Raising the bar: new tools ease the pain of bending, cutting, and tying rebar

Concrete Construction,  July, 2003  by William D. Palmer, Jr

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Fascut Industries: The 14-pound Lobster comes in both corded and cordless versions for up to #5 bars. Fascut also has a 600 series (cutters, benders, and cutter/benders up to #6 bars) that it claims is ideal for contractors setting up a jobsite rebar operation. It also offers an 800 series for up to #8 bars.

Gensco Equipment: The Novopress line of cutting and bending tools has a maximum capacity of #8 bars with several smaller models.

HIT Tools USA: This company makes a cordless cutter for smaller bars and corded hand-held cutters for up to #11 bars. It also makes two models of a bench cutter/bender with capacity to #8 bars. The smaller bender/cutter lists for $4200, although a large distributor advertises it for $3100.

Hitachi Power Tools: The VB16Y is a 120-volt, hand-held cutter/bender for up to #5, Grade 60 bars. The tool weighs 42 pounds, and it cuts in 3.1 seconds and bends in 5.1 seconds.

Multiquip: MQ makes benders and cutters that have a maximum capacity of #8 (1-inch diameter) bars. The single bender model is a benchtop unit, while the cutters are corded (120-volt) hand-held and bench units. All MQ equipment is load tested prior to shipping.

Pacific Benders: This company offers a complete line of benders in sizes from a small hand-held model for in-place bending (their Jimmy, powered by a separate hydraulic pump), up to large rebar shop sized production benders for up to #11 bars.

* The bar size number of reinforcing steel refers to the number of eighths of an inch in diameter so that a #6 bar is 6/8 (or 3/4) inch fn diameter. The grade of steel relates to its specified minimum yield strength used in design so that a Grade 60 steel has a specified yield strength in tension of 60,000 pounds per square inch.

Automatic rebar tying tools

The Construction Innovation Forum presented its NOVA Awards in April to six innovations, including one for automatic rebar tying tools that was actually awarded to two different companies. The Japan Automatic Machine Company (a division of Toyojamco Ltd.) with its U-Tier and the MAX Company (Max USA in the United States) with the Rebar Tier have revolutionized how rebar is fastened into position. Either tool accomplishes the same thing--wrapping, twisting, and cutting off tie wire to securely tie bars together in less than a second with the pull of a trigger.

Max's three models vary in tying capacity with the smallest (the RB213) making three wraps of 21-gauge wire to fasten up to two #7 bars, and the new RB650 making one wrap of 16-gauge wire to tie up to #8x#10 bars.

The RB650 was recognized by CONCRETE CONSTRUCTION magazine as one of the Most Innovative Products of this year's World of Concrete show (the 2003 MIP Contest). All of the tools are cordless and take 30 to 40 minutes to recharge their batteries. You'll get about 120 ties from a roll of wire (specially made by Max for its tools), and there is an extension handle that makes it possible for the worker to tie bar (or mesh) for a slab without bending over.