Finally got to use my brake today.

[tom37]

I am making a tote tray for the dies that fit my Hossfeld type bender.
And a little room for making additional dies in the future. Sure I could
have bought a cheap little spot welded tray but the dies get heavy
quick. I marked up a piece if 1/8" sheet and cut out the scrap from the corners.



Next it went to the bender to fold the long sides.



The bender did a decent job on the bends. Since I cut the bevel by
hand with a grinder, and it is not perfect. I on the other hand almost
didn't have enough giddy up to make the bend. I think I need a longer cheater for anything heavier. I am very confident that it will bend
3/16" x 20" to well past a 90.




I cheated on the ends and scored half way thru the sheet to make
it easier to bend.

I got the corners welded up and a handle welded in. I forgot to take
pics before I started painting it, so the rest of the pics will have to
wait till tomorrow.

[monte55]

Tom....In the pic it looks like the bend has quite a radius. Did it slip during bending. Looking back at your construction photos, it appears the top material clamp with the ground angle is set too far back which would explain the rounded bend but I can't tell where it is set in these photos. It looks to be adjustable.
Nick

[crawdaddy]

As a rookie to metal work I have never used a brake.My question is,How are you going to bend up the short sides,wont the long sides hit the brake and interfere with getting a complete bend on the ends?Thanks Mike

[tom37]

Good Eye Monte.

Yes the radius is a bit more then I would like. Yes and No on the slip issue , it seems that I forgot to snug the adjuster bolts against the back side before I made my bend. At that point I figured it would look silly with one good bend and one poor bend, so I left things where they were for the second bend.

Naturally the brake was to small since I wanted to clamp the large side and bend the edge. Not sure if that really matters but in my head it would be easier to line up my edge. Also my edges are not 100 percent true. All in all I am happy with it. There is a few things I could do different next time.

crawdaddy, I cheated on the short sides. I took my 7 inch grinder and scored a line on the inside about 1/16" deep and then I was able to bend it by hand. After the corners were welded up I laid a 2" bead in the center of the score line.



Here is one of the tray painted.

[tom37]

I made yet another tray, this one is to stay on the weld table for
catching stray nuts and bolts. Before this I have used a small throw
away cooking tray. Not a pretty sight when you try to pick it up.



Monte, you caught the fact that the last tray had a large radius
bend. I set my adjusters as tight as I could and still didn't get a
great bend. Do you think that I am asking to much to get a really
tight bend on 1/8"?



On this tray I cheated and used backer rod in the corners since I
must have measured and marked wrong. It made welding the corners
a breeze.

[monte55]

Can you show a close up of the brake from the front with the top clamped down but with no material in it. Have the handle down in one pic and up at 12:00 in another Take different views. Some from the side.
Nick

[tom37]

Here is one of the pics Monte. I dont want to flood the site with a ton of pics of the same thing.



Here is the album that they are in.

http://picasaweb.google.com/keesfrie...eat=directlink

Thanks for taking the time to check it out Monte.

Tom

[monte55]

It looks like the edge of the top has a blunt edge. You won't get a crisp bend with a blunt edge. The problen with the bend on your box looks like the material was too far away from the bender part. I should know the names of these parts but I can't think of them now. The bending force needs to be applied as close to the bend line as possible. If it's higher, the material will bend in a rounded shape like yours did. You said you had forgot to adjust the part forward. Have you tried another bend since with the 1/8".

[tom37]

Yes there is a, say in the neighborhood if 1/8" blunt edge. I was worried that a knife edge would roll with the metal being bent. Today I used a small scrap and held the brake at 90 degrees, like it would be after the bend, with the scrap as a guide to set the leaf. I just didn't expect the extra force it took to make the bend to 90 nice and tight.

Tonight I also did some 14 or 16 gauge aluminum. By gol lee it turned out really nice. I know its light weight but it turned out really good.

Keep an eye out monte, with this aluminum I am going to jump into my very first spool gun venture. To make trays and dividers for my tool box. I will make a post and put a pic of my very first aluminum weld. I am sure it will entertain a few people. I hope to have a pure argon bottle by this time next week.

Thanks and I hope ya have a great weekend.
Tom

[welderIVlife]

can i ask how you made that brake. i have been looking for plans to make one , with no luck, i would appreciate it very much.