The term “MADE IN THE U.S.A.” was a staple in american retail outlets thoughout the 1980′s and 1990′s. With China’s increased production and extremely low currency value, they have decimated american companies trying to compete. For instance did you know there not a single television manufactured in the United States. In the 1980′s there were 14 companies producing televisions. The bender market has managed to withstand this onslaught. Fabricators insist on their core tools being made in the U.S.A.

PRO-TOOLS made in the U.S.A. is something you can count on.

Pro-Tools products are produced in Tampa, Florida by american citizens. We also source all the metal from U.S. forges. When you buy a bender from Pro-Tools you get a product that was entirely produced and manufactured in the United States. From the raw steel that goes into the MB-105 bender that is forged in Michigan. The SPX cylinders and pumps that are manufactured in Houston, Texas. All the way down to the stickers that are made in Brandon, Florida.

All materials are used in Pro-Tools products are Made In the U.S.A.

We go to great lengths to make sure when you get your tool and you see that sticker with Made In the U.S.A..The entire tools is 100% American Made. To us Made in the U.S.A. means pride, quality, and craftsmanship. Its not a chinese tool that will break in a month. Its made to last, made to exceed your expectation, and by no means last, be the greatest value over its lifetime.

Machines to produce tube bends started at the beginning of the industrial age. Since that time many advances have been made in terms of machinery and technology. The tools we use are far more accurate then they were in the 1800’s. It has been a lopsided advancement though. Tools and Machines have advanced at record pace. The equipment to check the work of those machines has lagged behind greatly. This is especially true in the world of tube bending. Today we have choices to accurately measure the tube bends we make. This is a fairly recent advancement.

 Traditional fixtures required a hard form to check the tube bends.

This is an example of a hard fixture to check you tube bends against the correct shape you want.

For the longest time we used to check our tube bends by using hard fixtures. These fixtures where jigs made from wood and nails to full on milled units. The bender operator would do his bend, take the tube out of the machine, and check it against his fixture and make the necessary corrections to the bending process and correct the tube bends. This is a very time consuming process. It has to be repeated with every die or material change due to the variations of the different bending materials.

302Di showing the degree of the tube bend

Today we have a few more options for checking out bends more accurately and effectively. Pro-Tools manufactures a degree indictator that can be used anywhere. The 302Di unit sits on top of the tube as it is bent. This allows the unit to be used in or out of the bender. The easy to read CNC engraved degree marks ensure a longer life than screen print or paint. The unit made constructed from 6061-T6 aluminum to be able to stand up to harsh shop environments. The 302Di was designed with the average fabricator in mind. Its low cost makes it easily affordable and is a must have for any hobbyist or journeyman.

On the higher end of the spectrum is the Faro CMM arm. This unit is originally designed for reverse engineering but has made its way into many areas. For more information about how the Faro arm works read this white paper.

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