a tighter radius on the inside of the fb. The round will rotate if the grooves are not perfectly aligned and I'm sure between the deflection and the price point they are not but you may be able to hold one end with a vice grip and just sacrifice a few inches of the end. I'm sure it will work fine for you as long as your gentle. Lol

[@Dugg_Digs_Adventure]

I have that harbor freight ring roller. The first time I used it the plastic cam broke. I took it out and had a steel one made to replace it. Works great now.

[@johnbrevard5966]

Thanks for a great review and Not Griping about it.... Before Harbor fright this would have cost $600 for the same product made in milwaukee.

[@jone6480]

You could make a couple of those things you get on a "hole punch" (the office equipment that you put holes in paper with) that limit the width of paper you're putting in but, instead you could make yours so it keeps the metal straight

[@MaverickandStuff]

Use the gear box and rollers to make your own that is sturdier.

[@RoomiesGarage]

love the end...bloopers are great...............makes you more human lol

[@jojomama4787]

yes,wonderful use of a claw hammer...thanks Chandler!!!

[@brianr8581]

great video as always Chandler. I have a couple huge planetarys laying around. wish you were closer I'd drop one off. could use that horror freight bender to make some jigs for the top of it.

[@purplealice]

Yeah, if you have to have a bunch of curved pieces that all look *exactly the same*, you need to use a template. That gizmo will give you some nice clean curves to work with, so that everything matches. (You could've used something like that when you were making the legs for the dragon table!)

[@thelibertyworkshop2952]

Prevent the material " walking out " by simply removing the knurled rollers and reinstalling them with the shoulder to the outside ... Has worked great for me for years ...

[@elkskiutah8204]

haha,. I laughed so hard on the 1/4" round noodle. "We got some learnin to do"

[@lebommjohnson8101]

If the strip gets crooked between the rolls, you'll get a helix, not a spiral. A spiral is flat, 2-dimensional, like a wrought scroll. A helix is 3-D, like a corkscrew. Just FYI.

[@ACountryWayOfLife]

Quality video as always brother.

[@0x73V14]

2 ways to improve it, depending what you have on hand , a plate of steel with holes matching the axles should prevent deflection a panel of MDF with holes matching the rollers and mounted to prevent the workpiece from tilting away from you (or 2 to sandwich the workpiece and prevent tilting either way, the near side one would need to be smaller to not make access too tough

[@keithbaker3405]

Nice idea but I don't think it will last too long. About getting some cheap rollers for a home made one....some big wide bearing races...you could lock up the drive roller by hitting the tracks with a mig. You could groove the surface with a dremel on the drive roller?

[@handlebullshit]

Lower roller is loose. It moves sideways, that is your problem.

[@MrGunPilot]

Add a little flat stock to slip over the grease fitting end of the roller supports to provide stability or capture the rollers so they don't deflect so easily. e.g. tie them all together.

[@paulhatch7759]

the weak point is the plastic yoke that retains the moveable roller. it also want to corkscrew on 1/4 rod knurls also chew up od.

[@paulhatch7759]

i remade yoke with steel.

[@dirk4926]

Looks handy for making barrel hoops and steel wagon tires.

[@trinityzaku]

Pretty sure I picked mine of these up right around the time you made this video. I use mine pretty much solely for 1/4" round stock and the first time I used it and got those wicked knurl marks on my test stock I actually disassembled it and took the rollers to a buddy of mine and had him machine them out just ever so slightly. No more marks. As far as it walking around with the round stock I ended up just setting 2 parallel pieces of wood to act as a guide and that stopped most of it. I haven't noticed the kind of deflection you were getting in that one roller on mine but I may just have not ran anything as heavy through it yet.

[@dougpadillatv4128]

Trinityzaku, I am about to buy one of these for a onetime job. Im making big 4', 5', 6 and 8' circles and am concerned about potential spiraling. I would love to see a picture of your 2 wood pieces for keeping the pieces straight

[@LycanthropiesSpell]

I think the roller axles tubes might sheer off the face plate after some time, but for that price... you can always beef it up a bit, or make one your selves using this one as a how-not-to.... Still, start small.....end big. Keep up the work.

[@gustav901]

Needed a break from fixing my bike. This will be perfect!

[@robgadbois1282]

I like this tool and the review it would be great for the once in a while shit I do. Can't always buy top of the line tools for every different application. But I would definitely spend 50 bucks on this ....well 50 u.s that would cost me 75 Canadian lol

[@jandastroy]

Looks like a good enough jig to build one that doesn't suck with.

[@supaganzai]

Depending on price, I think this will save you a bunch of time and should be worth it. :)

[@jackdawg4579]

I wouldn't muck around with it to much before making the jigs you need Chandler, I did not like the way that thing was moving all over the place when you loaded up those rollers! Wouldn't surprise me if something bent or even broke pretty quick.

[@mutevosburg9800]

another great video. you all most made the trash with instructions. first thing I do is throw them away. and then search for them later. thanks

[@jamieclark7221]

The bottom roller is flexing.

[@canral]

Love the ringtone!

[@horseblinderson4747]

nice thing is stock that small can be cut with a bolt cutter

[@DreamState71822]

only ever roll stock forward in it moved in both directions.

[@stevenbell1888]

From the looks of that flat-head screwdriver in the background, this isn't the first thing you've bought from harbor freight is it? :P

[@MrErViLi]

Have you been able to get a 1 inch ring like the manual says it can make? I can't get it smaller than 5 inches.

[@trailblazer632]

when you design something heavier you may be able to get away with a softer poly or hard rubber roller set. though you might have to make smaller passes if they slip

[@soakedinjewels2647]

Hi do you think this will bend spoons and forks into rings and bracelets stainless steel. Thank you

[@EURIPODES]

I sat next to a guy at the counter at Denny's. I looked over at him and said, "I bet I can guess what you do for a living". He said "I'll give you a guess". I said "You're a blacksmith". He smiled as his eyes widened and he asked how I knew. I pointed to his hands and I said, "only a blacksmith would hang jerky from his wrists".

[@StumpGreenwoodSC]

New tools are fun and a pain in the ass

[@mattycreek384]

I had a dream last night Chandler called me on the phone and asked me what he should do for his next video and we talked for a while. lol.

[@thearkansashillbilly1776]

Looking good brother!! Nice review!

[@alonzosanchez8577]

Great Video Chandler!!!

[@romosapien9758]

"More paper for me to test knives with" XD cause who needs instructions? -not Chandler :p

[@TheRealAndroid]

Chandler, you are cranking down the bending wheel too much. That's pushing the rollers out and letting it wander. I welded mine to some angle and use it in my vise. I've had problems getting two of the same diameter out of it. It's one of those things you can't rush if you are looking for duplicates.

[@BelacthePhat]

i wanna see if it will do stuff its not "suppose" to do like quarter inch square stock or small square tube or small thin wall pipe?

[@AdrianHiggins83]

Replace the handle with a cordless drill?

[@MrCorruptex]

Could a different wheel be put on it to use for ridges and partial hems in armor and thin sheet work?

[@rking4234]

useful review. Thanks.

[@phrogflyer9500]

Take a look at " Maker Extreme " channel. He has made a few rollers

[@casper1240]

use mine for making curves had a bit of trouble making rings still makin my mind up

[@billyredding2039]

Spiraly could make you some springs

[@kehindeoluwatosinchanges4605]

Pls My Gracious Master I need the link to purchase one fast.

[@royrivera228]

hey Chandler my name is Roy your channels awesome. I was going through KZbin I found these guys their channel is called make it extreme, on their Channel they have a couple of ways to make a metal rolling machine they have two ways one is easier than the other you should check them out the site is called make it extreme

[@scottmccarroll2618]

Love your vids Chandler and I love your fair reviews,,, I know you guys in America bitch about the cheap crap from HF but here in Australia we don't have anything like that I would love to be able to buy HF crap and bitch

[@pierreswanepoel8561]

the more tools, the better

[@trentszeponski483]

That particular roller must be ment for flat stalk unless you build a guide for the round stalk to move through.

[@banjosambar]

Tim McGraw, nice

[@oneshotme]

You get what you pay for. To me almost anything from Harbor Fright is just a throw away tools. Use them once for a job and throw them away. I don't think your going to be to happy with it after a few uses

[@trailblazer632]

Russell Anderson youd be surprised how well some of their tools hold up with a little common sense maintenance. granted they sell a lot of junk but then they dont advertise the junk as being equal to more expensive tools.

[@mysterymete]

The HF cashier reminded me, just yesterday, that all of their hand tools have a lifetime warranty, as she was bagging my 'screwdrivers'. I laughed and enlightened her, "People don't buy these because they care. People buy these because they're cheap as hell and disposable. I don't even use them as screwdrivers. I buy them so I can grind custom tips on something that already has a handle!"

[@oneshotme]

Lemtil Rich?? I'm on SS and only get $860 a month and if not disabled from work 25 years ago I'd make that in a week Wielding So I don't see how rich has anything to do with my comment what so ever!!!!!

[@trailblazer632]

Russell Anderson yeah well not everyone makes almost 900 a week. i was a master mechanic and didnt make that. welders are in serious demand right now so they make good money. it may not be rich but its certainly richer than many people

[@iron4ger]

i bought their floor mount roller to radius some 1" x 16 ga square tube for a wedding arbor for my daughter - it did that well. one time - period. seems they use mild steel for the knurled drive roller - the knurls were smooth and wouldn't even feed 1/8" flat when i was finished with the arbor. typical chinese junk - looks like a ring roller, but isn't..... not worth returning.

[@garymathews9534]

mine broke the first try .i will fix the broken plastic arm ,replace it with a steel piece .

[@stevegammer6582]

we're you buy your hammer

[@scor440]

Paid 50 or 60 or 70 or 80 i dont really know 😂😂😂😂😂 is my gas bill due i dont really know maybe

[@iamzid]

some things at harbor freight are exactly what you need and will last, other things are just junk. i have several tools from there that i use all of the time. other things i see there make me wince at the obvious chintzyness.

[@LazyLifeIFreak]

As AvE would say it, Horror Fright.

[@tommypitcock3533]

all the hammers he has and he uses a claw hammer

[@iliyan44]

try not to brake it too soon

[@Accolade.]

In fact you bought tool but you don't have what's it take to work on it.