[TheForge] Made in China Hosfeld Bender clone

[Dave Brown]

All,

With a sale price of only $49.95, I couldn't resist.  I bought one of those 
made in China clones of the Hosfeld Bender.  (I had to add another small 
$1.49 item to get the "free shipping on orders over $50).  Anyway, it 
arrived the other day and I got around to mounting it on a bench yesterday, 
but had time only to do a small test.  All things considered, especially 
Harbor Freight's reputation of selling "junk", I am impressed.  The steel 
framework is heavier metal than you'd think from looking at the pictures in 
the catalogs or on-line.  The weld beads are all neat and complete.  There 
is a heavy finish/paint on it.  The working surfaces of the dies and pins 
could be better, they have very noticeable ridges from having been turned 
on a lathe, but it's nothing that would have any effect on any metal that 
was being bent by the unit.  There are 8 round dies, a stop block, and a 
right angle die.

I only had time for a couple of quick tests using the right angle 
bender.  I did some bends using 1/4" & 3/8" round bar, and some 3/16x3/4", 
1/4"x1-1/4" flat bar.  It did what it was supposed to do ... it bent the 
steel bars.  The handle length, without the handle extended, gave plenty of 
leverage to easily do the work without any grunting on my part.

Is it a "Hosfeld"?  Nope, it's too small.  But it is well build enough, 
from what I see so far, to do the job that it's designed to do and within 
the limits of it's design specifications.

No, I don't have stock in HF.  I just think that this bender is better than 
what you'd think from all the disparaging remarks that are passed around 
about HF's tools.


Dave Brown
Blacksmith/Tinsmith
Green Bay, WI
ABANA, UMBA, GoM, MODA, ARG