Twisting damascus

Probably not.
The dies don't appear to be able to clamp onto the billet, and the unit would
need to have hand grips on each end for control.
 
Maybe

the most important things would be slow speed, torque and a way to grip the billet.

The last thing you could fab up, the first two you would have to buy one and try it out.
 
Funny, I was just using that very same machine the other day and considering whether it could be adapted for twisting... I think it would take a lot of doing and probably end up not worth it. The threader generates a lot of sideways torque when threading pipe, which is not a problem for cold steel but would be for hot- so a heavy handle would have to be added somehow to that pot metal casting. Then, as noted above, work- holding would take serious adaptation.

Maybe you could build a solid hand-crank twisting jig, and use one of these as a hi-torque, slow speed motor to drive it... we used one as a part of a kit from SWAG off-road, to convert an HF hand crank pipe bender to a hydraulic/power bender. Works OK for that.
 
I don't see all the difficult fab work. It looks pretty straight forward. The dies come apart. Just adapt them to hold square tubing making a socket. With the different dies you could have different size sockets. Forge your billet square on the end to fit into the socket. Give the end a quick quench to set it, and twist.
the problem I can see is mentioned above. Side torque. I vision a lot of pig tails. Looks like something that could get away from you pretty easily.
 
I picked up the threader for $96 on clearance with a coupon. Flipped the treading jaws around so the part contacting the tube was flat. Welded up a squarish tube from some .08 15n20. This was the second heat, steel is .65 square. I will try some bigger dies for bigger billets soon.

https://youtu.be/EKuZgMvHXrE
 
Let us know how that goes because that setup is a LOT cheaper than one made with even the grungiest Ebay large model Rigid pipe threader!!!!
 
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