Hi all,

I need to bench a 4x10 piece of .032 aluminum
in two points along its length, both at 90 degree
angles. I've never worked with metal before
so I just want to make sure, is there an easy,
safe way to do this? I don't want to ruin a
$30 piece of metal.

Thanks.

I need to bench a 4x10 piece of .032 aluminum
in two points along its length, both at 90 degree
angles. I've never worked with metal before
so I just want to make sure, is there an easy,
safe way to do this? I don't want to ruin a
$30 piece of metal.


I'd take it to any place that puts in home heating ductwork. They will have
a finger brake and can do this in a minute.

Karl

"Saturday7" wrote in message
om...
Hi all,

I need to bench a 4x10 piece of .032 aluminum
in two points along its length, both at 90 degree
angles. I've never worked with metal before
so I just want to make sure, is there an easy,
safe way to do this? I don't want to ruin a
$30 piece of metal.

Thanks.

Assuming that's 4x10 *inches*, I'd agree with Karl. There is a sure and easy
way to do it yourself, but you'll probably wreck a couple first, finding out
how easy it is. g

A HVAC shop probably will do it for nothing -- or for a beer.

Ed Huntress

Saturday7 wrote:
I need to bench a 4x10 piece of .032 aluminum
in two points along its length, both at 90 degree
angles. ...

Since it cost $30, I assume you mean 4 x 10 feet, not inches. Could you
describe the desired bends more? How long is each and how far in from
the edge? Bob

Bob Engelhardt wrote in message ...

Since it cost $30, I assume you mean 4 x 10 feet, not inches. Could you
describe the desired bends more? How long is each and how far in from
the edge? Bob

That's right, it's feet not inches. Essentially I need to bend
two of these sheets at two places along the length of each :
at the 2.5 feet mark and at 7.5 feet.

I can do this after attaching one end (with stainless steel screws)
to the wooden frame that these sheets will cover and be
screwed to. The frame is 2.5' high, about 7 feet long and
exactly 5 feet wide.

But the question is how to ensure that the bend will look nice.
If I were to use a hammer I can imagine it would turn out bad.

Thanks.

One can make a simple temporary brake from a couple of pieces of hard
wood- actually one piece of hardwood and a couple of pieces of soft
wood. While I HAVE bent 032 on such setups, it is about the thickest
that will work with these. Cut the hardwood so that the corner is
somewhat acute- say about 75 degrees. Sand a bend radius on the edge.
For these temp brakes you need a generous bend allowance. After
clamping the piece of metal in the two pieces, use the third piece and a
hammer to SLOWLY push metal around the bend with a hammer on the third
piece.

Saturday7 wrote:
Hi all,

I need to bench a 4x10 piece of .032 aluminum
in two points along its length, both at 90 degree
angles. I've never worked with metal before
so I just want to make sure, is there an easy,
safe way to do this? I don't want to ruin a
$30 piece of metal.

Thanks.


--
Don Stauffer in Minnesota

webpage- http://www.usfamily.net/web/stauffer

Assuming that is a four foot by ten foot sheet of
aluminum.............

I would use two pieces of 2 inch angle and a couple of C-clamps to
clamp at where you want to bend. With .032 aluminum you can pretty
much bend it by hand, but a rubber or plastic mallet will give you
sharp corners. Some aluminum is prone to crack if bent sharply. Do
you know what alloy and heat treat your metal is? If not you might
want to bend a bit of a corner and see if it cracks. If it cracks,
then it needs to have more of a radius. You can put a radius on one
of the pieces of angle iron with an angle grinders ( quick ) or a
file ( slow ).

Dan


(Saturday7) wrote in message . com...
Hi all,

I need to bench a 4x10 piece of .032 aluminum
in two points along its length, both at 90 degree
angles. I've never worked with metal before
so I just want to make sure, is there an easy,
safe way to do this? I don't want to ruin a
$30 piece of metal.

Thanks.