How to make a do-it-yourself cold forging machine and its varieties

Known, due to their appearance, are metal products that are made by forging. This decor is different in price, so not everyone can order them for themselves. However, in addition to the hot forging technology necessary for the manufacture of metal parts, there is also a cold one. The last option is the ability to do it yourself, for these purposes you will need to make a cold forging machine with your own hands.

Cold forging machines

Any device for cold forging has characteristic features and qualities. To make a quality do-it-yourself cold forging machine, it is important to find out how it works.

• Bending. By changing the position of the rollers and wedges, the dimensions of the waves and bends change. Because of this, the rods are bent up to 1.6 cm. The only drawback of the mechanism used will be the impossibility of making it yourself.
• Twister. Equipped with a special template, the used metal part is pressed against it. The safety of the template is ensured by a persistent horn.
• Base with spacers. The device helps to make any patterns. The design is simple, the base is a plate of high quality material, where spacers are screwed at a certain distance. This type of device is effective for metal with a thickness of 0.6 cm.
• Snails. The product is a base plate, where the special scroll is located. It is used as a template for the workpiece. A characteristic feature will be that the «snail»-template is divided into fragments, fixed to each other with the help of connecting special elements. This will allow the template to change shape when working, which will create a variety of waves and bends. For the manufacture of such a machine, you will need to choose an extremely reliable material that will not bend over time.
• Torsion machine. Such a device is effective for screw twisting the rod. The device is made of a cylindrical metal frame and 2 fixing elements. The principle of operation is that the rods are placed in fasteners. On the one hand, they are clamped, and on the other hand, they are twisted to the required size of a helical wave.

Important! Before you create a device, you need to familiarize yourself with the drawings of the cold forging machine.

Varieties and purpose of forging machines

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The mechanism will facilitate manual work and create unique products. For forging by the cold method, craftsmen use various equipment that minimizes physical. human effort and allows you to carry out the following basic actions:

• bend the profile at the required angle;
• make spirals or curls;
• twist the parts along.

Various mechanisms help to create unique designs, an artistic canvas for a gazebo, a decor for a bench in a park, and other items for a variety of purposes.

Decor machines make it possible to create parts similar in shape and parameters in a short time interval, help to reduce their cost and production time.

Such machines are profile (perform only one action) and universal. There are such special machines:

• gnutiki;
• snails;
• torsion bars;
• stamping.

Universal models consist of special equipment components in different combinations.

Machine «snail»

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The algorithm for assembling a machine for cold forging with your own hands will not cause difficulties. During the creation of the snail, 3 types of construction are likely, and then relative. Each specialist makes a curl, spiral and bend of the product in his own way.

By type of execution, mechanisms are of 3 types:

• monolithic with a fixed bending pattern;
• with a removable bend, which makes it possible to make various curls;
• with collapsible curl components and a rotating top to obtain complex bending profiles.

Installation of the machine begins with the design of the main components of the device:

• Frame. The mechanism must be made of metal. Wood is completely unsuitable for assembling the device: prolonged and excessive loads destroy the tree in several uses. As the main material, a corner, pipes with a thick wall or a channel are used.
• Tabletop. It is made from a plate of metal, which is cut in the shape of a circle, 0.4 cm thick. A second tabletop is cut out of such a plate, which will repeat the shape of the first. On the latter, the components are located, the workpieces are bent. With cold forging, the countertop will take on a large load, so it is not necessary to save money and create it from sheet iron.
• Main shaft and lever. The shaft is located in the middle, it is surrounded by countertops. It is fixed to the frame with 4 triangles. The mechanism is made of a pipe with a thick wall of the desired diameter. The lever is attached to the shaft by means of a ring and rotated around its axis. An auxiliary roller is installed on it to bend the rods.

Torsion machine

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Ordinary twisting is carried out by a number of users without using the machine. One end of the part is clamped in a vice, and the other is turned thanks to a standard collar. With this technique, the workpiece is twisted, but sometimes stretched. To avoid this, a guide structure is constructed as a gutter. Should be considered:

• the length of the groove — it cannot be longer than the part reduced during deformation;
• the width of the groove — it is required that it be twice as wide as the product, since it will increase during the deformation process.

It is possible to achieve the expected results without equipment — for such purposes it will take effort and spend a lot of time. Those who prefer to assemble the necessary device should design such special equipment.

Assembling such a machine with your own hands is possible in 2 variations: standard and universal. The first will be an improved way to work with a vise, and the second will provide a chance to create unique parts.

The main working force that is required to deform the material is taken by the support, therefore the base of the device being created must be highly durable. For such purposes, an I-beam or 2 channels are used, which are welded to each other. Stability for the frame is added by paws that are welded to the device. Then it is possible to manufacture the remaining elements — the tailstock and the spindle.

Do-it-yourself cartridges are located in the nodes of the mechanism from a profile pipe, the purpose of which will be their placement inside the workpiece. They must have strong latches (for secure fastening). Due to the reduction in the length of the product used during twisting, the tailstock is made sliding. It is permissible to build it from a vice, fixing it to the base with bolts.

The movable element of the spindle is turned using a handle, which provides for the presence of several levers having the necessary length to dampen the applied forces.

Important! It is possible to add rubber bushings to protect your hands from slipping.

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The main difference in the installation algorithm of the universal device will be the device of the movable element. It involves a screw feed in the manufacture of lanterns, is fixed using standard twisting. Therefore, the active element is supplied with 2 spindles. In this version, a locking screw is required for the sliding headstock.

When you need to make a part that is twisted only on a specific fragment, limiters are added to the device. They are made according to the tailstock principle — there are special clamps and there is a sliding option.

Work in such a situation is extremely tiring, obtaining high-quality products is a laborious process. Therefore, equipping the product with an electric drive will be the best solution.

Machine «Gnutik»

The device is efficient, massive, easy to install. But a significant disadvantage will be that it is difficult to find and fit the details. The purpose of the device will be to bend the part at different angles, therefore, it will be necessary to exert considerable effort on, therefore, the installation requirements will become higher.

For the frame of the fixture, a thick steel frame is selected. Please note that the device is attached to the table. Basically, fasteners are made using a bolted connection, for example, as in a vice. In the middle of the frame there is a guide that is movable. It is driven by an eccentric mechanism fixed on the frame-frame. Auxiliary 3 stops are installed, which create an unusual “fork” — these are the working components of the device. Given the profile of the bend, they change: round shafts — to make a wave, «hammer» — to form corners.

Working components are made only from special steel. They will be responsible for the strength of the entire structure. To process and customize products, you will need special skills and appropriate tools directly. Therefore, when there are difficulties in ordering, when buying or manufacturing the main components, it is recommended to purchase the device in a store. Its price is not too high, but it can additionally be used to bend pipes.

Machine «wave»

It is more logical to call the product under consideration a controlled wave. The device is equipped with 2 steel discs with a diameter of 14 cm. They are fixed by means of bolts to the table top. An axis is fixed on the main disk, which rotates the universal knob.

It is necessary to control the device in question by changing the distance between the disks. During the rolling of the rod with a collar, a pattern is formed. When the rod is removed from the conductor, a pattern is formed on the second side.

Machine — press

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To form the tips of the rods, you will need to use a press. The device under consideration functions similarly to a flywheel: initially the rod with weights rotates, the screw head is retracted all the way back. Then another stamp is inserted into the socket and the workpiece is placed. After, the bar will quickly unwind in the opposite direction. The striker will hit the tail of the die, as a result of which the force necessary for stamping is formed.

Parts that are made by cold forging are connected by 2 methods:

• Welding — products are welded, scale is grinded off with a «grinder» or other equipment.
• Clamps — this type of connection looks much brighter.

Paint blanks using special enamels or acrylic paints.

How to make a cold forging machine with your own hands

To install a cold forging machine with your own hands, you will need to carry out the following steps:

• First, a rack is assembled that acts as a support. For this purpose, each element (pipe fragments of similar sizes and joints on the upper and lower sides) are connected into one whole. The device looks like a stool on the outside. Installation work is carried out using a welding machine, cutting — using a saw.
• Now you need to cut metal sheets. You will get circles of the same diameter and 4 triangles that have the same sides. Triangular components are welded to the bottom of the structure so that something similar to a pyramid comes out. A base with a wider area is welded to the center of the cut circle.
• 4 strips arranged horizontally are attached to the circle with the welded element. This is done using bolts (use a drill to drill holes).
• The next step will be the manufacture of the handle. It is required to use 2 rods of different lengths. Their dimensions are determined by the method of ratio with diameter and circumference. The first rod should be the same size, the second should be slightly larger than its parameters. During the bending of the first rod, it is required to observe the required angle. After that, the corners are welded together, then the third rod is welded down. There should be a jumper between the initial two segments, a special lever is attached to them.
• A bearing for a variety of directions in the device is attached to the end of the welded lever, to the segment that is located in the lower half of the device. The upper cut plays the role of fastening for a metal coil (mounted horizontally, it helps to bend the metal). A hole is made at the bottom of the segment, where the free ending is located.
• The final manufacturing step will be the installation of the manufactured handle with an element that resembles a «pyramid». Such parts are fixed after putting on the handle of the mechanism using a large diameter nut. A circle of metal is welded onto it in advance, making it possible to fix the template. Then the «snail» must be attached using a welding machine. Now the mechanism will be ready for operation.

By following a simple algorithm of actions, a home specialist or master will be able to create a high-quality device.

To create a mechanism yourself, you need to be careful in the process of designing drawings and making the necessary calculations. In other moments, the manufacturing algorithm is simple. Having established the principle of operation of the device, it is possible to come up with original variations that improve the workpieces being processed.