My beam's bent!

[pelhamjeff]

Ever since you gents walked me through posting the pictures, I've been amazed at the number of people that took the time to try to help me out. It's also obvious to me that many of the respondants must be, in some degree or another, mechanical engineers. I'm pretty much just a regular guy who fixes broke cars. Anyway, I really appreciate the help. Many people said I should replace the beam and be done with it, and maybe that is what I will do when it's all said and done. Before I do, I'm going to try welding in some ANGLE (thanks, Mark). I wish I fully understood why the rear of my slider tries to pull the outside of the flange up, almost like the slider would rather go under the log than split it. My wedge is 90 degrees with respect to the top of the beam, so I'm having trouble understanding why the slider wants to always dive under the log, but never go over it, which might tend to pull up the metal under the front of the slider. It may be, as some suggested, that I just need to mount the cylinder higher. What I am going to do first is get the beam as straight as I can on top and weld in some angle below that surface. Then I'll brace those new angles to the bottom flange. I wont get around to doing this until late summer or fall, and when I do, I'll post some pics. Thanks again to everybody who offered their advise!

 

[northcountry]

Very True Erick, I had not thought about that and Gink, I just bent some 4" on friday for lit-box brackets, guess my handbender is the bomb........

 

[mga]

It may be, as some suggested, that I just need to mount the cylinder higher.

count me as one who suggests against that.

with the slider/pusher you're using, i suggested getting the ram closer to the end plate. also,
if you were to redesign your pusher, you should look at something along these lines:

you want to push the log into the wedge. you don't need a push plate almost the size of the log. keeping it as small as possible, in my opinion, is the best option. i'm using an 8 inch H beam and my push plate is 8 inches wide by 6 inches high. i have thrown rounds so big it took two of us to lift them and never had a problem.

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[gink595]

Very True Erick, I had not thought about that and Gink, I just bent some 4" on friday for lit-box brackets, guess my handbender is the bomb........

Hand bender or hand brake as in box/pan brake? Yeah I'd say somethings the bomb??? Yeah and I have a stomp sheer that will sheer 3/4" LOLopcorn:

Not trying to start a war, but we cannot be talking about the same things here, When you say hand bender I think of the pliers that have a 4-5" straight edge that the tin smiths use for duct fabrication in the field. With a hand brake yes I can see that doing that fine with a 6" wide hot rolled 1/4 flat bar.

 

[northcountry]

I'm sorry gink , we really are talking about two different things, i use an old '40's portable roller bender with a 7 ft handle. it is a sign shop specific build device but i still considered it a "hand tool" because it's easily transportable (maybe 30 lbs) using just manpower to drive it and was meant to be used on the bumper of a truck to repair or fab on-site sign hangers. The point being that 1/4" steel is really too weak for a power rail. As far as heat treating, if the steel as Erick mentioned has enough carbon in it to react to a moderate amount of heat treating may return some of the rigidity it once had prior to beating it up, not to be overdone to the point of being a superhard ultra brittle item as you imply is the only result. I was only voicing in an unmentioned step that could help our friend before resorting to a whole new rail as he hoped to work this one into a usable device. I think its great you mentioned the ability to overwork a piece of steel as that is a very imprtant thing i lacked to mention in my quick little reply. Have an awsome day.

 

[cabinman]

Mga

Right on MGA the cylinder should be as close to the plate as possable,...and the shoe ,.as long as possable, like 12 inches or more,...This concept will work on the thinist of beams,..If you hook your cylinder twards the rear of the pusher, and have a short shoe,.......you are going to bend alot of metal, Mount the cylinder to the front of the pusher, and make the shoe LONG,I mean LONG, And you wont bend even the thinist of beams, Eric

 

[cabinman]

Friction

Right on MGA the cylinder should be as close to the plate as possable,...and the shoe ,.as long as possable, like 12 inches or more,...This concept will work on the thinist of beams,..If you hook your cylinder twards the rear of the pusher, and have a short shoe,.......you are going to bend alot of metal, Mount the cylinder to the front of the pusher, and make the shoe LONG,I mean LONG, And you wont bend even the thinist of beams, Eric

Not to mention the fact that reducing friction allows the pump to pump on high flow more often Eric