Wow, this has certainly been the toughest part so far. I'm finally there.
I started with 4130 0.035" tubing using Zip's Tube Notcher app. It works but you have to have everything pretty much dead on for it to work and it took me a while to figure out what I was doing. I've got no advice for any 1st timers on this other than to start with cheap tubing (and lots of it) and do half a dozen or so stays and you'll get the hang of it. I also started using my air tools with various sanding attachments to assist fitting these up. It allows you to get in, really see what's causing the interference and sand it out quickly and re-fit. So get it really close with files and then hit the sanding wheels just a quick pulse at a time.
Fresh start:
It's better if you tape these on straight from the get go instead of like this:
Hacked out with the cutoff wheel:
Filed on both ends:
The other side:
Both sides done (in 4130):
Time to get out the True Temper stuff again:
First go on TT tubing on the new bender:
No wrinkles!:
Same process, different tube:
Both sides done just like the 4130:
And if that's not enough stuff to fit, remember to get them in plane with one another:
I spent a couple of days getting this all done. I'd say 12 hours easily. I made a MDF jig that ended up being useless (took all day one day to do that) before just getting back to basics and trying to understand shaping the miters more carefully. I wish I had video of it because it was hundreds of little nibbles on the tubes to get them to fit exactly how I wanted. Again, the biggest advice is to just try it with some cheap 4130 until you're really confident that you can get them right and then go to the real tubes. It's really that simple, just very very time consuming, frustrating, and awesome when you get it figured out.
Zip, I can't thank you enough for your miter program. Without it, I'd still be cutting up MDF and trying to make something work that way. Your program works and works well. It's awesome.
If all goes well, I should be able to get out to the weld shop soon. Life has been rough lately--been to two funerals in the past week, had a furnace failure at the house, missed family Christmas because of one funeral so it was nice to get some time on this as I sure don't think about a lot else when I'm wrapped up in the frame. Hope you guys all had a Merrier Christmas than I did and I can't wait for 2010 to get here. I was a bit disappointed that I wasn't going to have the frame done by the end of the year but having a new frame in 2010 will be a great way to start the new year.
EDIT: Just realized I used WWTP030 already. Walt, can you rename the title on this to WWTP031?
