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Bending programs are nice. You can layout a complete tube and all you need to do is mark where each bend goes and stuff it in you bender. The program does all the math for you. I used the free JD2 program on my car and loved it. I bent my upper and lower rails one shot one kill. My upper rail was one full stick that had 4 bends to make a 180 turn. The programs also let you know if a bend is possible in the bender if its too close from one bend to another. Just suck having a plan and changing it cause something wont work in the bender. This way you know
I just do the math myself. I too mark all the tangents with paint marker before I start.Are these programs just calculating the actual length of the centerline radius?I've found that it almost always takes less than that figure to do a bend.I use 97 or 98 percent of the actual centerline radius length.This will get you closer, but there isn't a program out there that will be 100 percent.It always varies depending on the stock and how you tighten the tube in the bender.I sometimes do a test bend and then tweak my math accordingly.