Thanks guy's for all your positive comments. i'll expand a little on the construction, the flange as i said is made from 2 parts, when i drilled the holes for the pipe i drilled the top one so the pipe fits through it and the bottom one is just slightly smaller so the pipe sits on it , where the pipe is joined mid section i made up a small internal collar to add support, i dont think a straight but type of joint would last long, regarding the bending of the pipe, i didn't, i used a plumbing fitting and cut and shut it, you couldn't bend straight pipe into tight bends like this, the stresses would be too great on the pipe wall.
only time will tell if it will hold up, i'll keep you posted.
Thanks again.
Sparks.