Bending machine for making brass rings for telescope eyepiece holders.

Bending machine for making brass rings for telescope eyepiece holders.

I have introduced an improvement in some of my adapters for 1.25 eyepieces to T2 thread, available here in PRINTABLES.

(see: https://www.printables.com/model/1508496-adapter_125_eyepiece_to_t2-recapitulation-and-upda)

Now, they incorporate an internal groove to place a brass clamping ring, to avoid damage to the accessories that are mounted and improve the clamping.

To make these rings I have designed this small bender. It works very well with semi-rigid brass sheets of 0.5 mm thickness and 5 mm width.

For the machine to work properly, post-processing of the printed parts is necessary, eliminating defects and irregularities on the surfaces. The axes must be adjusted so that they rotate smoothly without play. Sandpaper and other tools are essential.

Some screws thread directly into the holes in the parts. You may need to use a threading tap to start the thread.

Once adjusted, I lightly greased it with the same grease that I use on the 3D printer.

To make these rings I use brass sheet measuring 104 x 5 mm, with a thickness of 0.5 mm.. Once bent to a diameter slightly larger than 31.75 mm (1.25”) to make it springy, I trim about 3 mm off each end so that the resulting ring is perfectly round.

Perhaps you can use this machine for other purposes, including making your own rollers to bend small tubes, for example. I've included a STEP file of the model for this purpose.

I hope it is useful to you.

Print material and settings

Prusament PETG is a good material for this model.

In the configuration files you will find the print settings I used for these pieces, nothing special. 

Material addicional

x3        ISO_4762_Screw_M3x8

x2        ISO_4762_Screw_M3x16

x3        ISO_4762_Screw_M4x16

x1        ISO_4762_ Screw _M4x30

x1        ISO_4017_ Screw _M5x20

x2        ISO_4032_Nut_M3

x2        ISO_4032_ Nut _M4

x1        ISO_4032_ Nut _M5

x2        ISO_10511_ Self-locking Nut _M4

x3        ISO_7093_Washer_3x9

x3        ISO_7089_Washer_4x9

Parts and Assembly

Step 1

Step 2

Step 3

Step 4