Broken strut, another question?????

[JimInPB]

Thank you. I had missed that the first time around.

I have managed to hold those tolerances on shafts that I have straightened from bends over 15 degrees. I was using a hydraulic press, fitted press blocks & a dial indicator.

 

[jibes138]

If you straighten a steel shaft you should heat treat it to relieve residual stress. Typically 600 to 650 degrees for a couple hours. Ideally with the shaft held vertically.

 

[JimInPB]

Heat treating is a pretty big can of worms to open. For the sake of brevity, I had intentionally not commented on that before. In order to make an educated decision about what should be done with heat treat, you need to know the exact material & the original temper specs. For bends that aren't much over 10 or 15 degrees, on shafts that are made out of common marine alloys, I usually cold straighten, but intentionally over correct the affected area a little before going to final position to allow some correction of internal stresses. So far, I have had good luck. In a perfect world, the shaft would be cherry before straightening, then heat treated back to original temper, then final straightened cold. Heat treat often makes things move a little, especially when working with stainless alloys.