Mysterious raids around the world

[ԆцряєсϮ]

Scored 2 myself today and I've lined up the store near work to hang on to em for me as well. Sweeeet!
Now just gotta find a use for em..... :-\ [SIZE=78%]..maybe I can use them for my VU meters [/SIZE] :-\

 

[Benslights]

hi westy so did you use a heat gun to help you bend the tube???

 

[magii]

Why not just use the regular white frosted acrylic candy canes? At 50 cents each on clearance and already shaped and formed it seems like it would be a better deal. I used a few this year, one word of warning, they do get hot. Leave the ends of the tube open to disapate the heat. Maybe wouldn't be as big a deal with the 5v pixels instead of the 12v but just a word of warning.

 

[magii]

This is what I'm talking about. Used two this year on the easy DMX decoders.

 

[fasteddy]

They do look fantastic Magii

 

[Bird]

I am not sure if the "glue" I used to weld the perspex (actual acrylic) would actually work for this - might need more of a traditional glue like the ones Phil posted..

Correct .. Tap Plastics also sells tinting product and they know of the tubes we are using and they suggested the Weld-On 16 would be our best bet.

First attempt at bending

What method did you use for bending. From people that are use to this type of work and some web links that were shared with me by other ACL members it appears for best bending results you plug the end of the tube, fill and pack it with sand, seal the other end, then heat it until soft and bend. I had a suggestion from a neighbor where to find an oven large enough for this project. I will try to track one down next week. The suggestion was a cabinet/countertop manufacture. These type of companies are suppose to have 3 foot by 12 foot ovens that are top opening for heating up and working the countertop materials. Will keep you posted on findings.

 

[magii]

How To Bend PVC

 

[westy27]

Bird , I just used a heat gun to test how easy it would melt and bend. It was very easy and only took
About 5-10 secs at 600 degress. Next test will be the sand compacted in it as I have also heard that is the best way. First of all I need to build a decent jig up for my arches.

 

[Robbo]

Bird , I just used a heat gun to test how easy it would melt and bend. It was very easy and only took
About 5-10 secs at 600 degress. Next test will be the sand compacted in it as I have also heard that is the best way. First of all I need to build a decent jig up for my arches.

hope you are documenting it too with pictures, I am thinking arches too but not figured out how to bend the tubes, thinking of joining 2 together and making 3 meter lengths for arches

 

[Timon]

Don't know if the have an international version but these are great for PVC.

http://www.pvcbendit.com/index.php

 

[Brownie]

A heat gun works fine, you just need to make sure you heat the PVC evenly to get a smooth bend. The idea of the sand inside the pipe is also to help keep its shape and stop the pipe from kinking or deforming.

Brownie

 

[Timon]

Apparently when the join is done properly, it is as strong as an original piece of acrylic. Would certainly be interesting to see how noticeable the join was with lights inside.

If done right and it's well aligned it should be almost invisible.


Now the question is will something like this work on polystyrene?


I'm still looking for a tinter that has some of the 120", 3048mm, tubes. If these can be bent into an arch it's going to make a supper 6', 1800mm, arch if one can figure out how to attach the strip once the tube is bent. It's easy prior to bending but after...


Got to call one of the US manufactures to see who uses the 6", 150mm, tubes. They will make great candles.

 

[ԆцряєсϮ]

Got to call one of the US manufactures to see who uses the 6", 150mm, tubes. They will make great candles.

Why cant you just cut the longer ones into 6" lengths?

 

[David_AVD]

Got to call one of the US manufactures to see who uses the 6", 150mm, tubes. They will make great candles.

Why cant you just cut the longer ones into 6" lengths?

Pretty sure he meant 6" (150mm) diameter, not length.

 

[Timon]

Recap, 10' long will make great 6' wide arches and 6" diameter tubes will make great fasteddy type candles if I can find a good flame for the top. The 3" tubes make great N. Poles with a 6" globe on top. The 6" tubes with a 8 to 10" globe would also make a great north pole.

Bottom line is there's a lot of potential in these tubes with the open question being how well can they be smoothly bent.