Star Quality Elky
August 20, 2024
THE AUTO BUILDER
Featured
Working-Class Heroes: The Best Pickups at Goodguys 2025
Let’s be honest—there was a time when trucks were the stuff you parked behind the show field, used to haul parts, or maybe pulled your “real” hot rod to the event. What once might have been considered second-tier to muscle cars and traditional hot rods is now front and center, with classic pickups, slammed cruisers, high-horsepower haulers, and fully reimagined showstoppers filling the Ohio Expo Center grounds.
PRODUCT SPOTLIGHT: Cam Covers for GEN/3 Coyote from Pyramid Optimized Design
You can bolt all the horsepower in the world under your hood, but if that engine bay looks like a tangle of plastic and wires, it’s still missing something. That’s where the new GEN/3 Coyote Cam Covers come in — from the same team at Pyramid Optimized Design that scored Best New Product in Street Rod/Custom Car at SEMA 2021.
PRODUCT SPOTLIGHT: The ProFlex DXI by Advanced Fuel Dynamics
If you’ve got a 2020+ GM V8 truck or SUV and you’re not running E85 yet, you’re leaving power and money on the table. Enter the ProFlex DXI—the easiest, fastest, and flat-out smartest way to slap flex fuel capability onto your rig. No tuning, no ECU unlocks, no headaches—just more horsepower and lower fuel costs in about 15 minutes.
Spotlighter
BUILD A BENDER
An Economical Way To Get the Bends You Want
Bending irons have been used in the industry for many years. We first became aware of how handy they are during a 10-year stint in the can industry.
Author
Lane Anderson
Story & Photography
Why Use Bending Irons for Metal Fabrication
This type of bending is totally portable and can generate tremendous force. While these irons are not good for sharp 90-degree bends, they are excellent for most radii. We made these irons specifically for the 1/8-inch-thick material used while making our convertible top-anchoring strap. We made the jaw sections larger and thicker than necessary for bending 1/8-inch material because the irons will be reworked for 3/8-inch round stock for our next project.
Building Your Own Economical Metal Bender
For our heavy-duty bending irons, we used 3/4-inch-diameter round stock that was 18 inches long. The jaws were fabricated from 3/4-inch-thick steel plates, and we cut and milled the jaws on our vertical milling machine. If you do not have access to such a tool, you can use a band saw or hacksaw and a drill motor to make the slots.
Versatility of DIY Bending Tools
The portability of the bending irons is another plus. When the job is too tough for bare hands and too small for the vise and hammer, the bending irons fill the gap. With larger slots, the irons can be used for round stock, such as the curved framework of the new center console you’ve been thinking about building. Take a look as you show you how simple this process really is
