Bending Aluminum Sheet Without Cracking

Bending along the grain makes these radii even more important.

Bending aluminum sheet without cracking. You may find that you have to go to a 1 4 radius to keep from cracking. Proper bending can be done with annealing the aluminum first although it s not an ideal candidate for formed parts. Lift the clamp bar away from the rear of the brake frame and slide the sheet in perpendicularly to the direction you want to bend it. Then place the clamp bar back down on top of the aluminum crosswise.

Make sure the bar is seated firmly inside the frame. Bending these tempered alloys is not impossible but it is very difficult and will most likely require large bend radii to avoid cracking on the outside of the bend. The majority of aluminum base alloys can be successfully arc welded without cracking related problems however using the most appropriate filler alloy and conducting the welding operation with an appropriately developed and tested welding procedure is significant to success. The important thing to know is that it is brittle and will most often crack if you re trying to bend it with a tight radius.

Highly formable and one of the best kinds of aluminum to bend. Insert your aluminum sheet into the brake beneath the removable clamp bar. For most aluminum sheet the inside radius of the bend should at least be equal to the sheet thickness. Sure you can get away with it sometimes as the tempering will vary slightly and you might be able to get away with it being aluminum tubing without it cracking but i ve found that to get consistent results you need to use a bendable grade.