¿ªÔÆÌåÓý

ctrl + shift + ? for shortcuts
© 2025 Groups.io
  1. 4x6bandsaw
  2. Topics

Ideas For Holding Copper Water Pipe Fitting

 

I am looking for ideas on how to hold a 45-degree, 1/2-inch diameter, water pipe fitting for cutting in the middle? at a specific angle. This type of fitting has the flaring at both ends for sweating onto the 1/2-inch diameter copper pipe.?


I prefer to cut it with the bandsaw in the horizontal position vs the vertical position, so that I can cut multiple pieces and get the same exact cut. I feel I would not be able to do this freehand in the vertical position.


The reason I need to do this is because I need to get angles that are not the standard 45 or 90-degree that are available.


Thank you,


Chip
 

I should have added the following:

This will not be used in a pressurized water line.

This will be used for an A/C condensate drain line for a split-type indoor unit. No pressure, just draining the water by gravity through the wall and down into a garden.
 

I'm not sure how, once you cut the custom angle,? you will connect the piping. I don't think it will fit into the cut off elbow very well. An easy way to make an angle other than 90 or 45 degrees with piping is to use two 90 degree elbows together. You can then set the angle whatever you like.
Kind of like this:

??????????????????????????? ?? | ? ? ? |
???????????????????????????? ? | ?? ?? |????????
?__________ ?? _____| ? ? ? |
|??????????????????????????????? ? ? ? |
| ? ? ? ? _____?? __________|
|? ? ? ? |????????? ^
|?? ?? ? |????????? Swivel here to adjust angle
|?? ?? ? |


I'd also consider using PVC piping. You would have less chance of condensation forming on the piping in the wall.

Good luck!

Tom
 

I have a similar setup, but used 3/4" PVC tubing. It was really easy to get the angles I needed. Another approach, if you have the space, is to use double 90 degree fittings and align them for whatever angle you need.

Good luck


Richard Marchi
600 Water Street, SW
NBU 8-2
Gangplank Marina Slip B-22
Washington, DC 20024
Ralph Hulslander
 

I cannot picture why just using the vertical table and holding the fitting in your hand or with vice grips is not a quick easy way
to make your cut especially as it doesn't need to be exact.

If you insist that you have to use horizontal just cut a block of wood with the desired angle and drill a hole to put the fitting in
possible holding with a screw. You can clamp the block of wood in the vice set at the angle you want.

Ralph


On Sun, Aug 12, 2018 at 10:26 AM Richard Marchi rfmarchi@... [4x6bandsaw] <4x6bandsaw@...> wrote:
?

I have a similar setup, but used 3/4" PVC tubing. It was really easy to get the angles I needed. Another approach, if you have the space, is to use double 90 degree fittings and align them for whatever angle you need.

Good luck


Richard Marchi
600 Water Street, SW
NBU 8-2
Gangplank Marina Slip B-22
Washington, DC 20024
 

Agree with Tom and Richard with the PVC recommendation.? PVC seems to be the standard for HVAC condensate drainage.??
 

¿ªÔÆÌåÓý

I have a ?¡± thick plate full of threaded holes. I remove the moveable jay to install it on the saw, and it is right up next to the blade. I use the workholding clamps for my mill, and sometimes make my own, to hold down odd shapes & small pieces.

If I don¡¯t have a threaded hole in the right place to hold something down. I just drill & tap another one.

Bill

?

From: 4x6bandsaw@... [mailto:4x6bandsaw@...]
Sent: Sunday, August 12, 2018 7:53 AM
To: November X-Ray n8676x@... [4x6bandsaw]
Subject: Re: [4x6bandsaw] Re: Ideas For Holding Copper Water Pipe Fitting

?

?

I cannot picture why just using the vertical table and holding the fitting in your hand or with vice grips is not a quick easy way

to make your cut especially as it doesn't need to be exact.

?

If you insist that you have to use horizontal just cut a block of wood with the desired angle and drill a hole to put the fitting in

possible holding with a screw. You can clamp the block of wood in the vice set at the angle you want.

?

Ralph

?

On Sun, Aug 12, 2018 at 10:26 AM Richard Marchi rfmarchi@... [4x6bandsaw] <4x6bandsaw@...> wrote:

?

I have a similar setup, but used 3/4" PVC tubing. It was really easy to get the angles I needed. Another approach, if you have the space, is to use double 90 degree fittings and align them for whatever angle you need.

?

Good luck

?

?

Richard Marchi
600 Water Street, SW

NBU 8-2
Gangplank Marina Slip B-22
Washington, DC 20024
 

¿ªÔÆÌåÓý

If your final result will involve soldering, then I suggest you solder the fitting onto a short scrap of pipe.? Put the pipe in the vise.? You can maneuver the pipe around in the vise until you have exactly the angle you want.? After cutting, unsolder the pipe (if needed), and solder the rest of your project together.

-Joe


On 8/11/2018 10:26 PM, hamholfarms@... [4x6bandsaw] wrote:

?

I am looking for ideas on how to hold a 45-degree, 1/2-inch diameter, water pipe fitting for cutting in the middle? at a specific angle. This type of fitting has the flaring at both ends for sweating onto the 1/2-inch diameter copper pipe.?


I prefer to cut it with the bandsaw in the horizontal position vs the vertical position, so that I can cut multiple pieces and get the same exact cut. I feel I would not be able to do this freehand in the vertical position.


The reason I need to do this is because I need to get angles that are not the standard 45 or 90-degree that are available.


Thank you,


Chip
[email protected]
 

Hi Chip
If you are going to do this multiple times its worth making a jig
Bill's one is very versatile and will do whatever you want, repeatedly, for as many jobs as you can think of.
If you are only going to use it 5-10 times then maybe this jig is easier and quicker to make, if not so long-lasting.
I'm assuming that you want to make 2 cuts in the elbow so it is symetrical when you rejoin the cut bits
Technically this jig is a sub-table on the saw, a piece of 8"x8"x3/4" panelboard (MDF, plywood etc) (needs to be stiff to work well) positioned so it fits between the fully retracted guides.
The table sits on top of the jaws?with a 3 to 4" wide and long by 1"thick cleat fixed to the bottom so you can grab it in the vice.?I hot-melt glued the 2 together.?Play a heatgun over the pieces you want to hot-melt glue before pressing together to get a nice thin strong glueline. (takes longer to set, but its minimal in the overall scheme of things)

Then you hot-melt glue a fence to align the fitting at the correct half-angle and a stops at the end and behind to suit where you want to cut through the fitting, so the fitting always positions in the same place. Should be able to line it up by eye looking down over the sawblade as in pic below. Angle iron makes a good fence that's easy to clamp to but any scrap of wood will do.

If you fix the cleat, so the back of the sub-table is parallel to the vice jaws then you can lay out the half angle on the table itself with a protractor then glue the fence over the line??
You'll need to shim under the non-flared part of the fitting so it sits flat. Shim under all of the fitting so the shim gets cut in 2 when making the cut.
With a 1/2" fitting being so small, you'll need to use a thin clamp to clamp it to the fence - toolmakers clamp is ideal but long-nose or large vicegrips maybe would do.??Might have to fit a plug into the end of the fitting if is squashes too much when clamping up?(For a shape you can't clamp easily, just use the hot-melt glue! but its way slower to change over).
To cut the other side of the joint just flip the offcut over and reclamp it in the jig.??
Because the sub-table sits up on top of the vice jaws the blade cuts through the workpiece at quite an angle.? This mean you can cut part-way into the sub-table and get support for the cut on both sides of the blade, which means it doesn't need much clamping force.

Fine tooth blade and hold it up in the cut, since you're cutting thin sticky material.
Rgds - jv
[email protected]
 

Sorry the images didn't appear (for me anyway) see them attached to this post.?
Image (2) is the 1st and Image (7a) the last - jv
 

Thank you to all who replied.

The reason I originally chose copper is because the drain line is on the exterior of the house siding. It is on the back wall of a porch for all to see. I was going for aesthetics over ease of fabrication and installation. I will try cutting the copper fittings, but if cutting and fitting the two pieces together is too troublesome, or does not work, I will just switch over to the PVC pipe.

To? john_vreede,
After reading your first post, I thought it was my browser not showing your pictures, and I commenced trying to figure out why. Then I read your second post, lol. I appreciate you taking the effort to repost the pictures, as well as taking the pictures in the first place, and also writing such a detailed explanation. The pictures were a great help for me to understand what you had written. Your recommendation is the route I am going to try. To join the two pieces together, I thought about trying this: only using one half of the cut 45-degree elbow, and also cutting off the small diameter end of a ?-inch, or maybe even a 1/8-inch slip coupling fitting, up to the flare. Thinking there will be enough contact area of the flared end of the slip coupling to fit into the smaller diameter of the middle of the cut 45-degree elbow to get a good solder joint, again this joint does not need to hold pressure, just contain the water.?
?
Attached are pictures to show what I will try to do.


And as stated above, if I have problems cutting or joining the two pieces together, I will resign myself to using PVC.

Thank you again to all who responded!

Chip
 


Oops! I don't believe there is such a fitting as?1/2-in x 1/8-in Copper Slip Coupling Fitting!

?Chip
 

While I am at the store, I will also look at the?1/2-in x 3/8-in Slip Coupling to see if it is a better fit than the?1/2-in x 1/4-in Slip Coupling.

Chip
 

Late to the thread but why not use soft copper tubing and flex it to shape as desired.? As others have stated copper will stain the siding.?? Why not flex poly tubing(not the clear because it will turn brittle and you can see the water stain inside) stainless clips and stainless steel screws to keep the rusting from forming.

On Mon, Aug 13, 2018 at 7:13 AM, hamholfarms@... [4x6bandsaw] <4x6bandsaw@...> wrote:
?

While I am at the store, I will also look at the?1/2-in x 3/8-in Slip Coupling to see if it is a better fit than the?1/2-in x 1/4-in Slip Coupling.


Chip

1 - 14 of 14