He Makes His Own Protective Hose Wrap

He Makes His Own Protective Hose Wrap FARM SHOP Handy Hints John Bennett makes durable wraps for hydraulic hoses fuel lines and even computer cables using his home-built cutter He cuts PEX pipe into spirals that can stand up to wear and UV rays for himself his friends and neighbors and area retail shops It all started with a worn hose in a garbage truck     “I drove truck for a garbage handler and a hydraulic hose was getting worn ” recalls Bennett “They didn’t have any wrap and didn’t know where to get any so I made some ”     Bennett’s first wrap cutter was simple He welded a washer slightly larger than 3/4-in blue PEX onto a piece of rebar He notched the washer and sharpened the edge to make a cutting blade     “I stuck it in a drill and it cut the PEX but I could only go as far as the length of the rod ” says Bennett “I decided to make a machine that could cut the PEX to any length ”     His improved version is a 9-in dia 12-in long drum made from an air tank salvaged from an old truck A knife with pipe guides is bolted to the inside of the tank The guides are washers on a bolt fixed to the center of the blade with spacers to match the size of the PEX pipe being cut As the PEX feeds through the guides keep it centered The bolt matches the angle of the knife Bennett keeps different size knives and guides for different size PEX pipe     “I just remove three 3/4-in bolts when switching pipe sizes and install the correct knife and guides ” says Bennett “I have cutting knives and guides for 1/8-in up to 4-in dia PEX pipe ”     Bennett used a 1/2-hp electric motor to drive a 5-speed gearbox from a wheelhorse garden tractor “You can shift the transmission without a clutch ” he explains “It has the five speeds plus reverse which is handy if I have to back out of a job ”     The motor gearbox and cutting mechanism along with pipe guides and supports are mounted to an 18-in by 22-in 4-ft tall steel tubing framework The uprights are 1/8-in thick 1 1/2-in sq tubing Two rectangular cross supports of 1-in tubing butt welded at each corner to 2-in tubing slide over the uprights The 2-in tubes are drilled and threaded for 1/4-in bolts that act as set screws     Additional cross supports using steel strap and 2-in slides are mounted between two uprights as needed They support various guides as well as the vertically mounted electric motor     “I can raise or lower the cross supports as I want ” says Bennett “The design also makes it easy to disassemble and move the cutter to my basement from my unheated shop for the winter ”     With the framework in place Bennett mounted the motor and the gearbox on a lower level A 1 1/2-in pulley on the motor is belted to a 9-in pulley on the gearbox In addition to the gearbox gearing rpm’s are further slowed by a 1-in drive sprocket on the gearbox and a 9-in drive sprocket on the cutting drum     The drum is mounted above the motor and gearbox on a second cross frame It rides on four support wheels Bennett picked up at Tractor Supply Rollers mounted to the cross frame at each end of the drum help retain it in place with about 1/8-in play     “The support wheels have ball bearings instead of nylon so they will last longer ” says Bennett “The retaining wheels were salvaged from an old pair of roller skates ”     Bennett used No 40 roller chain to drive the cutting drum Initially he planned to cut out the interior of a 9-in gear and weld it to the drum He bought a gear and then had second thoughts     “I hated to waste a new gear like that ” says Bennett “Instead I used it as a template over a piece of steel I drilled holes to match the gaps between the teeth of the gear and then cut away the waste using an angle grinder leaving a 9-in dia hole to mount over the drum ”     Bennett mounted roller guides for the incoming pipe using hose guides like those used on propane trucks After the cut hose passes out of the drum it travels through a pvc pipe sized for the PEX being cut Both incoming and outgoing guides are mounted on sliding arms The outgoing pvc pipe is mounted between two cross arms making it easy to replace as needed     “The incoming guides straighten out the pipe as it comes off a reel ” says Bennett “As the cut pipe travels through the pvc guide pipe it drops down and coils in a basket below ”     Bennett’s hose protector has literally sold itself He swaps cut wrap for fresh PEX pipe with his son who is a plumber When he was shopping for a drive belt he described what he was doing to an auto parts store manager He asked to see the finished product When looking for a 9-in drive sprocket he told a friend who sells parts for old Allis Chalmers equipment The friend found the large drive gear for him and asked to see the finished wrap     “Now they both sell it for me ” says Bennett “I have a few other local places that sell it for me ”     Contact: FARM SHOW Followup John Bennett 4550 Stow Rd Fowlerville Mich 48836 ph 517-763-8838

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