Best Aluminum For Sheet Metal Bending

The best aluminum alloys for bending come down to series 3xxx and series 5xxx and sometimes series 6xxx.

Best aluminum for sheet metal bending.

From a bending perspective it s always best to bend these parts in an annealed state and then temper them to the correct condition. That s the ideal anyway but the reality is that many parts arrive at the press brake in a less than ideal state. It can be easily drawn or formed into intricate shapes. This is the highest strength alloy of the more non heat treatable grades.

Its fatigue strength is higher than most other aluminum grades. 6061 in o condition 18 to 20 percent. The are mainly used in architectural applications. This is done through the application of force on a workpiece.

The force must exceed the material s yield strength to achieve a plastic deformation. Material bend radii and minimum bend size charts please note. Alloy 5052 has a good resistance to marine atmosphere and salt water corrosion and excellent workability. This is a highly technical and potentially dangerous process best left to a professional metalworker.

The bend radius you select may not be available if the geometry of the part will not allow us to bend with the specific tooling required to achieve that radius. 60 ksi tensile cold rolled steel 15 to 17 percent. Bending is one of the most common sheet metal fabrication operations. Hot rolled pickled and oiled 14 to 16 percent.

Series 7xxx are the aluminum zinc magnesium and aluminum zinc copper alloys. Use the minimum bend dimension values in the charts below for your minimum closeness of cutout to a bend. Spring steel or 6061 aluminum are some examples. 6061 t6 aluminum is tempered and notorious for not bending easily.

Heavy gauge aluminum bars or rods must be heat bent using an acetylene torch and vice. 304 stainless steel 20 to 22 percent. Also known as press braking flanging die bending folding and edging this method is used to deform a material to an angular shape. Series 6xxx are the aluminum magnesium silicon alloys.

These heat treatable alloys exhibit great strength good corrosion resistance and ease of formability.