Jeep Posted April 4, 2011 Report Share Posted April 4, 2011 Hi guys, What kind of tool do you use to make wirethrough's? I am looking for something like a tabletop bender-tool and I have been looking at some of the commercial wire benders but not sure if those are what i could use, they seem to be used for spinners etc. Thanks Jeep Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Vodkaman Posted April 5, 2011 Report Share Posted April 5, 2011 What kind of tool do you use to make wirethrough's?I am looking for something like a tabletop bender-tool and I have been looking at some of the commercial wire benders but not sure if those are what i could use, they seem to be used for spinners etc. Can you post a pic of a wire form that you are wanting to make. A rule in the pic would help for scaling. Also what material and thickness. I may have something for you. I have just built a wire former for bending/folding tow eyes and wire links for my swimbaits. I may well be adaptable for your application. Dave Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jeep Posted April 5, 2011 Author Report Share Posted April 5, 2011 Can you post a pic of a wire form that you are wanting to make. A rule in the pic would help for scaling. Also what material and thickness. I may have something for you. I have just built a wire former for bending/folding tow eyes and wire links for my swimbaits. I may well be adaptable for your application. Dave Thanks Dave, Here is a drawing of the kind of forms I would like to bend. Length aprox. 20 cm. Thick wire (Musky Pike). Jeep Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
woodieb8 Posted April 5, 2011 Report Share Posted April 5, 2011 Thanks Dave, Here is a drawing of the kind of forms I would like to bend. Length aprox. 20 cm. Thick wire (Musky Pike). Jeep commercial benders will only go up to 0.51 wire. look at the hagens bender they are good.] Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
blazt* Posted April 5, 2011 Report Share Posted April 5, 2011 Hi guys, What kind of tool do you use to make wirethrough's? I am looking for something like a tabletop bender-tool and I have been looking at some of the commercial wire benders but not sure if those are what i could use, they seem to be used for spinners etc. Thanks Jeep Ok...I'll give you the voice of inexperience. I always bought my wire forms and the closest I've ever come to making my own is finishing a spinnerbait with round bend pliers. But. I've seen designs that used nails hammered into wood at strategic points ( with the wood lying flatside down, the wire was leveraged between two nails and the wood plank rotated) and to bend big wire over a large radius like that I'm sure you could tweak the design with metal tubing, larger bolts, etc of the right diameter. Come to think of it...could you use RB pliers with maybe the wire secured down over an edge as a simple fix? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Vodkaman Posted April 5, 2011 Report Share Posted April 5, 2011 Here it is, the Vman wire former. The wire former consists of a base plate, which is held in a regular vice, by the vice pins. A bunch of removable former pins, around which the wire is bent and the wire former. Base plate – this can be any metal or a hard wood. If it is going to be used thousands of times, then metal would make sense. I used brass and soldered all the pins, as I did not need them to be removable. Vice pins – I used 6mm diameter brass rod, but any metal rod will work. Form pins – I used 3mm diameter brass. Choose the diameter to suit your eye requirements. The pins must be a sliding fit in the base plate, for easy removal. Former – I used bits of soldered brass, but it would be better if it was made from one piece. I have designed the best solution for you, based on my experience. Square section steel would be the best choice (8mm x 8mm), but a brass rod would give you a lot of service before it wears out. The critical part of the former is the notch. The depth of the notch is the diameter of the wire and the distance from the edge of the hole to the notch is also the diameter of the wire. This will give you a tight bend. How to use – start with all the pins removed except for the eye and starter pins. Lay the wire between the pins and wipe the wire around with the former, using the starter pin to hold the wire in place. After that, simply add pins as required and form the wire. If you measure the unbent wire and measure how much you trim on completion, you can cut the wire to actual length. Mark on the base plate where the wire starts and you will have repeatability. I did a time and motion study and it should take about one minute per complete form. The learning curve is very short. After half a dozen, you will be upto speed. I hope this is what you were looking for. I am really enjoying using mine. Dave 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Vodkaman Posted April 5, 2011 Report Share Posted April 5, 2011 I see only one problem bend and that is the bend from the belly eye towards the tail. This will have to be started manually, as the former too cannot get in there because of the previous bends. Not a great hardship. Dave Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jeep Posted April 5, 2011 Author Report Share Posted April 5, 2011 I see only one problem bend and that is the bend from the belly eye towards the tail. This will have to be started manually, as the former too cannot get in there because of the previous bends. Not a great hardship. Dave Wow.. That is impressive yet simple.. Thanks dave. Btw; did you allready patent this thing? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Vodkaman Posted April 5, 2011 Report Share Posted April 5, 2011 Wow.. That is impressive yet simple.. Thanks dave. Btw; did you allready patent this thing? It works really well and with the former I have modelled for you, I think you will like it. One thing, do not make the former out of round bar, it does not work at all. The wire rides up the radius. Don't ask me how I know this. If you need any detail/dimensioned drawings, let me know, but I think it is straight forward enough. I have no money for defending patents, though it could be patentable I guess. You could patent it, just pay me, LOL. I have started drawing my next project in the suite of swimbait tools. I am not revealing it yet, but I can guarantee it will blow you away. Dave Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jeep Posted April 6, 2011 Author Report Share Posted April 6, 2011 You sure have my full attention Dave. The only part I do not know how to make is the former as I have no metal working tools... I have taken a look at the hagen's former too and it seems pretty good but as I see it your solution can deliver the whole wireform and the hagen's can only form single eyes and all of the measuring has to be done by hand each single time... It works really well and with the former I have modelled for you, I think you will like it. One thing, do not make the former out of round bar, it does not work at all. The wire rides up the radius. Don't ask me how I know this. If you need any detail/dimensioned drawings, let me know, but I think it is straight forward enough. I have no money for defending patents, though it could be patentable I guess. You could patent it, just pay me, LOL. I have started drawing my next project in the suite of swimbait tools. I am not revealing it yet, but I can guarantee it will blow you away. Dave Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Vodkaman Posted April 6, 2011 Report Share Posted April 6, 2011 You sure have my full attention Dave. The only part I do not know how to make is the former as I have no metal working tools... I have taken a look at the hagen's former too and it seems pretty good but as I see it your solution can deliver the whole wireform and the hagen's can only form single eyes and all of the measuring has to be done by hand each single time. In that case, I suggest working with brass, as you can grind it quite easily with a Dremel drum sanded attachment. It only takes about ten minutes to make the former. The hardest part is finding the material. Try to find 6mm - 8mm square section bar. 1 - drill the 3mm diameter hole 5mm back from the end. 2 - make a hacksaw cut, to define the forming face. 3 - grind a flat from the hacksaw cut to the end of the bar. The depth of the flat to be the same as the wire diameter. 4 - round off the sharp edges at the end. I can produce a set of instruction pictures if you require, no trouble. Your first job is to find some materials, square bar and 3mm diameter rod. Dave Dave Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jeep Posted April 6, 2011 Author Report Share Posted April 6, 2011 Great, i will keep you posted on my progress. Btw what did you make those drawings with; google? Jeep Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Vodkaman Posted April 6, 2011 Report Share Posted April 6, 2011 Great, i will keep you posted on my progress. Btw what did you make those drawings with; google? Jeep The models are drawn on a professional CAD system called Catia V5. I am a car designer by trade, so use CAD all the time. Dave Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hillbilly1 Posted April 7, 2011 Report Share Posted April 7, 2011 (edited) I see only one problem bend and that is the bend from the belly eye towards the tail. This will have to be started manually, as the former too cannot get in there because of the previous bends. Not a great hardship. Dave Dave that is awesome, as for the forming bar would a 7 shaped or a crescent shape bend in the bar get you above the pins for the belly hook bend. Just throwing it out there Edited April 7, 2011 by hillbilly1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hazmail Posted April 7, 2011 Report Share Posted April 7, 2011 Nice one Dave, AND simple. Thanks Pete. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Vodkaman Posted April 7, 2011 Report Share Posted April 7, 2011 Dave that is awesome, as for the forming bar would a 7 shaped or a crescent shape bend in the bar get you above the pins for the belly hook bend. Just throwing it out there I am not sure what you really have in mind, but you still have a few inches of wire left at that position. More than enough to have leverage to pull the wire around until the former can fit and complete the tight bend. You could build different formers to solve different problems, for example, I will have the standard former at one end of the rod and make a second former at the other end and grind it down to 6mm. This will help form a tighter eye shape. You could build more double end formers for other solutions, like this one. Once you have the material, the formers are very quick and easy to make. Thanks for your input. If anyone builds this tool and comes up with any more former shapes (like Hillbilly), I hope that you share them here. Dave Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CatchemCaro Posted April 8, 2011 Report Share Posted April 8, 2011 Nicely done Dave. I like the CAD drawing. It really simplifies the fixure. I haven't made any through wire baits yet, but I know who to talk to for a drawing on a great wire bender. Beautiful work. Thanks for sharing Dave. Rich Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Vodkaman Posted April 8, 2011 Report Share Posted April 8, 2011 Nicely done Dave. I like the CAD drawing. It really simplifies the fixure. I haven't made any through wire baits yet, but I know who to talk to for a drawing on a great wire bender. Beautiful work. Thanks for sharing Dave. Rich Thanks guys. I have a PDF detail drawing of the former available, that I drew up for another member. If you want a copy, PM me your email addy. I have not drawn the plate assy, because that design is dependant on what you are bending, it is obvious from the pics anyway. Dave Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
StrykerLures Posted April 18, 2011 Report Share Posted April 18, 2011 Thanks Dave, Here is a drawing of the kind of forms I would like to bend. Length aprox. 20 cm. Thick wire (Musky Pike). Jeep commercial benders will only go up to 0.51 wire. look at the hagens bender they are good.] I've actually had luck with the "Heavy Duty Wireformer" while bending .62 wire. I've even been able to bend .71 wire. You have to have the conversion kit to make it work though. But yes there are no wire benders that actually say it will bend higher then .51. But if your careful and do it right then (from what I have done) it will go up to .71. I hope this helps Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
