tmproff

My Feedback: (5)

I finally got my MACS tuned pipe in the mail and tapped the exhaust nipple. When I try to put it on the engine, the end of the header hits the front of my wing by centimeters.

What is the best way to bend a header (just a little bit) without creasing it?

Skull Man

tmproff,

I've had good results using a bench vice and torch. Mount header in vice and heat with torch. Careful not to over het the pipe as it has a thin wall. apply flame and heat in short bursts till the metal starts to give a little. I used a wood dowel in the open of the pipe to apply force.

Hope this helps!

SKULL MAN

funflyerf4

My Feedback: (6)

I bent mine by hitting the rail road tracks!

LGM Graphix

My Feedback: (22)

While that will work, it's risky. There are specific benders for tubing of that size, but if you are only going to do one try this first. Before you try to bend anything, cap off one end of the header, the side that bolts to the engine is the easiest as you can bolt a piece of plywood over it, then pack it with sand. Then cap off the opposite end. It's now full of sand, this will still allow it to bend, but it will be far less likely to collapse when you bend it, it sounds like you need to bend it a fair bit.

Then heat it, but remember, aluminum will not go red like steel will, it will melt WAY before red hot. you may not even need to heat it to do the bend. I would find another piece of pipe (steel would be best) to fit over the round end to give you some leverage, if you can't find that, then use a dowel in the round end both for leverage and to cap off the end after putting the sand in.

Once you've bent it you do need to clean that header out incredibly well, but it's doable. I've bent many pieces of tubing using this method and never collapsed a tube yet.

combatpigg

My Feedback: (3)

I haven't tried this yet, but the idea sounds like a winner. Pour molten lead into the aluminum tubing, let it cool, then proceed to bend it into a pretzel if you want to, when done, just melt the lead out.

Rudeboy

The sand trick works... I've used it before (just make sure the sand is completely dry and well packed). It is not needed for a moderate correction though.

For a small bend you can just bolt the flange to a piece of steel (for better heat dissipation to not mess up the solder joint), mount the piece of steel in a vice, apply some force in the desired direction at the end of the header, and heat it at the appropriate place until it starts to give.

Lead works too, but sand is way easier... the only condition being that it is really well packed into the tube.

Windwalker

My Feedback: (2)

Dang!

If you'd only asked How do you head a bender!

majortom-RCU

My Feedback: (40)

Got a new header (OS160FX side-mounted) custom made from Karl Mueller, needed a little centering when I mounted it. E-mailed Karl, quoted the advice to pack with sand, heat with torch. He replied that with a new header, that has not been heat-cycled, the aluminum will be soft enough to bend without heating and without the sand, as long as the new bend is not too severe. I mounted the header to a piece of steel bar, put the bar in a vise, slipped a copper pipe over the end of the header, found it moved without too strenuous a pull. On a total length of about 12" I was able to center the end of the header on the fuselage, moving it a bit under an inch. Most of the new bending took place in one of three bends that were in the piece, resulting in some slight flattening from circular to elliptical at that spot, but barely noticeable. BTW Karl makes a beautiful product.