Sheet Steel Bend Radius

Minimum sheet metal flange bend length is required to avoid cracks in the bending area.
Sheet steel bend radius. Table 1 preferred recommended 90 degree bend radii for various sheet metals. The tables below show bend radii and minimum bend sizes for materials and tooling combinations stocked by protocase. It requires an inside bend radius of at least 6x the material thickness. 5052 h32 aluminum bends in about the same way as mild steel.
I can now see that the minimum flange length is 8 5 mm for such a bend so i have to keep it in mind when designing. Minimum recommended sheet metal bend length. Brittle metal such as aluminum generally requires a larger bend radius than ductile material like cold rolled steel. The material thickness will be measured in decimal form not by the gauge number.
We go beyond the general rules of sheet metal bending as our customers want tight bend radii for sheet metal parts. Bending sheet metal by hand is a manageable task if the piece of sheet metal is small and thin enough to handle. Use this document to choose values that are both manufacturable and meet your needs. Bend radii minimum bend sizes.
The most common problem with bending a piece of sheet metal too tightly is. Bend radius throughout the sheet metal design is kept constant to take the advantage of using the same tool during manufacturing. The minimum bend radius data shown in these charts is measured to the inside of the bend. It is most economical to use a single bend radius throughout the design but if necessary you can utilize multiple radii.
Sheet metal bend radii if these guidelines are not followed more research and or some form of analysis may be requried. If a piece of material is bent too tightly problems can occur. To keep it simple i also use a 2 mm inside radius. Each and every bend in a piece of sheet metal has a certain minimum internal radius that needs to be taken into account when planning the design of a sheet metal form.
It is possible to choose other bends if you require but additional lead time and tooling charges may apply. The bend allowance formula takes into account the geometries of bending and the properties of your metal to determine the bend allowance. Let s say i have a 2 mm thick sheet and i want to bend it. The problem with bending too tightly.
For example 6061 t6 aluminum is very difficult to bend. Minimum sheet metal bend length recommendations. The bend radii listed are standard minimum if manufacturing for aircraft and aerospace applications. Since commercial sheet metal bending can be done with less concern for stresses caused during forming operation the radius can be near zero for thin sheet metal.