Roll Bars

[Bill usn-1]

I know there is some controversy over these but here is my DIY version.

This is my 3rd roll bar to be made with this cheap $69 HF bender.
I use black welded seam .145" wall 1 1/2"ID pipe. It gives about a 1.9" OD.
I fill the pipe with pea gravel(used to use sand) since it is easier to pour. I use duct tape and an old spray paint cap to seal the ends when full.
Then I bend to the angle I want.
At $1 ft for the pipe you can afford to practice!!!
This is not the black pipe from home depot or lowes.
That stuff is very soft and brittle. It almost seems like a powdered iron pipe.
I use a welded seem pipe from a local pipe company.


I'm glad this isn't the PBB or I would need a flame suit
But here is a thread from there with others that have had the same success!!
PBB HF bender



Here is my full cage.



Other build ups.
Rear Disc Jeep D300 OBA OBW Interior PS pump reseal Hydro boost Mirrors Headliner
SOA Bushing replacement Roll cage And of course..FI

[jeff campbell]

bill,did you bend it cold?or heat it up?looks great!nice job?!jeff

[Jensers]

Seems like you have worked out a system that works... As far as I can tell the bends dont look bad/weak to me - Tube does not seem crushed, flattened, or overly streached...

[Bill usn-1]

Before I started packing it with pea gravel I tried a bend cold.
It worked perfect.....
So I started with a new piece of pipe....
"not so good Al"

So next I tried the thermal wrench....
To hard to keep hot since the pipe mandrel is on the bottom half.
"not so good Al"

So I had a bag of play sand and decided to pack it full...


But when you try to pack a 12' to 14' piece of pipe with sand it gets old.
So on this one I grabbed my left over pipe and filled it with some of that white landscaping gravel (she won't miss it) and just scooped it in.
Much faster. You just need to shake the pipe as your buddy pours.


Like I said, a lot of people look down on this type of cage. But I think it is much better than someone going out with thier family with no roof.
BT seen it.

It is not a mandrel bend so there is some thinning on the tight bends but not as pronounced as your exhaust pipe.

I would say I am very please with the investment.
The best part it I can use it over and over and not lose money.

Tools are a great thing!

I would like to try some DOM and see if the results are the same.

[spiffytodd]

hi, Travis and I just made a roll bar for my scout 80 and now i am looking for a bikini top.........noticed yours. did you buy that locally, or ???

[Binderman]

or suffering from FI overload. He needs a 196 to tune a chip for to keep him busy!!

Wanna build me a family cage for my 800?

I may have to make a trip to HF after some tools, since you make it look fairly easy.

Will a electric/hydraulic muffler pipe bender not bend the pipe you use? I have one near me that I bet I could use for little of nothing. With the pipe packed full of something it should be the same as the HF bender you use? You think?

First you call her "the dishwasher" then you steal the landscape gravel. Where does it end??

Where was the crawling pic taken?

[Bill usn-1]

Originally posted by spiffytodd
hi, Travis and I just made a roll bar for my scout 80 and now i am looking for a bikini top.........noticed yours. did you buy that locally, or ???

I got it the same store I bought my roll bar at ;)

I found some heavy white cotton canvas and "borrowed" the wifes sewing machine. Used some small cord on the edges for strength. I ran it for a couple years (in the summer) until I returned from RMIHR last year.
The 70 mph behind the motor home finally took it toll.
:(

I made a hoop across the the front edge and slipped a piece of alum in it. Then I just used 4 screws right thru the hard top mounting holes so I did not have to drill any new holes in my scout windshield frame.

[Bill usn-1]

Originally posted by Binderman
or suffering from FI overload. He needs a 196 to tune a chip for to keep him busy!!

Wanna build me a family cage for my 800?

I may have to make a trip to HF after some tools, since you make it look fairly easy.

Will a electric/hydraulic muffler pipe bender not bend the pipe you use? I have one near me that I bet I could use for little of nothing. With the pipe packed full of something it should be the same as the HF bender you use? You think?

First you call her "the dishwasher" then you steal the landscape gravel. Where does it end??

Where was the crawling pic taken?

I just started the tear down and rebuild of the red scout.
I had to get the roof off so I can cut the qtr panel off and replace.
You know the weather here!! I had to have a top. So I had to make another roll bar. It just doesn't end.
To top it off... The spot weld cutter I bought didn't even cut 1 spotweld before the teeth were rounded off to nothing.:mad: :mad:

I'm sure the muffler bender would work. I have heard of guys using them before. 2" dies should work fine.

The pic was at RMIHR last year. The guy in the background is John Glancy from SSS.

[Cornbinder]

I have a manderal bender with a 2" dye. For some reason I can never figure out how to put a picture on here.

My Scout 800 is the picture of the month on our home page if anyone wants to look at it for ideas or want some work done.

I have some front cage kit's for Scout II and traveler's for $90.00 plus shipping.

[scoutman800]

this is inspirational. i'd love to have a cage of some kind in my 800. if i could bend/notch the pipe and have someone weld it up, it'd sure be cheaper/safer. hopefully it would never be put to the test. i wouldn't change my driving habits because i suddenly felt untouchable. be pretty neat to tie it into the frame too since i don't think attaching it to the body would do much good in mine! thanks for sharing bill.

[Dennis Bernth]

Originally posted by Bill usn-1
To top it off... The spot weld cutter I bought didn't even cut 1 spotweld before the teeth were rounded off to nothing.:mad: :mad:

Bill-
BTDT with the spotweld cutter. I bought two of em, not Taiwan either, S&G Tool Aid which I've used the stuff before, and I had the same problem. I was trying to disassemble a set of 'good' rockers (inner and outers) so I could reuse the outers. Burned out both ends of one cutter in about two spot welds. I went to using a 'bullet point' drill, I don't remember if it was 3/8" or half inch, mine came in a set in a DeWalt box. Not as nice as the dedicated spotweld drill but a ton faster- I drilled out all the spotwelds in two 118" wheelbase rockers, as well as the door pillar, in about half an hour. You do get a small hole in the back panel, and you have to keep an eye on it and use your judgement when you've gone far enough, but it worked for me and was a ton cheaper. The whole set of bits I bought I got for like $12 on sale, I paid more than that for the stupid spot weld drills. They might work OK on 'new' stuff with tin cans for bodies, but I know they don't work on our IH metal.

[Bill usn-1]

This is what I had. JUNK



This is what I want!


Till I get them I will run to the lowes and see about the drill bit.
I don't have a drill doctor or I would cut my own!

[Dennis Bernth]

Originally posted by Bill usn-1
This is what I had. JUNK



This is what I want!


Till I get them I will run to the lowes and see about the drill bit.
I don't have a drill doctor or I would cut my own!

That is the SAME, exact POS spot weld cutter I got from the same place! I agree, the Matco ones look nice, I'm sure Snappy has some good ones too (but pricey). The body shops I 've been around have pro models that work slick as snot, but they are not cheap. For what I needed it for, the bullet point drill bit that I already had worked just fine thanks, and for no more money outlay.

[Bill usn-1]

Here's another little tidbit.
This will help you cut those notches in the end of the pipe for good joints.
Just install the program and input your tube size and angle. It will print a template that you wrap around the pipe for the correct notch..
winmiter

ftp site

I also mounted my bender to my engine stand so it will swivle as you make the bends.