End Forming
The most requested types of end forming are beading, expanding, flanging, flaring, grooving, knurling, reducing and thickening. These operations can be done on a variety of tube types, such as aluminum, steel and stainless steel and others. A tube can be end-formed either before or after bending, depending on the part being created and the additional operations required.
Types & Applications
Beading is a popular type of end forming, and common in automotive and heavy truck applications where multiple tubes are connected to join systems or assemblies. This could be a fuel pump, or parts within an engine block. Beading is done with a Norma ball and flare or Marmon bead and flare. Slots are sometimes added for better joining.
Flaring is sometimes requested with beading. A Marmon flare is typically used to mate with a Marmon bead and clamp to join two pipes. The inside flare surface seals with the bead in concert with the tensions / constrains to seat the surfaces together.
Another common flare for automotive applications is the spherical ball flare. Its purpose is to join with a spherical ball form and clamp (similar to the Marmon bead). The the flare and ball end-form can accommodate a small amount of angle movement. This is ideal for exhaust systems, because it allows for slight adjustment and movement within the assembly.
Additional applications include water treatment. Residential and commercial water processing entities rely on end-forming for tubing used to transport water and waste. Refrigeration is also an area where end-forming is used to create piping for radiators. Additionally, recreation companies (think ATVs, boats, motorcycles, and side-by-sides), food equipment companies, aerospace, and large-scale furniture makers need this process to create parts used in their products.
Machinery Used in End Forming
The machine technology used for end forming is quite specialized. For lower volumes, a segmented machine, or sizer, is used. The tooling on this type of equipment has eight fingers that are powered by a mechanical drawbar, which uses pulling force on the tube or pipe to perform the expansion or reduction of the end. Typically, the tolerances for this application are more forgiving. For larger volumes and tighter tolerances, spin-forming machines and progressive ram forming equipment is used to meet the specific dimension.
End forming can be combined with tube bending and tube lasering as a part of an overall project. Whatever the specifications of the job, we will work with your engineer or product designer to determine the appropriate manufacturing parameters and set the course for your custom project.
Find out more about our end forming capabilities in this blog.