Dowel for putting fittings to droplines.

[Trapper2]

So, I was having a hard time gripping 5/16 tubing when installing fittings, I can only guess that 3/16 would even be worse.
I took a old snow shovel handle and cut pieces varying in length from 3 1/2"-5". I then drilled a hole through the center with a 11/32 drill. After that I bored in on each end about 1' with a 3/8 drill. This 3/8 hole makes room for the bulge that occurs when the fitting is installed. After that I sawed the dowel in 1/2 and then Duct taped it together to form a hinge. 2 nights ago I did 100 drops in less than a half hour.

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[ennismaple]

Novel idea - thanks for sharing! How aggressive are the barbs on those spouts?

[Trapper2]

Novel idea - thanks for sharing! How aggressive are the barbs on those spouts? I would rate them as very aggressive. I should have noted, Those 100 drops I did, I was in the kitchen and I put the ends in the sink that was filled with hot water. I did the spout end first and then flipped the tubing so the other end would warm up for the T installations.

[littleTapper]

That's really slick! Thanks for sharing your invention!

[Trapper2]

That's really slick! Thanks for sharing your invention!

Maybe I should make 1 out of copper and hook up my battery drill battery to it to generate some heat to the tubing, now wouldn't that be something?

[littleTapper]

Please make a video if you do that! Ha!!!

[Sugarmaker]

Good Job on the tubing tool!
Keep boiling!
Regards,
Chris

[SmellsLikeSyrupNH]

Necessity is the mother of invention!!

[Mead Maple]

Fantastic


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[Trapper2]

As of now the only change I would make is using hot orange duct tape because of dropping them in the woods.

[Russell Lampron]

If you're using vacuum let us know if there are any leaks from heating the tubing. I used to heat tubing before I bought the right tools for the job and it worked fine on gravity but when I switched to vacuum I had micro leaks at all of the fittings.

[Trapper2]

If you're using vacuum let us know if there are any leaks from heating the tubing. I used to heat tubing before I bought the right tools for the job and it worked fine on gravity but when I switched to vacuum I had micro leaks at all of the fittings.

From placing tubing on warm water???

[Russell Lampron]

From placing tubing on warm water???

Yes from just warm water. I put hot water into a thermos and used it to heat the tubing when installing drops in the woods. Some of the fittings pulled apart when tightening the laterals but for the most part it worked good. When put those same fittings together with a two handles tool and cold tubing they stayed together. All was fine until I added vacuum. Just about every connection had a micro leak. The Lapierre fittings were the worst. I don't know if they have changed their manufacturing process but at the time the seam in the barbs didn't quite line up. Semi rigid tubing like 30P would leak more than a softer tubing Like the IPL Red Stripe that I used for drops.

[craigwade2005]

Awesome idea!

[Trapper2]

Yes from just warm water. I put hot water into a thermos and used it to heat the tubing when installing drops in the woods. Some of the fittings pulled apart when tightening the laterals but for the most part it worked good. When put those same fittings together with a two handles tool and cold tubing they stayed together. All was fine until I added vacuum. Just about every connection had a micro leak. The Lapierre fittings were the worst. I don't know if they have changed their manufacturing process but at the time the seam in the barbs didn't quite line up. Semi rigid tubing like 30P would leak more than a softer tubing Like the IPL Red Stripe that I used for drops.
Wow, I wouldn't have thought warm water would do that. I'm using CDL, I will report back on leaks.