Off topic but why go back on that bend off the second header? That restriction bend wouldn't be there if they just went straight down which is where it goes anyways... Just ranting

 

Equal length primaries. And its not restrictive. They maintain the same volume through the pipe. Notice how much wider it is? Cut out an inch of that bend(based on outside diameter), an inch of straight pipe, and an inch of a mandrel bend (also on outside diameter) and the volume inside the pipe of the mandrel bend is by far the smallest. The hydroformed bend as pictured above will have nearly the same as a straight pipe.

In other words the problem with a mandrel bend is you creates high velocity and high pressure around the outside of the bend while you have a low pressure zone that slows down on the inside. Its turbulent. The picture above will keep velocity and pressure very constant.

 

Yes all of our welds are back purged for that perfect weld!

 

Why not use mandrel bent 'donuts' if you need that tight of a radius?

Looks really cool though.

 

Because Donuts are only a single radius, and in a 2 dimensional plane. With the pie cuts we can change the radius in the middle of the bend, and we can transition among 3D planes. If you look at the first and third bend in this pipe you can see it. To achieve this we would essentially be cutting the donuts into what would inevitably still be "pie" looking cuts; but the raw material would be more expensive, and harder to cut consistently. Multiple pie cuts gives us the ability to finitely tweak it until fitment is perfect. Plus, they just look cool!

-CK

 

Love me some pie
Nice welds to
What degree did you make the cuts? 4.5?

 

How do you guys prep before welding? I'm talking about that brushed finish.

 

We do 7* degree cuts for all of our pie cuts. Thank you we appreciate the feed back.

-JOSH-

 

i stopped using pre bent stuff a while ago. ive found that pie cuts are actually less work for anything beyond very simple 90* stuff. I have a pretty nice chop saw that leaves me with sharp straight lines that really cut down on any kind of gap, and you have a lot better control in tight areas.
plus i enjoy using my tig.

 

stainless steel wire brush

i use a mix of 7, 10 and 15* since im usually trying to squeeze tubes around tight areas. it looks a little goofier but it allows a little more flexibility in fitment. i also will cut a few different lengths so i can mix and match to get the tube where i want it.