The big difference is in the dies, and where the pressure is applied to the tubing to do the bending.
On the HF unit, the pipe is held on either side of the bend with pins, and a hydraulic bottle jack applies pressure to the center (between the pins) with a formed die. They're ok to about 90° on pipe, or soft tubing.
An actual tubing bender basically "pulls" the tubing around a die from one end, resulting in a bend with less distortion, and consistent tubing diameter throughout the bend.
I wasn't saying it couldn't be done with the HF unit in my post above...just trying to get some facts out regarding the differences between the benders.
I guess the "easiest" way to bend tubing accurately and consistently is with an actual tubing bender.
Ryan
