Sheet Metal Bending Process

Sheet metal bending is the process by which force is applied to a piece of thin metal, to make it bend. This is the beginning process of making items as small as brackets or as large as chassis.

Air ducts, encasement’s for electronics and building roofs are some of the common areas that benefit from bended sheet metal.

Commonly used equipment for bending sheet metal include box brakes, pan brakes and brake presses. Although the final results may not be precise, some people want to know how to bend sheet metal by hand, and as long as the metal is thin (and small) enough – this is quite a doable task.

The process of metal bending is similar to how you would bend a piece of cardboard over a counter top edge, to achieve a straight line – the difference lies in the amount of pressure required to perform such a  task.

A mallet, block of wood and a stake may be some tools that are required in bending sheet metal by hand, without the assistance of a hydraulic or computer controlled brake press (which are tools mainly used in producing a high volume of product).

Types of sheet metal bending methods

Air Bending

This method of bending sheet metal is done by a “punch” (also known as the “top” or “upper” die) being pressed into the material, and forcing it into the V-shaped bottom die.  The bottom die (often referred to as “tools”) can either be square or “V” shaped.

A couple of advantages of using the air bending method are that a variety of materials (and thickness) can be bent in a variety of different angles, which allows for much flexibility with this method. In addition, there are less tool changes, which allows for higher product output.

Due to the fact that the sheet is not in constant contact with the dies, the disadvantage to air bending is that it may not be as accurate as other types of sheet metal bending methods.

This minor disadvantage does not hinder the fact that air-bending remains the preferred method of sheet metal bending.