This is a pipe bender with pipe size dies. If you bend something besides pipe with a pipe die, expect it to not work correctly. Mine makes a nice bend with the sch 40 pipe that it was designed for without using sand.
I get what your saying about the sand, but don't blame the bender because you used the wrong size tubing.
You don't need to use sand when bending pipe w/a pipe bender, just as you don't need to use sand when bending tube w/a tube bender, however if you want to bend the tube using a pipe bender you need to use sand to reduce the amount of deformation and rippling you get w/o sand, as well as the right size tube for the die, i.e. 1-5/8" tube for the 1-1/2" pipe die. You could also have the smaller pipe die machined to accept a the tube diameter you are using.
I am not blaming the HF bender, I knew going in that it wasn't intended to bend tube, but given the ridiculous amount of money the local 4x4 shops wanted to bend the tube($475+ and I already had a jig for my bends) and the local muffler shops wanted $10-15/bend, the HF bender was the cheapest route. Besides I figured if it didn't work I would just return it and pay the muffler shop. It will actually do a good job providing you take your time and don't get in a hurry.
Here is my results w/the HF bender
Flatbed cage and Bumper/brush guard
![](http://thumbnails9.imagebam.com/3072/35dec330717695.gif)
![](http://thumbnails8.imagebam.com/3072/97bd1630717697.gif)
![](http://thumbnails13.imagebam.com/3072/3594f830717699.gif)
![](http://thumbnails16.imagebam.com/3072/6c2abc30717702.gif)
What happens w/o Sand and exhaust tube:
![](http://thumbnails13.imagebam.com/3072/42f1e930717704.gif)
It looks a little better than it did. I tried to salvage it by cutting out the ripples and welding in new material, since it was going to be used for inter cooler pipes and not exhaust. Even w/sand and heat the bend didn't turn out smooth enough for IC piping, so I went ahead and used pre-bent mandrel pieces instead. Either piece would have turned out O.K. for exhaust, just not that pretty to look at.