rustyrivet

My Feedback: (6)

...naaa....there's got to be another tube supplier out there!!!

I need an aluminum tube to slip over the two Bennet Muffler pipes which are 5/8" OD. I like the looks of long pipes on my exposed 2.1 Moki engines with the Bennet mufflers.

K&S only makes a brass tube designated 21/32" OD, that will fit and slip over the two Bennet muffler pipes. But brass tarnishes, (especially on the muffler) and is needlessly heavy. For the life of me, I have never figured out why K&S doesn't produce larger diameter aluminum tubes that they do in brass! I have run accross this frustration and need for the larger size aluminum tube for years now. I wish K&S would get smart and do it! Oh well, so much for "I wish".....

ANYBODY KNOW ANOTHER SOURCE WHERE I CAN GET AN ALUMINUM TUBE IN THIS SIZE?

Bennet and K&S on the phone were both no help in suggestions for a source.

Giant Scale

try www.mcmaster.com they sell many different types of aluminum tubing. Do a search for aluminum then select tubing. They are a great source for boxes of fasteners and other items. Prices are reasonable and I can usually get my order in a couple of days. Check out the site you'll probably spend hours just looking at all the different items they have.

blkbird68

My Feedback: (19)

Another place to look is [link=http://www.onlinemetals.com]Online Metals[/link]

rustyrivet

My Feedback: (6)

Thanks guys for the two website addresses. They contain a wealth of reference for future projects.

However, the answer to my question unfortunatley is "Yes": If K&S doesn't have it, then it doesn't exist. Everone else sells heavy duty, thicker wall stuff. Much too heavy.

Not only did I want aluminum sleeve tubes to fit over the Bennet muffler pipes, but I also needed a light 5/8" O.D.X 39" aluminum tube as a leading edge substitute for the heavy cpvc pipe leading edge in my Big Bingo kit. Tower sells this K&S tube, but it is 36" length. K&S will sell it to me direct at 39" long, if I buy 14 pieces at $5.30 each, plus shipping! $85 bucks for two tubes? -think I'll pass. (You can't telescope extensions onto the shorter 36" lengths either. I already thought of that)

Looks too, like I'll just leave the bennet muffler tubes short as they are.

CoosBayLumber

My Feedback: (1)

One thing to remember in all this is that TUBING is designated and measured on an outside diameter basis. Whereas, PIPE is measured on an inside basis.

Our local metals supply house has most all sizes of tubing in different metals from 1/2" diameter on up to 4 inch. They have in several wall thicknesses and standard length is 20 feet. The will cut to length for an additional $5. A whole length of pipe is about $22.

I think you need to go to the yellow pages and look locally.


Wm.

Giant Scale

Mcmaster carr has 3/4"OD,.049 wall ,.652" ID tubing for 9.15 for 3 feet. This should slip over your muffler pipes. Since you only need maybe 6" of pipe for each extension I don't think this will add a significant amount of weight. Keep in mind even if you slip the pipe over the old pipes you will need someway of attaching the new pipe to the old one. I presume you want to weld it?? This will difficult with a thin tube. I would use .035 or .049 wall tubing and have them welded to the old tubes.

rustyrivet

My Feedback: (6)

Yes guys, there seems to be a couple of tubes and ways to dress up the Bennet Muffler. Online Metals actually has a .625" aluminum tube designated as "new" in their stock. It should slip right over the Bennet pipes. If I cut the two bennett pipes off to about 1" long stubs, that will save a lot of weight. How to fasten them?....very simply I will drill a small 1/16" hole in the back of each tube where it can't be seen and screw the tubes on. Another gentlemen PM'd me to say that he has put thin wall stainless tubes over the bennett pipes that look great. If the stainless tubes are too tight, he says he simply slits them to where they will squeeze over bennett pipes. (Slit the S.S tube at the top, the same length of the 1" bennet stub pipe) Of course, sanding down the bennett pipe stubs may work too, and prevent having to slit the tubes.

So it seems this project for the bennett muffler has been worked out.[8D] THANKS.

HOWEVER,
I am a little frustrated though that I couldn't locate two 39" K&S 5/8"O.D. aluminum tubes as a leading edge for my Big Bingo kit. The Big Bingo has a HEAVY 1/2 CPVC water pipe. (5/8" O.D. x 39" )leading edge.This K&S tube is REALLY light thin wall stuff (.016" wall in typical K&S fashion.) Tower sells these tubes 36" long in packs of 2 for about $9. But each tube will be 36" and 3" short of the 39" length I need. But they don't telescope with any other K&S tube. So I wouldn't have a good way of coupling the 36" length and 3" length together even if I bought extra tubes from Tower for this purpose. Guess I'll use the round face of a half of a 5/8" wood dowell. That still will save me 2 ounces per wing half of weight when compared to a CPVC pipe!

DBCherry

My Feedback: (4)

Why can't you use a length of wooden dowel to join two lengths of aluminum tubing?
Dennis-

rustyrivet

My Feedback: (6)

A smaller diameter wood dowel or smaller sized tube would require it to be wrapped with paper, tape, or soda can aluminum sheeting to bring it up to the same inside diameter of the K&S leading edge tube and serve as a coupler. For ridgidity, and alignment this coupler would have to be at least a couple of inches long. In the end you gain unwanted weight of the coupler, and a seam between the two joints that will show through the Monokote.

It's easier for me to run a 48" long 5/8" wood dowel down a table saw, cut it to 39" and glue the half circle dowel to the front of the ribs.

blkbird68

My Feedback: (19)

Sounds like a good excuse to make a clipped wing Big Bingo.[sm=biggrin.gif]

rustyrivet

My Feedback: (6)

....or do what most folks do; buy an ARF.