advice on notching pipes

[scannerzer]

Hi all

not got anything done with the trike build over the last few weeks,I'v only been off work for 3 days in the last 21
but i'm hoping to get going again soon which brings me to the question of notching pipes.

What does everyone here do,grind each indivdual pipe with an angle grinder or use one of the cheap notchers i see in ebay
using a holesaw to do the cutting

any advice appreciated

Eddie

[one arm bandit]

did mine with a 5" grinder and fettled with a small worn cutting disc. most chuck them in the bin but there very usefull. and im as tight as a*** holes

[scannerzer]

Thanks OAB

I'm sorta leaning that way but I'm trying to weigh up the time it will take to do as many
pipes as i need against the cheapest notcher I'v seen at about £70 delivered

Eddie

[steven brock]

Hole saw, cause there will not be many 90 degree notches done on the build cut straight the round off is your best bet slow but works.. my 2 cents

[zakboy]

if you have a standard bench top pillar drill i find a heavy duty pipe vice witch bolts straight to the center of the drill table is much more solid and stable than some of the cheep tube notches .....and you can get some angle if need be,.... the pipe vise will take box or round and can be picked up second hand on ebay quite cheeply.

[scannerzer]

So that's 2-1 for a hope saw type arrangement .i do have a
Pillar drill but I hadn't thought of doing that

Thanks For your replies

Eddie

[tbone]

I`d say it depends on your welder. 

If you`re mig or arc welding the frame, then use Tubemiter to produce your template, cut the bulk of the notch with a cutting disc in your angle grinder and then a grinding disc to trim the fit. It wont be a 100% tight fit, but after you bevel the end for welding, the weld will fill the small gaps nicely and give good penetration.

Holesaws work well (as long as you stick to the correct turning speeds) but are slow through thick pipe.
The majority of holesaws are not designed to cut on the end of a pipe, they use a drill bit to centre and guide the saw through the steel.
There is a lot of sideways force generated when using a holesaw, when attempting to cut the end of a pipe,at the very least the saw will have a tendency to skip and slip, worse case scenario...the saw will shatter!

If you are going to tig weld the frame you will need a tight fitting joint and the best way to achieve this would be to use a milling machine.

[trev]

when i,ve done it with a hole saw i allways drill the hole in a longer than needed pipe then cut to size,then you get 2 notches at once.

[tbone]

Why a tight fit for tig welding?

Took it to a bike mechanic in our club, the problem was in the switch, didn't really understand but obviously he did.  What I did understand was what he said about the way it was wired - the live feed went to the flasher unit first, then to the switch, which didn't make sense to him or me.  Went to collect it and all was working fine.  Off I went down the road, indicated right at the end of the road, still fine.  Went to indicate left at the next junction and everything went wrong!  Turned on the indicator and all that happened was all the indicators flashing just a tiny bit.

Went back to Pete's and we scratched our heads a bit and he found a solution to make the indicators work - he cut one of the wires from the flasher unit to the indicator!  So I currently have working indicators but not working hazards, which suited me fine as it was 8pm by then and I'd had no tea!  To be fair to Pete, he was out of his comfort zone cos he's only ever worked on bikes.

Any way, did a search on here for threads about hazerds on trikes and emailed them to him, he thinks he's figured it out and will get back to me when he's got what's needed.  He did sort the handbrake though, works a treat now!

im in no way electrically minded and t-bone talked me through the a complete new loom for my trike. but the hazzards i couldnt get my head around,so i brought a hazzard kit off of ebay, a simple couple of wires to join easy even for me and they worked think it was £10 comes all neatly heat wraped, may be an easier option gran if you have to pay labour etc maybe cheeper too

Hmm, whats technically known as a cross thread I believe 
But to answer the question...
Firstly, the more gaps there are, the greater the amount of filler material required.
The more filler material required means more heat to melt it with.
In prepping the joint, you are thinning the metal, apply lots of heat to the thin metal and it`ll burn back, creating more gaps to fill.

Secondly, it`s a matter of neatness. Tig is a much nicer looking weld than mig but not if you have to keep going over and over it.

[scannerzer]

I assume then that to get an angled notch using a hole saw
You would drill from each side offset from each other and
then cut the angle between them with the grinder or hacksaw?

[andyrennison]

I have been using 60 grit grinding flappy disks. Give a lot of control and you can shape nicely. As they get old the outer edge wears, I keep those for flat grinding where the inner grit is still fine.

[tbone]

I assume then that to get an angled notch using a hole saw
You would drill from each side offset from each other and
then cut the angle between them with the grinder or hacksaw?

It`s easier to angle the table of your pillar drill and saw through in one go, most will have a dial where the table is mounted to the main shaft  

[scannerzer]

I'll have to check my drill when I get home
but it's only a cheap one do I'm not so sure

[Manky Monkey]

I'm old school -some would say positively neanderthal. Angle grinders, hacksaws & files are my chosen weapons.
When splicing 2 tubes together I just measure to the centre line of the main toob, cut a V in the end of the joining tube with a cutting disc in the grinder, then switch to a flap wheel, (sanding disc), to round the V out to the profile of the tube. With a little practice it only takes a minute or 2 & gives you the chance to adjust the profile as you go for a nice close fit.
Not everyone can afford, or want expensive power tools. They have their place, but you can achieve just as good results by being a little more "hands on". 

[scannerzer]

Thanks to everyone for the replies on this one ,I've never attempted this bit and it is very good to get some opinions
from experienced builder, it saves mistakes!

I'll give the grinder/flapwheel method a go and see how i get on and let you know

Thanks again

Eddie