T-joint method and product

A method of making a tubular T-joint, including the steps of:

• (a) forming a cruciform-shaped stamping into a main cross-piece portion having opposite edges diverging from each other from each end towards the center and having semi-cylindrical stem portions extending in opposite directions from the central portion of said main cross-piece portion, each of said stem portions having their opposite edges diverging from their free ends towards the cross-piece portion;
• (b) rolling the cross-piece portion into a cylindrical shape by bringing its said opposite edges together to form a cross-piece, the semi-cylindrical portions thereby being brought together to form a stem;
• (c) welding the opposite edges of the cross-piece and the opposing edges of the semi-cylindrical stem portions together to form a T-joint;
• (d) drilling through the cross-piece with a drill of diameter corresponding to the central inside diameter of the cross-piece to thereby remove material as the drill enters one end and exits through the opposite end on either side of the central portion of the cross-piece to provide tapered walls with a uniform inside diameter for the cross-piece;
• and
• (e) drilling into said stem with the same diameter drill used for said cross-piece to remove material at the entrance portion of the stem
• whereby the wall thickness of the resulting T-joint is greater at the intersection of the cross-piece and the stem than at the opposite ends of the cross-piece and entrance ends of the stem.