Mini Roll Bender (calandra)

thingiverse

The plan was to create a compact roll bender for perfect bending of aluminum tubes with small diameters (about 8mm and maximum wall thickness of 1mm). This tool would aid in building a basketball hoop, replacing the earlier model found on Thingiverse at http://www.thingiverse.com/thing:582302, which was entirely printed and suffered damage from repeated slam dunks. While printing the same model repeatedly is possible, a stronger design featuring a mix of both printed and non-printed parts is preferred, particularly one with a perfectly formed aluminum ring. To produce this ring, an aluminum tube must be sourced from a local store, accompanied by a functional roll bender that can be 3D printed. However, the first attempt was overly ambitious and proved too weak to work correctly, even when printed with 90% infill. Consequently, potential users have been warned that it may not function as intended. Despite its limitations, this design has been posted in the hopes that it could suffice for weaker tubes or serve as a starting point for another project. In any case, it could be adapted into a charming tabletop ornament.