How to bend a 3 or 4 Point Saddle in an EMT.
Dan has been an electrician for 17 years.He has a lot of experience in the electrical trade.
The 3 point and 4 point saddles in emt conduit can be bent using the same procedures in this section of the conduit bending guide.
These saddle bends are used by electricians to temporarily raise the run of conduit above a small obstacle, such as another conduit running across the path of the conduit to be saddled.
There is no need for 3 point saddles, which are the bane of many otherwise excellent electricians.The 3 point saddle is easy to bend and consistent with quality workmanship.
Different types of saddles are used for different purposes.The 4 point saddle is easy to understand and is used by beginners without even knowing they are doing it.
There are other links to other sections of the complete conduit bending guide at the bottom of this article.
A 4 point saddle is nothing more than two offset bends a short distance apart.Normally used to cross larger obstructions than the 3 point saddle, they have a definite place on the job site.
A 4 point saddle is the way to go for larger saddles.Measure the distance to the obstruction and mark it on the conduit.Make a mark from the end of the conduit if the measurement is 40.To make sure the saddle will clear, add 12 to the height of the obstruction.Determine what angle you want to make your offsets, and then use the appropriate multiplier to determine the length of the offset.The length of each offset will be 5 X 2.6 or 13 if the height is 5.This is a good time to review the "How to bend an offset" section of the complete conduit bending guide if you are not familiar with offset bends.
You should always use the gentlest bend you can as it will make pulling wire much simpler and may save you from adding a junction box because you have crossed the legal limit of total bend between boxes.If you use 30o bends, a four point saddle will use 120o total, leaving just over 270o, or a full three 90's.
Go back from the first mark on the conduit to the beginning of the pipe and make a second mark.You will have two marks, one at 40 and the other at 27 back from the first mark.
Measure the length of the obstruction and mark the conduit past the first mark.You will have marks at 50", 40" and 27" if the obstruction is 10" wide.The second offset should be bent at the same angle as the first as it will look better.Your final mark will be 50" + 13 or 63".For our example, you should have marked the conduit at 27", 40", 50" and 63"
There is a word on shrinkage.As the conduit is bent, the total length will shrink because some of the length is going up instead of down.The calculation is shown in the section on "The math behind bending conduit" but there are several variables that affect the shrinkage and it is not a simple calculation.If appearance is important, most electricians will increase the measurement by a few inches and cut the conduit after testing it.The saddle can be centered exactly over the obstruction, but this is not necessary for exposed work.
Begin bending by fitting the conduit into the bender with the toe pointing towards the 50" mark.In our case, we want the conduit to be 22.Make the second bend by rotating the conduit 180 so that the bend will be in the opposite direction.The marks on the saddle will fit if you use the end of the bender to line them.It is possible to use the more common marks such as that used for bending a 90, but the complete saddle will be exactly the right size and conduit shrinkage will prevent it from fitting properly.
Turn the conduit around and make the third bend with the 50" mark at the very toe of the bender.The conduit should be bent the same way as the first bend.Make sure the bends are in a straight line before bending and rotating the conduit.It is difficult to remove the dogleg from the saddle if it is laid down sideways because it will not lie flat on the floor.
After rotating the conduit 180, make the final bend by moving it forward to the 63" mark.The run of conduit can now cross the obstruction without difficulty.
The advantage of a 4 point saddle is that it can be broken in the center, using 2 pieces of conduit to make the complete saddle.The total package is still a saddle, even though each piece gets 1 ordinary offset.
As the total degrees of bend required goes from 90 down to only 45, a better solution is to make the center bend of the saddle only 22.You need to mark the center of the bend to do this.Remove the piece of scrap conduit from the bender and lay it on a table or floor.eyeball visualization will do fine if you mark the center of the bend.Transfer the mark from the conduit back into the bender.A more permanent mark can be made by filing a notch in the edges of the bender, just as it is done at the factory for the center of a 45 bend on some benders.
Measure the distance to the obstruction and the height of it before starting the 3 point saddle.It is uncommon to make 3 point saddles more than 2 or 3; for an example, we will assume it is 40 inches to the center of the obstruction and that the saddle needs to be 2 inches high, as if crossing a large conduit.
For each inch of height, mark the conduit at the distance to the obstruction.The mark will be 40 12 inches.The extra 12 will be used to take care of the shrinkage on the saddle.
For the first inch of height and the additional inch, mark the conduit with a 4 and a 6.In the example, it will have 3 marks, at 30 12, 4012 and 50 2 inches, and we need 2 feet of height, requiring marks at 4 and 6 each way from the first mark.Each way from the first mark, we would measure 16" if our obstruction was 3 high.
Center the first, center, mark on the custom marked 22 center and bend it.Move the conduit forward until the second mark is at the arrow used to bend a 90, then make a second bend the opposite direction of the first at just over 10.
Many electricians don't realize the tricky part.Reinsert the conduit into the bender after flipping it end for end.Line up the third mark with the same arrow used for the second bend and bend opposite the first bend just over 10.
The first bend is made with the conduit mark at the center of the bender.The conduit mark at the normal arrow is used to make each of the other bends.The first inch of height and the additional inch are marked with conduit marks at the center of the obstruction.
If a saddle of more than 3 or 4 inches is to be made, you should use a 4 point saddle or 45 for the center bend; if the sharper bend is used, the saddle should be considerably taller than the obstruction.The second and third bends are made at 22.
The method of making a 3 point saddle is shown in the video, but the bends are too sharp.The NEC allows between pull boxes, so this saddle has used 120 of bend already.It shows the proper way of making the bends and has been included for that reason.
This link will open a new window to the title page with a description of each section and links to each, as well as additional information in a comprehensive guide to bending conduit.
The article is correct to the best of the author's knowledge.Content is for entertainment purposes only and does not substitute for professional advice in business, financial, legal, or technical matters.
Unless it is a large pipe, a 3 bend saddle is fine.A 4 bend saddle will do better if the obstruction is large.
I think you could.Measurement changes would need to be made so that the bends are in the same place as the center of the saddle.Depending on how the pipe is inserted into the bender as well as the size of pipe being used, that will change.
Is it possible to bend a 4pt saddle all in one direction, by not having to turn the bender, and if so how do I do it?
A 4 point saddle is nothing more than two offset bends a short distance apart.I think you meant to use the word "than".I read carefully.
I like the information on how to use the center 3-point saddle.I have not found anyone to explain how to systematically approach this bend, and they do not give it in reference tables.Thanks for sharing your knowledge.