From: muratlanne@gmail.com   
      
   "Bob La Londe"  wrote in message news:10nieak$1cc0q$1@dont-email.me...   
      
   There are guys who have made limited production plastic dies using 3D   
   printed parts sandwiched between steel plates.  I am 100% sure I can   
   make aluminum "cores" to sandwich between steel plates to do the same   
   job much stronger in a fraction of the time of 3D printing.  6061 would   
   probably last well enough for atleast a few dozen bends, and 7075 would   
   probably last long enough for hundreds if not thousands of bends.  I   
   have both on the shelf, but the 7075 WAS planned for "other" projects.   
   ------------------------------------   
      
   I tested the compression strength of oak to 2000 PSI the weaker way when   
   designing joist hangers. At 2000 compression was becoming slightly   
   noticeable as a step at the edge. 2000# is the steel hanger rating, the   
   expected load is around 500. The end grain is hard enough to make a decent   
   shapeable anvil for hammering sheet steel. Around here pallets are made   
   mostly from red oak of lower than lumber grade.   
      
   I made custom (steel) bender dies, I think by rotating the blank against a   
   fly cutter set to the tube diameter. I cut wooden wedges by angling the   
   fence on my 4x6 horizontal bandsaw and using a 6/10 blade. For a bending die   
   the wedge angle needn't be exact, you could glue up two oversized halves and   
   saw across the diameters.   
      
   --- SoupGate-Win32 v1.05   
    * Origin: you cannot sedate... all the things you hate (1:229/2)