[TheForge] Diacro vs Hossfeld

Mon Oct 7 06:47:00 2002

        Ries, Thanks for taking the time to write this on the difference
between benders, I'm saving it for reference when people ask the question
agian in our club or at classes,  very well put.

Ralph


----- Original Message -----
From: "RIES NIEMI" <[email protected]>
To: "theforge" <[email protected]>
Sent: Sunday, October 06, 2002 3:04 PM
Subject: [TheForge] Diacro vs Hossfeld


> The Diacro and Hossfeld benders are very different tools, made by
companies
> with different goals and markets.
>
> The Diacro is built more like a machine tool, by a company whose main
focus
> was precision sheet metal equipment. Many of their tools, like their 18"
> finger brake with micrometer adjusting back gages, or their precision 9"
> shears, are used by jewelers, machinists, and prototype shops.
>
> The Hossfeld, on the other hand, is more of a blacksmiths and fabricators
> tool. Built like an erector set, you can make much additional tooling for
a
> hossfeld with a stick welder and a 3/4" drill.
>
> The Diacro is best suited for small, precise work. Even though a
hydraulicly
> powered Diacro bender was built that will handle 1 1/2" pipe, the majority
> of the hand operated machines you find are suited to work up to about 3/4"
> in diameter. If for instance, you need to bend a couple of thousand pieces
> of 1/4" stainless tubing to the exact same bend, or 3/8" round spring
stock
> into a complicated shape, use a Diacro. It strengths are in small
diameters
> and sizes of tubing, round, and square.
>
> The Hossfeld is capable of much larger sizes- 1 1/2" pipe, 2" angle, 4"
flat
> bar. It is much better for hot bending- with its open framework it is easy
> to slide a red hot piece in, or to heat up a specific section with a
rosebud
> and bend it pronto. I would feel uncomfortable throwing a huge heavy piece
> of red hot steel, with mill scale flaking off of it, onto a Diacro- it
just
> wouldnt seem civilised. Besides, the massive machined disc of the Diacro
> platen would suck the heat out of a piece rapidly, making it cool much to
> fast.
> In particular, the Hossfeld is better at hot bending, large diameter
circles
> and arcs, and edge bending. I have bent 1" x 4" flat bar hot in the
> hossfeld, into complicated curves for a transmission loop, that just could
> not be done on a Diacro. The Hossfeld dies for bending angle iron flange
out
> come with a selection of fixed radius dies that enable you to bend
> repeatable circles in large angle, pipe, round, square and flat that isnt
> really doable on the Diacro, and certainly not as quickly or as
repeatably.
> I did a railing job last year where we hot bent 1/4" x 1 1/2" flat bar the
> hard way into 4" radius corners. The hossfeld dies for edgebending consist
> of sliding angles machined into them, so the will fit any thickness. You
> just need to cut some same thickness shims, and you can bend up to 1/2"
> thick flat bar the hard way. I am working on a piece now where I had to
bend
> 1/4" x 3" flat bar into a squiggle, the hard way. We did it cold, and it
> took almost not time. On the Diacro, custom dies must be machined for many
> of these operations.
>
> So- two different tools, with two different uses- I would love to have
both,
> and have been looking for a good deal on a large used Diacro for years.
For
> precision, small scale work, the Diacro shines. For a blacksmith, I think
a
> Hossfeld is a more versatile, better choice. Plus there are at least 3
> companies (Hossfeld, American Bender, and JDsquared) competing making
> Hossfeld compatible dies, while many Diacro dies are either prohibitively
> expensive or unavailable.
>
> Ries Niemi
>
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