Aluminum Sheet Metal Bending Channel

For example 6061 t6 aluminum is very difficult to bend.

Aluminum sheet metal bending channel. We bend to the tightest radii in the market using proprietary equipment developed in house by people who knew exactly how to achieve it. It requires an inside bend radius of at least 6x the material thickness. Steve benson is a member and former chair of the precision sheet metal technology council of the fabricators manufacturers association international. Any time a different thickness of sheet metal needs to be formed or when a different radius is required to form the part the operator needs to adjust the sheet metal brake before the brake is used to form the part.

Understanding the bend allowance and consequently the bend deduction of a part is a crucial first step to understanding how sheet metal parts are fabricated. Max weiss company performs all types of metal and steel bending. Brittle metal such as aluminum generally requires a larger bend radius than ductile material like cold rolled steel. When the sheet metal is put through the process of bending the metal around the bend is deformed and stretched.

Proper bending can be done with annealing the aluminum first although it s not an ideal candidate for formed parts. Bending is one of the most common sheet metal fabrication operations. Also known as press braking flanging die bending folding and edging this method is used to deform a material to an angular shape. A punch exerts force at the correct spot bending the sheet metal between the two surfaces.

As this happens you gain a small amount of total length in your part. For construction we have provided bent steel channel for curved lintels roof supports and canopies. As a full service fabrication company one of our many specialties include custom metal bending for pipes bars beams. Channel bending uses a shaped punch and die to form a sheet metal channel.

3003 h14 is extremely ductile almost like copper. Miserable to bend cracking is very common and cold bending will always weaken the metal. Channels are often used as stiffeners on curved sheet or plate as component parts of machinery as cradles for tanks and as trays to hold electrical wiring. For this example an l channel made from 2024 t3 aluminum alloy that is 0 032 inch thick will be bent.

Punch and die are manufactured with certain geometries in order to perform specific bends. In high purity forms aluminum is soft and ductile. This is done through the application of force on a workpiece. Which aluminum alloy bends the best is a a common question customers want the answer to.

Bending is a delicate and demanding process most of the time and common fabricating processes require a degree of formability that make your choice of proper alloy critical. When an operator sees aluminum 5052 or even better yet aluminum 3003 on the part prints it s probably going to be a much better day. Request a quoteon steel and aluminum channel bending for your application or contact chicago metal rolled products for more information. Highly formable and one of the best kinds of aluminum to bend.