What Is Mandrel Bending? Tube Bending 101 Series at Trick-Tools.com

We show you what a mandrel bend is, what a mandrel bend isn't, and how to understand which type of bend you may be looking for. We also highlight a few bender options that can take your work to the next level.
Products featured in this video:
Transfluid 2076K www.trick-tools.com/Transfluid...
Pro-Tools MB-105HD Hydraulic Tubing Bender Deluxe Kit www.trick-tools.com/Pro-Tools-...

[@Talasas]

Very informative, thank you for making this!

[@hairesonyourchest]

Excellent explanation, thanks!

[@FunnyMuffler]

I've been making exhaust for years with mandrel bends for their true diameters. But I never knew how they were actually bent. Honestly, I thought sand or something would have been involved, lol. Excellent video.

[@theyear-pj4sj]

Great vid, helps engineers, thanks!

[@gavinritz6981]

I built a mandrel bender for just a few thousand dollars, that’s a neat machine though. I could bend thin wall up to inch and quarter.

[@PurpleNovember]

What wall thickness? I’m looking into making one to bend 4130 chromoly 3/4 OD. 0.035 wall.

[@antuanperez426]

How’d you go about building it?

[@murtazabhagat3743]

Can this method of bending be used for mild steel & cast steel material? As in I run a hardware store where we sell ERW & Seamless Short & Long Bends. Will this more cost effective than the conventional exhaust bends? The conventional bends are currently being imported from china.

[@murtazabhagat3743]

Thank you for the Tip. :)

[@jaithesimpleguy]

Damn. Its like a superman hand, but much more artistic.

[@ymb3269]

What is the difference between mandrel with 2 or 3 discs or with no discs?

[@TrickTools]

It is all based around what material you are bending and how tight you are bending it. Transfluid will help the end user determine what type of mandrel is necessary for their specific application

[@kylesyx8432]

Wow that’s expensive! Probably made of Titanium,Chromoly and Tungsten !! ✌️❤️ I’m thinking of using this type bender on a shifter cart and need the tubing flawless ! Of coarse I need the tubing roughly 31-33mm Od I may just do like I have been, draw it up and order from local steel company!! I’m really just paying 7-10$ bend ! Any suggestions would be great, Weld it up! ❤❤❤

[@TrickTools]

This machine is certainly at the top of the tube bender chain, however it's not a requirement for bending tubular frames such as a roll cage or shifter cart. We have other rotary draw tubing benders that work great for these applications and produce a very nice bend. A great starting point would be the Pro-Tools MB105HD or if this is for production work, the Baileigh RDB-250 is a great machine as well that's often used for building roll cages and even Top Fuel drag cars. The price point of these machines will be much more affordable. Of course there is a time and a place for Transfluid Mandrel benders, however for your application, something smaller may be the better option.

[@BKMDano17]

When it comes to headers, why not just bend the pipe from one end to the other instead of making a bunch of 180s and cutting them up and welding them back together?

[@TrickTools]

If you have a mandrel bender at your disposal then that would be the best route. Mandrel bending machines are quite expensive and most shops can't justify the cost so buying U bends from suppliers that mass produce and sell them is the most cost efficient way to get mandrel bent tubing for headers.

[@vinnbrock]

Very informative, but when you follow the link for the bender that starts off at around $500, it's $895 MORE than that. $500 to $1,395 is a little more than a margin of error. Otherwise a good video.

[@TrickTools]

Thanks for watching and we are glad the information was helpful. The manually powered version of the Pro-Tools bender actually starts at $389.95 with a Deluxe kit available at $549.95. The powered version that you are referring to does start at $1395.

[@vinnbrock]

@@TrickTools thank you for the reply. I wasn't trying to be negative or mean. I just followed the link in the description, and it was significantly more than what was mentioned in the video. Do you have a link for the more affordable version?

[@TrickTools]

No problem at all, here is a link to the the manual version. www.trick-tools.com/Pro_Tools_MB_105HD_Heavy_Duty_Manual_Tubing_Bender_MB_105HD_5142