Bending 18 Gauge Sheet Metal

The bend allowance formula takes into account the geometries of bending and the properties of your metal to determine the bend allowance.

Bending 18 gauge sheet metal.

Makes bends to 90º. Cut the section of metal out or otherwise prepare the metal to be bent by removing any burrs or sharp edges. There are several different gauge systems used today with specific gauge designations used for specific metal types. You can find your bend allowance with the following formula.

For example 18 gauge steel according to a gauge conversion chart is 0 0478 inch or 1 214 millimeter. Refer to the chart for values for folder as well as various press brake tooling combinations. Geometry of tooling imposes a minimum bend dimension. Use the minimum bend dimension values in the charts below for your minimum closeness of cutout to a bend.

The material thickness will be measured in decimal form not by the gauge number. For example in one gauge system 18 gauge steel. Showing how i bend steel plate without using a brake. Bends metal up to 18 in.

The average hack requires at least one angled metal part and the best tool to make one is still the good ol press brake. I need to make some parts as in the following picture from both 16 ga. You will use the protractor to gauge the brake as you bend the metal little by little. Easily clamps or mounts to workbench.

You will need to know your material thickness mt the bend angle b the inside radius ir and the k factor k. Determine the angle at which you want to brake the metal and mark it on the protractor. The gauge number 18 holds no relevance to the actual measurements. Handles material as thick as 16 gauge.

π 180 x b x ir k x mt bend allowance ba where b is the angle complementary to your desired bend angle 1 to 180 degrees mt is the thickness of the material ir is the inside radius and k is the k factor. The diagram shows one such mechanism.