PVC and its versatility

[Firoth]

Alright, I need someones help on this one. Does anyone know from exprience or word of mouth what method of bending pvc is best and also what is the most extreme angle you can have without the pvc snapping after the first strike? Thanks for your input.

[Lord Kensman Oron the Wolf]

Firoth, there are several methods for bending PVC, and I have found all to be relatively the same, as far as effectiveness goes. The easiest/fastest way is to use a heat gun (looks much like a hair dryer, only considerably hotter). Steam, from a kettle, or a pot of boiling water, may also be used. Simply emmersing the piece of PVC in very hot water, or running very hot water over the area you wish to bend, also works, depending on the severity of the curve you wish to obtain.

Heat the area you wish to bend. Bend the pipe slowly(some kind of handle stuck in the top end helps alot, for the PVC gets hot, suprize!! I prefer a large screwdriver for this task. Hold the pipe in the desired shape, till it cools (some of the more extreme, or longer curves, may reguire two or three treatments to get the desired shape.

Now, any bending of the PVC weakens it to some degree, due mainly to the physics behind structural integrity of circles, and their inherent, equal distribution of force... I shall not bore you with that lecture here. However, the shorter the piece of PVC the better it will hold up to extreme bends, and the longer the piece the more likely it shall break. If you bend a piece too much, you will get a kink (flat spot, or crease) in the PVC, if this happens, that spot will be the weakest spot on the PVC, and most likely the area to break during a particularly solid impact. So take your time, and do not force it, coax it into the shape you desire.

There is one way to get stronger pieces of curved PVC, use two smaller diameter pieces of PVC (say 1/4" id), bend both to the same shape, and bind them together, one in front of the other. This will allow you more control over the shapping, as the thinner/smaller PVC bends easier, and with the double core, gives the weapon more strength, as the two pieces help one another during strong impacts.

Hope that helps, Firoth. If you do not understand, or have any more questions, post here, or contact me on AIM.

[Zaron]

One note to add to this even though I haven't had alot of experience bending pvc I do have a strong chemistry background. Don't use too hot of a heat source, if you get pvc too hot it will degrade the latice structure of it and make it very brittle.

[kiyoko sasaki]

oohhh firoth... if you come over some time and if you dont have one, i have a heatgun you can use... i belive its black n' decker!...or craftsman...>.>

[Sir Berrok]

o took hot water and put it i the pvc than pluged the ends with tape. then heated more water to a boil the took the pvc and placed it next to two poles that were five feet apart then got a bucket ad filled it with bricks and slid it up to the pvc and made it bend. then pored the boiling water over it and do that 2 or three times let the pvc stay bent for 5 min then it should keep its shape or go what dugal did put into the oven

[Kelabeth]

This is Dhugal, not Kelabeth...

I never put it into the oven, I used the stovetop method, where you heat up a burner and slowly rotate the pipe above the heat and lower it very slowly until you feel the pipe begin to get soft. Once that happens, you begin bending it slightly as you are still rotating it, once you have the curve you desire you either hold it until it cools, or place it into a form.

[Alric, son of Harland]

I have no experience, but I have heard that cooling it by putting it in water hurts the structural integrity. You should allow it to cool naturally.

Alric

[Sir Razier Rhodes]

I have bent PVC and I use the "stovetop" method. I only suggest that you use the thicker 600 psi 1/2 PVC for blue weapons and remember one thing. No matter what method you use, heat it up SLOWLY and cool it off SLOWLY. If you heat too quickly and cool off too quickly, it becomes brittle.

[Kelabeth]

I always use the 600 psi stuff... but then I know that is how thick the walls of the pipe are ;D

The only time I use 480 psi or less is on javelins or shorter weapons

PS. This is Dhugal, not Kelabeth

[greybeardabbot]

A "soft" "broad" heat supply such as hot water, "steam" but not from a kettle... rather from a very large pot... heat the PVC slowly but over as large area as possible... bend very, very slowly as soon as the PVC reaches "bendable" temp... Likewise... let it cool very slowly, in order to maximise the strength... Like Z said... you don't want to mess with the arangement of the molecules... if done slowly at a low temp. it will not become overly brittle.... but bending, any bending will weaken it.

[Dravin]

Is 600 psi PVC pipe the dark grey Schedule 80 PVC or a stronger white PVC?

[Sir Semi]

the psi rating is on all pvc. It is the measurement of pressures applied when the plastic enters the mold. The higher the number the thicker the walls of the pipe are (reducing flex and increasing strength)