PULLING UP BENDS.
In London, it is the favorite plan to make bends without cutting them. Fig. 46. It is done by taking a length of pipe, and, just where you require the bend, lay it (with the seam at the side) upon a pillow, made by tightly filling a sack with sand, wood shavings, or sawdust; have some shavings ready to hand and a good lath, also a short length of mandrel about 3 ft. long and about ½ in. smaller than the pipe, and a dummy as shown at A B, Fig. 56. Now, all being ready, put a few burning shavings into the throat of the bend, just to get heat enough to make it fizz, which you can judge by spitting on it. When this heat is acquired withdraw the fire, and let the laborer quickly place the end of the mandrel into the pipe, and pull the pipe up while you place a sack or anything else convenient across the throat of the bend, then pull the pipe up a little, just sufficient to dent it across the throat. Now, with a hot dummy, dummy out the dent, until it is round like the other part of the pipe. Keep at this until your bend is made, occasionally turning the pipe or its side and giving it a sharp blow on the side with the soft or hornbeam dresser; this is when the sides run out as in Fig. 37. Never strike the back part of the bend from inside with the dummy, but work the lead from the throat to the back with a view to thickening the back.
FIG. 46.