Homemade Intercooler pipe bead tool - DSM Forums

looks pretty nifty, if you are willing to sacrifice a pair of vise grips

 

That's pretty sweet. I've seen some other DIY setups with vice grips but that's the best I've seen. To bad it likely wouldn't work on my steel pipes. But they don't blow off either, so I'm not worried about it. If I had aluminum I'd do this in a heart beat.

 

yeah, just do that...



Anyhow, pretty damn neat idea.

 

Well I've got aluminum, but I also have Craftsman vise grips...

 

This is cheaper than a real pair of Vise-Grips. You could mount it to a 2x4, mount the exhaust clamp to the 2x4, and put a short tube over the handle to improve your leverage and prevent arthritis in your old age. Then c-clamp the whole thing to your work bench.

500 Lb. Horizontal Toggle Clamp from Harbor Freight

 

might have to do this. i was just gunna weld a bead around my pipe with the tig

 

Cheap vicegrips are like $3-4 at any local parts store or big lots.
Chinese tools FTW.

 

I once found a pair of Vise-Grips(TM) half-buried in Stoddard Wells Road while four-wheeling. Brought them home, cleaned the dirt off, and they are a better tool than the knock-offs I'd had for 15 years.

 

Will be making these soon... Thanks for the link!

 

why didn't a miata owner think of this first

 

I just made something similar today (after reading a bunch of different ideas in this thread and elsewhere)...tried to do the welding a washer to vicegrips thing but it didn't work out so well because I only have a cheap stick fluxcore welder...so I bought a $20 vise from Lowe's: Wilton at Lowe's: 4-1/2" Workshop Vise

and removed the little grip plate held on by two screws on one side...I got a 2.5" (size intercooler pipe I'm using) muffler clamp part from Advance Auto and drilled a hole in it then used the original screw that held the grip piece to attach it to the vice. I did have to grind down part of the vice so the muffler clamp fit flush. Then I removed the screw directly opposite of the clamp and replaced it with a longer screw with a round head (size #10-32X3/4") This screw is what actually presses the bead into the clamp side. I think it worked out pretty good-it's easy to press the bead because the vice gives good leverage you just have to keep the pipe where you want it and clamp, spin, clamp, spin, etc...they're not the prettiest but I won't see them with silicone covering them up! The one pictured below is not the best one I made...if you try to press the bead too close to the edge it tends to curve the end over a little.

 

That looks a bit average sorry, I got a cleaner look with some thin wire and some metal compound glue.

I spose it could work well if you were super patient though. IMO this vice concept is a better idea than the grips because you can actually wrench the pipe around with both hands, not having to hold the vicegrips still.

 

looks nice scottv, big meaty beads to scare all of that silicone

 

I didn't try to take my time on the pipes at all-am more concerned with function over looks...nice thing is the clamp cost $2 and I can just remove it and the screw when done and still have a functioning vise. I will also add that when I made the notch in the vise for the clamp to set flush in:the notch also serves to keep the clamp vertical/from spinning so I tried to grind out only enough so the clamp fit in. I had been worrying like crazy about how I was going to get a bead in my ebay pipes and was glad I found this thread and able to come up with a cheap/workable idea.