"DAKSY" <rsmith13@nycap.rr.com> wrote:
: Hey. Mr. Steiger!
: <snip> Galvanized/black water pipe for a tube frame buggy; frugal
: alternative or recipe for
: disaster?<snip>
: IMHO, (mainly cuz I use B.I.P. on a daily basis) it's FRUGAL, but it's NO
: alternative...Firstly, it's softer 'n doo-doo! Even 3/4 inch dia stuff can
: be bent easily...Not sure on the weldability of the stuff, either. Granted,
: you can get ALL kins of fittings & stuff at a local HW, but the castings
: that these "tees." "increasers," "reducers," & the like are all cast in
: exotic places like Thailand, Korea, China & Mexico, and are generally VERY
: inferior in quality...Lotsa sand pockets & impurities - which can cause them
: to crack when tightening with a 14" pipe wrench...
I was afraid of that. :-) The local salvage yard doesn't have
anywhere near the selection they used to so its looking like I might
actually have to spend some real money if I want to do this. ;-) I'll
definitely secure a drivetrain before worrying about the frame though.
: You'd be better off paying for some cold drawn seamless alloy tubing (4130
: or 4340)
Non-chromoly, to avoid potential weld issues, right? What about
something like 1010 - might be cheaper? I wouldn't even care about
the seam, probably... Unless I'm making something that requires one
tube to ride inside another, I'd be OK with a weld seam to save some
bucks.
While we're on the subject, what is everyone thinking as far as
the tubing size goes? 1", 1.25", 1.5"? Eighth inch wall, or could
I get away with thinner? Whatever the thickness, I'd put some magic
triangles in there to keep the strength up. Basically, I have very
little experience with buying tubing so I'd be looking for the
absolute cheapest tubing availble which would be adequate for my
needs (strength wise).
--
-Jon-
.-- Jon Steiger --- jon@dakota-truck.net or jon@jonsteiger.com --.
| '70 Barracuda, '90 Dakota Convertible, '92 Ram 4x4, '96 Dakota |
| '96 Intruder, '96 Kolb FireFly, '99 Cherokee, '01 Ram 3500 |
`----------------------------------- http://www.jonsteiger.com --'
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