How hard is it to bend 3/4 rigid by hand?

Status
Not open for further replies.

patricknola

Electrical contractor/Generac Dealer
Location
new orleans, La, United States
Occupation
Electrical contractor.
Hey Guys, I've got a job where I have to run about 100 feet of 3/4 rigid with 3 90's, and 3 offsets. There's the possibility I can price in a used chicago bender to the estimate but I was considering bending by hand. I'm still in pretty good shape. Any advice or feedback is much appreciated. TIA Patrick's Electric
 

kwired

Electron manager
Location
NE Nebraska
If you don't have a hickey bender just use a 1" EMT bender, not hard.

Roger
I done that many times. You will likely find for best accuracy you should measure the results of a bend and adjust your bender "take up" accordingly. I believe I always deduct 8-3/8" instead of 8 for a basic stub (I permanently marked the bender with this info so I won't forget when needed)

1/2 inch in 3/4 EMT bender seems to come out close enough that I never adjust those.
 

hillbilly1

Senior Member
Location
North Georgia mountains
Occupation
Owner/electrical contractor
Use IMC, it’s softer! LOL! It’s not that hard if you have a decent amount of weight on you. I had a helper one time, that couldn’t bend 3/4” EMT because he didn’t have enough a** on him! LOL!
 

jusme123

Senior Member
Location
NY
Occupation
JW
Use the hand bender , but price in half the cost of used Chicago. On next rigid job, price in the other half of Chicago bender and you’ll be set.

Bending 3/4 rigid by hand is easy, it’s all technique. Because foot and hand pressure varies between electricians, be sure to adjust the 90 degree deduction to your bending capabilities (Usually around a 1/4”), that way your 90 is bent to the exact measured length.
 

Eddie702

Licensed Electrician
Location
Western Massachusetts
Occupation
Electrician
I have done a little 1 1/4" the bends are pretty large and ugly though. I usually buy 90s and 45s for 1 1/4" and throw the bender in the truck for an offset or two.
 

Jon456

Senior Member
Location
Colorado
I done that many times. You will likely find for best accuracy you should measure the results of a bend and adjust your bender "take up" accordingly. I believe I always deduct 8-3/8" instead of 8 for a basic stub (I permanently marked the bender with this info so I won't forget when needed)
I have an app on my smartphone called "QuickBend." It's handy because, not only does it calculate all the math for you for any bend you can imagine, but it also allows you to tweak the parameters of your bender (you can choose from a large library of benders with built-in factory specs, but you can modify those factory values). My phone is an Android, but there's probably an iPhone version as well.

Disclaimer: I have NO financial interest in this app. Just a satisfied user.
 
Status
Not open for further replies.
Top