I have some ALUMINUM tubing i would like to bendThe tubing is 1.25quot; O.Dwith .25quot; wall thickness (which obviously leaves .75quot; I.D.)Would it be alright to use a hydraulic tube bender that can bend up to 2quot; O.DSTEEL tubing or would i need a larger tube bender considering the wall thickness of my ALUMINUM tubing? I would also like to achieve no kinking at the bends, and minimal or no cracking as wellThank you.
The saving grace of the size of tubing you are using is the wall thicknessThicker wall tubing are less likely to kink or wrinkleOn the other side of the coin, with a thicker wall size you will not be able to bend on a tight radiusYou will want to be on a 5 CLR radius to give you the best bend qualityAs for the cracking of the tubing, stay away from 6061 in any treatment It will crack 100% around 15 degreesThe best Aluminum for bending is 6063-T52 or 5053These grades support being bent the best.
Hey There are alot of different steerer tubes sizes so you should do some more research on the forks and frame you're buyingBefore i bought my new forks i did heaps of research just to be sure.
If your frame was made in the last 10 years or so, it should have a 1-1/8 steerer tubeThere are others, as Mirage pointed out, but the VAST majority are this sizeMeasure across the outside edges of the top of the tube to be sure, and choose a new fork according to that As far as compatibility with a new frame, you'll probably have no troubles thereNo matter what headset you have, you can change out the fork crown race to the new fork, or just get a new headsetWhat you do need to consider is the length of the steerer tube and the head tube on the frameFor instance, if your new frame has a 5 head tube and your old one has a 4 head tube, then it's possible that the steerer tube on the fork may be too short and you won't have enough sticking out of the frame to clamp your stemIn that case, you have to get a new fork (or a replacement steerer/uppers if they're available.but that's a hassle and expense) If you don't cut the steerer tube too short, then it should transfer to the new frame ok.possibly using different combinations of spacers or a different stem Also, Mirage is 100% correct about fork length/travelYou really need to stay within the specs that the frame was designed for.for safety's sake as well as good handling If your frame was designed around a 100mm fork, then stay in the range of 80mm-130mm Hope this helps.if you're not sure about the parts you want to buy, post back here with some specifics or get help from a good bike shop Good luck! :o)
