Figure 16-10.--Templates and targets.
PIPE BENDING
off the bend areas on the pipe. It is also used as a guide
during the pipe or tube bending operation. Figure 16-11
illustrates the use of a centerline template. These
Pipe made of steel, aluminum, nickel-copper, or
templates are made of rod (one-fourth or three-eighths
copper-nickel should not be bent to a radius less than
inch in diameter), and are shaped to establish the
two times the diameter of the pipe. Copper and brass
centerline of the pipe to be installed. The ends of the rod
pipe may be bent to a radius one-and-a-half times the
are secured to special clamps called flange spiders. A
diameter.
sheet metal clearance disk is used if there is any doubt
Pipe may be bent using a power pipe bender or hot
about the clearance around the pipe. The clearance disk
bent on a slab.
must be the same diameter as the pipe being installed.
Power Pipe Benders
Cold bends in pipe or tubing are usually made in a
bending machine, rather than on a slab. Various types
of bending tools are available. They range from portable
hand sets to large hydraulically driven machines that
can bend up to 16-inch pipe. In this section, we will
discuss the portable pipe bender and the rotary bender.
Hand-held tubing and pipe benders will be discussed
Figure 16-11.--Centerline template.
later in this chapter.
16-11