What do you use to...

[brianw]

Bend steel for boatsides? I'd like to make boatsides/body mount/electronics tray from something like 26 gauge steel but I don't know what I would use to bend something like that and make decent bends.

2x4 and a hammer

[transambill]

2x4 and hammer, well almost. I have a couple strips of 1/8th steel I use insted of 2x4's to get a cleaner edge and clamp it all in the vice.

[bob1961]

i bought habor freights 18" sheet metal baender and i have bent 1/16" alum and 1/32" steel without issue........bob

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[SMR 510RR]

I think I am going to make a quick little bender this weekend, should be awesome for what we are using it for. I will post up a build thread on it if I actually get around to building it.

My plan is to use two pieces of angle iron hinged together to make the brake with another piece of iron on top to clamp the material down. The cool thing is that if you build one yourself you can put some cut outs in the clamping portion to bend part of a bracket while leaving part of it straight like a box/pan brake but without the cost.

Another cool thing I have been eyeballing is a vise press brake, grizzly sells a couple versions. They look good but I think the width of the v would be too large for smaller pieces. The do have removable sections so that you can do boxes also, cool tool!

H3243 4" Vise Brake

[Erin]

Originally Posted by SMR 510RR

I think I am going to make a quick little bender this weekend, should be awesome for what we are using it for. I will post up a build thread on it if I actually get around to building it.

My plan is to use two pieces of angle iron hinged together to make the brake with another piece of iron on top to clamp the material down. The cool thing is that if you build one yourself you can put some cut outs in the clamping portion to bend part of a bracket while leaving part of it straight like a box/pan brake but without the cost.

Another cool thing I have been eyeballing is a vise press brake, grizzly sells a couple versions. They look good but I think the width of the v would be too large for smaller pieces. The do have removable sections so that you can do boxes also, cool tool!

H3243 4" Vise Brake

I hope you do the build thread. I'd like to see what you have in mind.
I have never had luck with the vise breaks, but I could be doing it wrong or using to heavy of a guage.

[SMR 510RR]

Originally Posted by Erin

I hope you do the build thread. I'd like to see what you have in mind.
I have never had luck with the vise breaks, but I could be doing it wrong or using to heavy of a guage.

Really do you have one of the Grizzly ones? People use similar but larger ones for bending 1:1 stuff, those guys are mounting them on presses and bending 1/4" plate no problem so I figure 1/32" would be no big deal.

How thick are you trying to bend?

[SMR 510RR]

This is what I am thinking about doing for the hinge.


Not sure, still tossing some ideas around. I want to come up with something that is easy to make for myself as well as others. I have a mill so that makes it very easy for me to accurately sink the hinge into the two pieces of angle iron but it would be harder for others without a mill. Other than that my plans are fairly simple and I think most of us could build one.

The most challenging part of the whole build is that the hinge must be centered on the corner of both pieces of angle iron so using a stock hinge would be more complicated then one would think. I am still looking for a off the shelf hinge that would work as that would make it much easier.

[Erin]

Originally Posted by SMR 510RR

Really do you have one of the Grizzly ones? People use similar but larger ones for bending 1:1 stuff, those guys are mounting them on presses and bending 1/4" plate no problem so I figure 1/32" would be no big deal.

How thick are you trying to bend?

18g is what I was working with, so that might have been the problem. Or I was trying to bend to small a lip and had trouble keeping it centered.

[HyperMark]

I made my boat sides from 1.0mm(20g) Aluminium.

I made them at work. I'm a sheet metal worker.

[brianw]

Originally Posted by HyperMark

I made them at work. I'm a sheet metal worker.

well that's just unfair cheating, lol.

[AX10wannabe]

im making a honcho bumper out of 22g sheet metal and can bend it by hand for the most part. you need to tap on the corners with a hammer to to make them sharper.

the way i'd make boatsides is take a 2x4 cut it a chunk off about 12-14" long lay it flat like this --- and put one end of it into a bench vise so the other end is sticking out,not clamped in. once you have your shape cut out of your sheet metal draw you lines where you want to bend then take a clamp and clamp the sheet metal to 2x4 with line lined up on edge of 2x4. take a hammer start on the edge and tap the metal until you have the bend you want. if its more than one bend undo clamp move the metal around to line up another marked line on edge of 2x4 and repeat. done.. i know with 22g you can take a pair of regular pliers and make adjustments to make it fit nice and snug.

[Optiskate]

I've worked with a lot of sheet metal over the last 5 or so years. Not for RC stuff, but for HVAC. Mostly Duct work and on site stuff, not so much in a sheet metal shop. On the thinner stuff its pretty easy to bend by hand and get nice looking bends. A good pair of hand seamers and a folding bar are worth their weight in gold and cheap to acquire. Something like those can help get you started if you cant afford a small brake or any bigger tools. Basic sheet metal tools for the smaller stuff like 30ga, 26ga, and 22ga are cheap and will take you a long way.

[Hounddad]

What thickness of aluminum would be too thin to make boatsides out of?

Is soda can thickness too thin? I am trying for light and durable enough to hold electronics and batt.

[SMR 510RR]

Originally Posted by Hounddad

What thickness of aluminum would be too thin to make boatsides out of?

Is soda can thickness too thin? I am trying for light and durable enough to hold electronics and batt.

Yea that would be too thin. I would shoot for something in the .06" range.

[Charlie-III]

A vise & these are nice for small parts.... Vise-Grip 8R® 8" Locking Sheet Metal Tool | Wayfair

I also bend 1/8" Lexan with them.