Not another bike build:) Tube roller!!!

[Anastasios Savvidis]

Hello everyone! I have been reading the forum for some time and finally decided to post. I have designed a bike frame with large curves so I thought i need a tube roller but when I checked the prices I had quite a shock!! ... so I decided to build it by myself. I ve spend some time looking at other peoples DIY versions did heres my result. I wanted to build something cheap without the use of welding or metal and I wanted it to be dismantable. I made it out of 15mm plywood sheets laminated together and tightened with screws. I made the dies the same way without the use of a lathe just a regular home drill. The whole thing is quite heavy now and I m currently fixing a table for it. The only thing I ve bent (since I finished it today) was an old steel broomstick. It didnt kink it at all even though its quite thin. I need to buy some steel tubing and see what happens!
I hope you like it

 

[patman73]

hom much did it cost to build ?

 

[SwannyBruh]

Thats pretty awesome. If it doesnt work out it will make a great conversation peice. Keep us posted if it works!

 

[Anastasios Savvidis]

hom much did it cost to build ?

It cost around 60-80 bucks I bought everything in one of the big DIY chain stores here

 

[patman73]

It cost around 60-80 bucks I bought everything in one of the big DIY chain stores here

cool idea !

 

[Anastasios Savvidis]

Nice craftsmanship! What is the purpose of the big springs?

Thanks! The purpose of the springs is to keep the tightening screw atached to the main body of the roller so it doesnt hang or bang everytime i lift it or move it

 

[Anastasios Savvidis]

Thats pretty awesome. If it doesnt work out it will make a great conversation peice. Keep us posted if it works!

Thanks a lot! I hope it does. I overengineered the whole thing so it can withstand the forces but you never know right? Soon I will have a piece of tubing. What diameter and wall thickness should i try first?

 

[patman73]

maybe try 1 inch some conduit ?

 

[Bicycle808]

Conduit would be a great place to start testing, b/c it bends very easily-- bt it might not tell you much, since you can basically bend it by hand. It will show you whether or not your rollers are big enough to prevent the conduit folding/collapsing. Conduit also has the added benefit of being extra cheap.

A lot of old-timey bikes, and modern bikes styled in an old-timey manner, will have 1" high-ten steel tubing, with relatively thick walls. I don't know what you plan to build as far as the project that inspired this tool, but of course you'll want to try similar tubing in your new tool before you take a serious go at the "real thing." In the meantime, I'd be tempted to chop up some beater/donor frames and see how your machine does with those. If you have an old beater Chicago Schwinn or similar bike, toss the downtube in your gadget and see what it can do with it.... This will be cheaper and arguably more informative than buying any virgin tubing from a metal distributor....

 

[Anastasios Savvidis]

Is there a way to directly attach pics to a post here? Photobucket doesnt work right now

 

[Anastasios Savvidis]

Conduit would be a great place to start testing, b/c it bends very easily-- bt it might not tell you much, since you can basically bend it by hand. It will show you whether or not your rollers are big enough to prevent the conduit folding/collapsing. Conduit also has the added benefit of being extra cheap.

A lot of old-timey bikes, and modern bikes styled in an old-timey manner, will have 1" high-ten steel tubing, with relatively thick walls. I don't know what you plan to build as far as the project that inspired this tool, but of course you'll want to try similar tubing in your new tool before you take a serious go at the "real thing." In the meantime, I'd be tempted to chop up some beater/donor frames and see how your machine does with those. If you have an old beater Chicago Schwinn or similar bike, toss the downtube in your gadget and see what it can do with it.... This will be cheaper and arguably more informative than buying any virgin tubing from a metal distributor....

Thanks for the tip I will try with one inch first. Regarding my project... I have built some motorcycles so far and I want to built a motorized version of a cruiser for my wife. I want her to learn how to ride. If I like it I might built one for myself too who knows I really like this idea of a small very economical comuter bike. I live in a small city so it would be perfect for everyday use (and very stylish too)

 

[Anastasios Savvidis]

So heres a small update. I ve fixed the table/base for the roller and done with some tweaks. Also made the handle for the lower part so I dont have to use a wrench to turn it.

 

[LukeTheJoker]

Is there a way to directly attach pics to a post here? Photobucket doesnt work right now

The only way to direct post is to pay the fee to become a pro member, if that is not to your taste, try using Flickr as your photo host...

Luke.

 

[Moisstink]

Any news to report on? I am thinking about getting a tube bender at some point myself.

 

[Anastasios Savvidis]

Any news to report on? I am thinking about getting a tube bender at some point myself.

Hello there! Yes there are news on this.. it worked really good. If you check my other thread in the build from scratch you ll see the results