Expanded Tube

Expanding is a method used to increase the diameter of a tube. In general, a stainless steel tube can be expanded up to 40%, but in some cases, certain materials can be worked farther.

RAM End Forming:

JMH has a full lineup of RAM tube end forming machines that can produce a wide range of tube expansions. Ram machines use a set of dies to hold the tube in place while a shuttle with multiple tool hits moves in to expand the tube. With each tool hit, the tube is expanded until the final tool hit expands the tube into the die cavity. Ram tube end forming machines are an ideal machine platform for tube and pipe that requires multiple kind of end forms to be produced in one machine/operation. Many of our ram machines are progressive tube end formers with the ability to be equipped with multiple tools to complete various forms on one tube. Because the material is moved into a tube cavity cut within the dies, ram tube end forming is a very accurate process that it capable of producing tubes with critical tolerances, concentricity, and offsets. 

Segmented End Forming:

JMH also offers two lines of segmented tube end forming machines to produce expansions. Unlike their ram counterparts, a segmented tube end forming machine utilizes an inner wedge with tooling segments. When the wedge is moved forward, the segments expand out in a circular fashion, expanding the tube from the inside out.

Our Tube Sizing Machine (TSM) line of equipment is ideal for simple expansions up to 1 inch on diameter. These machines provide a quick and effective way to expand tube and pipe for applications such as a slip fit however, these machines do not provide accuracy that is compared to a ram tube end forming process. Tooling changeover is significantly faster with our segmented tube end forming machine. These machines do not have dies that require changeover but rather tooling fingers that can be swapped out in the matter of minutes.