# Homemade Tools > Basic Homemade Tools and Tips >  Trick - How to Straighten an Iron Wire Perfectly

## diyfixman

Hello everyone! I want to share with you a simple, but very useful trick for straightening an iron wire perfectly! Watch the video and tell me what you think?

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## Drew1966

That would put a lot of stress in the wire.

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## diyfixman

True, this is why you need to know how much you can twist the wire before it breaks

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## Drew1966

Makes me wonder if the wire would stay straight if it were unwound again?

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## Tonyg

The Young's Modulus has been drastically changed and would now not be nearly as strong in lateral movement and straight pulling along the length

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## diyfixman

Friends I work like this for years, the thread stays very strong even after the round. You need to know the limit that comes, you need to stop twisting the wire so that it does not weaken

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## hemmjo

The method does work, but there is no doubt it changes the properties of the wire. Those changes may be may be fine, or.... they may not be depending on what you plan to do with the wire. 

My preferred method is to fix one end (often to the hitch on my truck) then hold the other with vise grips, and PULL until it is straight.You will feel it stretch. 

I have also straightened short pieces in my lathe with one end in the chuck and the other end in the drill chuck on the trail stock. Simply locking the tail stock in place and crank it back away till the wire it straight. You do have to be careful not to pull the chuck out of the tail stock spindle.

Like the twisting however, it does change the properties of the original wire. For example, if doing this with with 100 feet of annealed iron rebar tie wire, it will stretch about a foot before it is nice and straight. While I have not measured it, the wire has to become thinner and it does become a bit stiffer. But still works fine for my needs. 

In the end, all of the methods we use to do work have their place. We just need to be aware of the limitations of each process we use.

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## road-warrior

The torsional stress that was induced by clamping the wire at each end is immense. And as another poster stated, the Young's modulus is likely changed. Not knowing the wire spec, it's possible the wire may not have an E value; I've observed such material. The fact that you're worried about it not breaking when being torqued should be far down the list of concerns, such as will the material sever when only a fraction of load is applied in tension. The fact that the wire is already past a yield point, as observed by the permanent kinks and bends, would lead me to discard that portion, especially if the material is used for restraining loads (wrapping, baling, e.g.). I wouldn't recommend this technique due to the numerous uncertainties in the process and materials.

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## DIYer

Thanks diyfixman! We've added your Wire Straightening Method to our Miscellaneous category,
as well as to your builder page: diyfixman's Homemade Tools. Your receipt:















Wire Straightening Method
 by diyfixman

tags:
straight, drill

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