I am working on a project and have some metal I need to bend before I can weld it up. What is the best way to do so without weakening the bend? I am imagining heat and then bend but please educate me on this

Can you be a little more specific? How thick? What type of metal are you working with? Details man.

When you put a bend in a sheet of steel, it actually makes the panel stronger.

Triangles are even stronger still.

I am not sure what you are making. We don't have a break and we bend all parts with a hammer and a large wooden block.

Let us know what you are making.

I am going to make a piece to go where I removed the four mount since I found a little rust. I have a GT kit I was going to use but then thought I could make one the was bent and make it stronger. The sheet metal would be about as think as the metal in a gt kit. Maybe a little more. So just use a cardboard template and cut it out then bend on a block of wood? Wouldn't heat be easier to bend it?

i have zero experience working metal but i think yes heating makes it easier to bend, but once it cools down the shape wont be exactly the same dimensions.

If your working 12-14 GA ya, use a torch. Clamp over the edge of a steel work bench, heat to cherry and pull it down with a cresent wrench. Over heating the steel will produce a thinning and weaken the metal. Not enough heat and the metal with produce micro fractures in the bend. If you have trouble bending the metal you could always make the patch panel in two pieces by welding the side panel to the bottom piece and then grinding the weld to develop a finished appearance. Be sure to test fit and clean off the bluing from the torch. The heated discolored metal will oxidize fast if you leave it.

Good Luck

Cool. Thanks for the info. Sounds like welding the seems together may be stronger? I have enough scrap to do a few different things if needed but I like to check with the pros first

Jon if you want I have the Oxy acetylene setup for the heating

Well, I guess I know where to do this at then I was just going to go down to the shop but your place is much closer. Plus I need to practice more welding so I can actually weld these up

Don't back off the torch until the bench is smoking!

That doesn't sound right

Rich wouldn't like me very much if I burnt his house down

FYI, that area is already double walled. So the outside is not the only metal strength in that area.

Get em cut to shape I can bend em with a brake. The best way.
Fire bad

Well maybe it should be triple walled Okay, maybe a little over board but I am going to give it a go anyway.

Thanks Jeff. I'll have it ready soon Okay, how many other things can I get you to do You have done way too much as it is.

The little stuff is nothin, OH your gonna pay

I know still, you do much of what you do so willingly when I know many techs it is like pulling teeth to get them to do anything. It is very appreciated good sir

I know just enough to be dangerous here... heating metal will change the temper. Can make it more brittle, or more malleable, depending on the heat and cooling cycles.

But if you have no option..

When you heat most sheet metals they usually loose some of their better original qualities but sometimes that's the only way. If it can be done in between a bench and angle iron or wood without heat it will hold up much better. Any heated body metal will have a much greater chance of rusting later including weld joints especially on the back side if you can't get to the area to prep it. If you are going to do much metal work it is worthwhile to get some videos or some books to get a head start on the process.

I bought a small 4 foot metal break on sale from hf for about 150.00 and it does 18-20 ga very good. If it's a curved bend then forming over a wood buck is the only way I am very good with.

I've never tried it but they anneal aluminum with a torch by heating it to a just above dull red (on mild steel) and let it cool at room temperature and it will bend easier. You might try that on hard to form curves on the buck.

Here is a photo of the plate I made for this area;



and here is one showing how I did the bend;



Wes

I also have had good luck with an inexpensive 4' metal break from HF with 18g and 20g metal. I also made a form tool like the one in the photo above for bends that require a larger radius. For thin metal I don't think you need to heat it.

Using the break I created something much like what Wes did...

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Using heat to form sheet metal is a last resort... I am a hack at metal working.... I found a forum a few years back where a guy made a sphere out of sheet titanium.. using a bag filled with shot and hammers...

anyway..

Here are some patch pieces I've made using, shrinker/stretchers, flangers, vise-grips, various body hammers, a leather bag filled with shot, etc.


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Here is a piece of a factory door jamb or being sistered to existing sheet metal..

Click to view attachment

Bent a piece of mild steel to make a mounting flange for the glass quarters

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Bent that piece to be a mounting flange for the glass fenders,


Click to view attachment

what it looks like when finished

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Welded into place

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finished repair

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This I made on a leather bag filled with shot.... I then flanged the edges..



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Another piece made with the shrinker/stretcher

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hammer, anvil, vice...

Rich

I just call this chick. She can bend anything.

excuse me I just had to go barf

I couldn't resist!

Tim, great job.... BTW, what is that tool called? I assume you got it from Eastwood, how much did it cost?

-- Rob

What do you call her?

Anything she wants me to...

Sorry for the hijack but here's a bump for ya.

Oh, I got it handled. One of our great members, sixnotfour, knows what he's doing and will help me out with it. It's only two pieces so it shouldn't be too bad.

Didn't need to see the picture of She Ra

That is a shrinker/stretcher

You can get them at places other than Eastwood, Mcmaster Carr, Lobuck etc.

Shrinker

Thanks Tim....

-- Rob

Never ever use heat to bend sheetmetal. Adding heat makes the metal want to absorb oxygen and rust faster.

Having done a bazillian sheet metal parts for products with bends, the hammer and round rod trick works great, the sheet metal bender works better, and I have even used a hydraulic press with a "v" male die that is shoved into a "V" female receptacle.

And for home, the vice and hammer trick, the bag-o-sand and hammer trick, and the pound it arouund a rod trick work.

That being said, working for a place with a model shop can be a godsend.

Fricking titanium, bend it too far and it immediately work hardens and breaks. One patch I used to overcome the work hardening problem was laser heating on the bend line......

Ken