What is Tube Swaging?

Tube swaging is a metal forming (or coldworking) process for precision forming tubes, rods, and other cylindrical workpieces. To begin, we need to know the material, hardness, and dimensions you’re looking to achieve. We will also need to know the total length of the swage (developed length), finished wall thickness, and if the material needs annealing.

Vita Needle uses a two-die rotary swager, which contains a roller cage that spins outside of a hammer assembly. The assembly holds a hardened pair of SS hammers, and the center of the hammers is where the two dies sit. Rotary swaging machines use reciprocating radial movement to form the end of the material you’re putting into the machine and can be utilized for pointing, size reduction, and forming metal wires, rods, and tubes. 

Hand swaging is an art form that is becoming harder to find in the industry as many companies transition to high-volume low-variation work. The handmade nature of this art form accommodates customization in lower quantities but is also amenable to higher volume production quantities as well. An expert must have a certain feel for the machines and the workpiece itself to swage by hand. Swaging machines are often loud, so one must be able to feel how it is performing. Like a painter becomes one with his brush, a swage operator needs to become one with his swager to consistently produce quality parts.