Do-it-yourself sheet bending machine. Instructions for making a sheet bending machine with your own hands

A sheet bender should be present in the arsenal of every craftsman, it is especially necessary for those who engage in cold forging. After all, when performing this work, you often need to bend parts of a metal workpiece. This device is highly reliable and easy to operate. However, professional equipment is expensive, so many people prefer to make a sheet bending machine with their own hands.

Purpose and features of the sheet bender

Unfortunately, it is impossible to create high-quality metal elements without the use of special tools. To increase productivity and ease manual labor, new devices are constantly being produced. These include sheet bending, which is metal rolling machine. It is used for bending metals such as steel, brass and aluminum. On this machine, sheets are bent at a certain angle without disturbing their flatness.

You should not buy an expensive device if you are going to open a small production facility or carry out work on your summer cottage. For such purposes, it is better to create a homemade sheet bending machine.

Using a homemade machine, you can process sheet metal up to 2 mm thick. Most often, such manual equipment consists of the following parts:

• clamp;
• grounds;
• crimping punch with lever.

Factory sheet metal bending machines have additional capabilities. The most popular function is cutting metal sheets. The roller blade of such equipment is made of high-alloy steel alloy treated with a special varnish. The cutter has a long service life, but the knife will have to periodically undermine.

Types of sheet benders

Before you start making a manual machine for bending metal products, you must first decide what exactly it is for. It is the purpose of this device that will determine what type of equipment to make. The simplest is considered to be a do-it-yourself device, in which a metal sheet is bent by a special traverse. Using this equipment, you can easily bend steel products using only hand strength, of course, if they width no more than 50 cm.

The base of the sheet is fixed in a vice or clamps, while bending is carried out by the pressure exerted by the traverse. Sometimes an inserted spacer is used to achieve a 90-degree bend angle. It is an ordinary strip of metal that compensates for the elasticity of the sheet.

A press brake is a more complex piece of equipment. The workpiece is placed on a matrix, and a punch is lowered onto it, giving the required profile. However, such a device is not suitable for home use, since it is unsafe and difficult to use.

The most suitable is considered to be a sheet bending machine, in which bending of sheet metal is carried out several shafts. This machine is usually called a pass-through machine. Its main advantage is the adjustable rollers, which allow you to obtain different bending radii. This bending device is divided into two types: electrically or manually driven.

Rollers can also be different. For example, tools with a smooth working surface are used for making sections of pipes with a huge diameter or performing tin work that involves bending metal.

Profiled rollers are designed for bending roofing products: flanges, gutters, ridges, valleys and others. But a broaching sheet bender is often equipped with a clamp, additional support, and also a traverse in order to use it for manual bending of metal. These machines are also equipped with shafts of different profiles. Moreover, you can purchase them yourself and improve the device.

Drawings for creating sheet metal bending machines

Tool with rotary frame for bending workpieces

Home craftsmen most often use a similar DIY device for bending sheet products. Moreover, it differs from other sheet bending machines in its great versatility. The desktop in it is made of metal or wood. The dimensions of such a sheet bending machine are: not less than 2x1 m. If you need to bend large workpieces, you can install a plane on the back of the device, located level with the table, or a folding frame. This is done to secure the metal so that it does not slip out when changing position.

The base should be screwed to the front of the desktop. To do this, you will need a channel with a width of the upper edge of no more than 7 cm. Guide pins with springs are mounted at its ends. A clamp is then fixed on them, the front edge of which should be beveled at an angle of 45 degrees.

To create a turning part, a corner is used, size 5x5 cm, with installed handle. It is mounted on hinges in such a way that the upper edge of the material, when folded back, is located at the same level as the base.

The simplicity of the design of such a sheet bender and the availability of materials for its assembly allows you to save a lot. In many cases, metal for the work table and frame does not even need to be purchased, because every workshop has cuttings of pipes, angles and channels. These leftovers will make an excellent homemade machine for bending metal sheets.

Drawing of a device from brands

To make such a sheet bender, you will need the following materials:

• Smooth surface, preferably metal;
• At least 3 corners with a shelf width of about 45 mm and a thickness of approximately 3 mm.

If you are going to bend sheets that are too long, then choose thicker metal and wider shelves. Brands are also suitable, however, they are used mainly for bending very thick and long workpieces. In addition, you will have to spend money on a spring, two screws with a diameter of at least 10-20 mm and several metal door hinges. In addition, for work you will need a drill with a metal drill or a welding machine.

A homemade sheet bending machine is made from a brand. You will need three pieces of such a product, 2.5 meters each, a small metal plate 5 mm thick for jibs, two bolts measuring 20 mm, and also a spring. First you need to fold two brands, and then make holes for hinges at both ends. In this case, the edges of the pits are beveled at an angle of 45 degrees. The remaining product is cut in a similar way, only the notch is made deeper to be used as a pressure strip.

Then you can proceed to welding the hinges. This must be done from the outside and inside. Then the jibs are fixed to one brand. After this, a pressure plate is mounted, and metal plates with a recess in the center are welded to it on top. The diameter of such a hole should be slightly wider than the bolt. The hole should be aligned so that it is located on the same plane with the installed nut and welded.

Next step - spring cutting, it should raise the clamping bar by as much as 7 mm. The bolt must be inserted into the hole of this product, install the spring and screw the nut. When the same elastic part is mounted on the other side, when unscrewed, the bar will rise on its own.

To make a device for tightening, you need to attach pieces of reinforcement to the head of the screw. After this, all that remains is to weld the handle to the movable brand and you can start working. Such a machine will be quite powerful; it will be able to bend even thick and long sheets.

DIY roller bending machine

When creating and installing chimneys, ventilation ducts and drainage systems, one cannot do without curvilinear bending of a metal sheet. They cope with this task perfectly roller benders.

It’s quite easy to build equipment with your own hands with three rollers. In addition, it can be equipped with an electric motor or a manual drive. The main parts of the roll bending machine are as follows:

One vertical post in the machine must rotate around an axis 90–120 degrees. This must be done in order to subsequently replace the rollers with cylinders of a different size. During the manufacture of a roller-type device, it is worth understanding that its capabilities will be limited by human power. Using such homemade equipment, sheet metal up to 60 cm wide and no more than 1.5 mm thick can be bent. The diameter of the trough can be adjusted by moving the rollers.

Rules for working on a homemade sheet bending machine

This machine is quite dangerous, so when bending iron sheets, you must follow safety precautions. Before you start working on purchased equipment, you first need to read the instructions and find out what material the device is designed to process.

Before using a homemade sheet bending machine, you should check condition of work equipment. There should be no hanging parts on the workwear, and zippers, shirt cuffs and buttons must be fastened.

Then you need to move on to checking the condition of the working units, as well as their fastening. If malfunctions are identified, they all need to be eliminated. A free space of at least 1 meter must be left around the bending machine. The passage to the machine must not be blocked by anything. It is also important to check that there is sufficient lighting in the workplace.

The blanks are placed in advance near the sheet bender. This equipment is prohibited from bending iron sheets whose thickness is several times greater than the permissible values. Do not leave the device turned on unattended.

To create a practical and convenient manual sheet bending machine you will not need much time and effort. But it will become an indispensable tool for the home craftsman.

It is not difficult to make a sheet metal bending machine with your own hands, but so far few home craftsmen and specialists who use bent sheet steel products in their activities are engaged in the manufacture of such equipment for their own needs. Meanwhile, such a device, which has fairly high reliability and ease of operation, will help you save a lot.

One of the most affordable sheet benders is the domestic LGS-26, the price is about 38 thousand rubles. We will make it cheaper and optimize it to suit your needs

The manufacture and use of a sheet bending machine is especially important for those who need to perform technological operations for bending sheet material not daily and in large volumes, but periodically.

Types of sheet benders and their design

Before you start making a homemade manual sheet bender, you should clearly define the list of tasks for which it is needed. The main purpose of such a device will depend on what scheme it will be implemented according to.

The simplest is a device in which sheet metal is bent using a special traverse. Using such a device, you can easily bend a sheet of metal at an angle of 90 degrees, using only hand strength without additional devices, if the width of the sheet does not exceed 0.5 meters. The base of the sheet is secured with clamps or in a vice, and its bending is carried out due to the pressure exerted by the traverse. In some cases, to obtain a bend angle of exactly 90 degrees, you may need an embedded spacer (in the picture on the right), which is an ordinary strip of metal that will help compensate for the elasticity of the sheet.

A more complex design is the press brake, which consists of a die and a punch. The sheet metal in such a device is located on a matrix, and the punch is lowered onto the workpiece from above, giving it the required profile. At home, a press brake is unlikely to be used, since it is quite complicated and unsafe to use.

A version of a homemade press brake working in tandem with. If you already have a press, then supplementing it with devices for bending narrow sheets of metal will not be difficult. You'll get something like this:

A sheet bending machine is much more advanced, in which metal is bent by the action of three shafts. Such equipment is called pass-through. One of its main advantages is that its adjustable rollers allow different bending radii. Such a tool for bending metal can be manually or electrically driven, and its rollers can have a different design.

• Rollers with a smooth working surface are designed to perform most sheet metal work, which involves bending workpieces, producing sections of pipes with large diameters, etc.
• Profiled rollers are necessary for bending elements of roofing structures (ridges, valleys, gutters, flanges, etc.).
• The broaching sheet bending machine can be additionally equipped with a support, a clamp and a traverse, which allows it to be used for manual bending of workpieces.

Such machines are equipped with a set of shafts of various profiles, which can also be purchased additionally to make the equipment more versatile.

Where to start making a sheet bending machine

To make a machine for bending sheet metal, you will need a drawing of such a device or its detailed photos. In addition, a number of important factors should be taken into account, such as the force that will need to be applied to use the sheet bending machine, its weight and dimensions (on which mobility depends), cost and availability of components. As a result, we obtain the following initial parameters.

• The maximum width of the sheet that will need to be bent is 1 m.
• Maximum thickness of sheet material: galvanized – 0.6 mm, aluminum – 0.7 mm, copper – 1 mm.
• The number of operating cycles that will be carried out without readjustment or repair is 1200.
• The maximum bend angle of a metal profile, obtained without manual finishing, is 120 degrees.
• It is highly undesirable to use workpieces made of special steels (for example, stainless steel).
• In the design of a sheet bending machine, welded joints that do not withstand alternating loads should be avoided.
• You should limit as much as possible the number of sheet bending machine parts that you will need to order externally, using turners or millers.

It is very difficult to find a drawing of a device that would satisfy all these requirements, but the most successful one can be modified.

The most popular sheet bending design and its improvement

The design of a manual sheet bending machine, shown in drawing No. 1, can be easily improved. From the above drawing it can be seen that the device for bending sheet metal consists of the following elements:

Drawing No. 1: To build our sheet bending machine we will use this diagram

1. pillow made of wood;
2. support beam made of channel 100–120 mm;
3. cheek, for the manufacture of which a sheet 6–8 mm thick is used;
4. sheet of material to be processed;
5. a pressure beam made of 60–80 mm corners connected by welding;
6. an axis for rotating the traverse (made from a metal rod with a diameter of 10 mm);
7. the traverse itself is a corner with dimensions of 80–100 mm;
8. the handle of the device is made of a rod with a diameter of 10 mm.

The sheet bending traverse (item 7), which according to the original drawing is supposed to be made from a corner, is conventionally shown as a version made from a channel. Such modernization will significantly increase the endurance of the traverse, which, when using a corner, at a certain moment will inevitably bend in the middle and will no longer create a high-quality bend in the sheet in this place. Replacing with a channel will allow you to do not 200 bends without straightening or replacing this element (which is quite a bit for more or less active work), but more than 1300.

The design of such a sheet bending machine, made at home, can be further improved, which will make it more efficient and versatile.

Drawing No. 2: Main elements of a sheet bending machine

Drawing No. 2 allows you to understand in more detail the design of a homemade sheet bender:

1. a homemade clamp made from a suitable angle (40-60 millimeters) and a screw with a heel and a knob;
2. cheek;
3. channel acting as a support beam for the machine;
4. a clamping beam bracket made from a 110 mm angle;
5. the pressing beam of the sheet bender itself;
6. axis of rotation of the traverse;
7. the traverse itself.

Strengthening the pressure beam

Below we will look at the clamping bar reinforcement scheme. However, if you initially have a fairly massive corner as a clamp, and you do not plan to bend excessively thick sheets on your sheet bending machine, then it is quite possible to do without reinforcing the clamping bar in the described way.

To extend the service life of the pressure beam and make it comparable to the service life of the traverse, this structural element, which was originally made from an angle according to the drawing, should be supplemented with a base made of a metal strip with dimensions of 16x80 mm. The front edge of this base should be given an angle of 45 degrees in order to align its plane with the plane of the clamping angle itself, and the working edge of this element should be chamfered about 2 millimeters.

In drawing No. 2, the resulting part is shown in section in the additional figure at the top right. These measures will allow the clamp metal to work not in bending (which is extremely undesirable), but in compression, thereby greatly increasing the service life without repair.

An additional 60 angle welded to the rear flange of the main clamping angle will keep it from bending upward. Drawing No. 2 shows this in more detail in the additional figure at the top left.

You should also take care of milling the lower plane of the pressure beam, which forms the bend. The unevenness of this plane, according to generally accepted rules, should not exceed half the thickness of the workpiece being bent. Otherwise, it will not be possible to bend the workpiece evenly, without a swollen fold line. It should be borne in mind that a beam should be submitted for milling only when it already has all the welds, since their implementation leads to a change in the geometric parameters of the structure.

We increase the reliability of machine mounts

There is another big drawback in the sheet bending machine - the way it is attached to the work table. The clamps provided in this device are a very unreliable fastening option, especially considering the rapid fatigue of welds. Such fasteners can be completely abandoned, which will also avoid the need to use welded joints and jaws. The following actions can solve this problem:

• making a support beam that will protrude beyond the desktop;
• making U-shaped eyes at the ends of the support beam;
• fastening the support beam to the work table using bolts (M10) and shaped nuts with claws.

If the improved sheet bending machine no longer has jaws, how can a crossbeam be attached to it? This issue can be solved quite simply: use butterfly door hinges, which are usually used for hanging heavy metal doors. Such hinges, which ensure fairly high accuracy, can be secured using countersunk screws. This is further illustrated in drawing No. 2 at the bottom right.

You can bend a lot of workpieces on a sheet bending machine with a traverse attached to butterfly hinges, since these hinges are very reliable.

Complete structure

After assembly, the improved device for producing a metal profile looks like this:

1. reinforced support beam;
2. flywheel – threaded element;
3. a beam that provides clamping of the workpiece;
4. clamp for attaching the device to the desktop;
5. a traverse, with the help of which, in fact, you can bend the workpiece being processed.

The drawings show pressure flywheels, which in practice few people have. More often, ordinary screws with welded collars are used. After welding the knobs, it is necessary to remove the threads on them, since welding can have an extremely negative effect on it.

Drawings of another version of the sheet bender

Detailed drawings of a sheet bending machine, very similar in design, but differing in the traverse fastening. The diagrams show dimensions, which, of course, can be changed depending on the intended use of the machine.

The working elements of the zig machine are rollers, and its use allows you to significantly save on the purchase of roofing structural elements produced in the factory. If you watch a video that shows the operation of such a device, it becomes clear that it can be used even at the site of direct installation of the roof structure.

To choose the right device for the manufacture of bent elements from sheet metal, you can adhere to the following recommendations.

• For a home craftsman who periodically needs a sheet bending machine, a simple device made from improvised materials is quite suitable.
• Those who occasionally carry out roofing installation orders will need a manual sheet metal bending machine and a simple zig machine.
• Specialists who are constantly engaged in the production of elements for roofing structures and tin work need a factory device for bending sheet metal.
• Manual is useful for those who professionally manufacture elements of roofing structures. The optimal choice for such specialists is professional equipment, which is characterized by higher reliability and durability.

Russian-made sheet bender SKS-2v1, price 64 thousand rubles

If your plans nevertheless include the active use of a homemade sheet bending machine to work on a more or less large flow, then be prepared for the fact that at some point your production may stop due to a breakdown. Since the steel used by home craftsmen for the production of sheet bending machines with their own hands, most likely will not withstand high loads, will quickly get tired and simply float.

But for household, not particularly loaded applications, a home sheet bending machine will be an excellent assistant and will save a lot of money. You need to take this point into account and not expect miracles of endurance and performance from a simple homemade machine.

Before making a sheet bending machine with your own hands, you can not only study numerous drawings of similar devices posted on the Internet, but also watch a training video. Perhaps the size of the described sheet bender may seem too small to some, then you can consider the option of a homemade sheet bender of a larger format. Of course, this is no longer a mobile machine; it is suitable for a small private workshop:

Advantages of a homemade sheet bender

Making a sheet bending machine with your own hands or purchasing a manual walk-through sheet bender is often of interest to those who want to save a lot on purchasing mass-produced corrugated sheets. Simple theoretical arithmetic shows: if you bend corrugated sheets yourself using such a device, then the cost of the latter will be 40% lower compared to the cost of factory products. But it's not that simple.

If you purchase a factory manual pass-through machine for corrugated sheets with an eye to small-scale in-house production, it will cost about 60 thousand rubles. Meanwhile, such a manual sheet bending machine does not guarantee the stable quality of the corrugated sheets obtained with its help. The problem is that rolling in one pass will most likely lead to the appearance of overtightened corners, which can subsequently lead to cracks. And rolling one sheet repeatedly, gradually changing the degree of pressure, is too long, labor-intensive and ultimately unprofitable. But it is quite convenient to produce simpler parts from sheet steel using it.

For a full-fledged Chinese-made rolling line for corrugated sheeting, you will have to pay about $20,000. Of course, it consumes quite a lot of electricity (from 12 kW) and its installation requires a large area, which clearly does not fit into the plans and budget of most home craftsmen.

The most important thing to consider when purchasing a sheet metal bending machine is the possibility of a quick payback. It is quite difficult for a master who uses such a device privately to achieve this. In this case, it is more advisable to use a homemade sheet bending machine, which is suitable for the manufacture of bent sheet products of any type. Using such equipment, you can bend both sheets with standard sizes and non-standard products, which are in great demand when carrying out roofing work, as well as many others.

How does a sheet bending machine work?

Before asking yourself the question of how to make a sheet bending machine, you should understand the design features of such equipment. First of all, such devices differ in the type of their drive. Thus, there are devices with mechanical, electrical, hydraulic and manual drive.

Power-driven press brakes may use a flywheel with a clutch and crank, or a system of pulleys, levers and cables with a falling weight. Such devices, characterized by a shock pulse at the beginning of the working stroke, which then gradually weakens, are far from ideal in terms of the quality of the result due to the mechanics of their work and are used less and less often.

The efficiency of equipment for bending sheet metal, on which an electric drive is installed, drops noticeably with increasing load in the form of a decrease in the size of the workpiece or an increase in its strength. If you try to bend a workpiece made of hard metal (for example, stainless steel) on such a sheet bending machine, you may encounter the fact that the electric motor rotor will begin to slip, reducing torque and increasing electricity consumption.

Equipment with a hydraulic drive allows you to precisely adjust the developed force to the resistance of the workpiece, but it is not cheap. A conventional hydraulic jack, which can also be used as a drive for bending sheet metal, does not ensure uniform distribution of force along the entire length of the bend.

To summarize all of the above, it turns out that a manual sheet bender is the best option for home craftsmen. It can be manufactured in various designs.

A press brake is a device that cold bends sheet metal using various methods. By and large, creating a sheet bending machine with your own hands (drawings and a description of how to make such a unit will be described in the article) is possible, but this, as a rule, will be a manual device, occasionally a mechanical one. Nevertheless, such a machine will become an invaluable help in the household, because with its help various designs will turn out more beautiful.

Homemade press brake

Types of sheet metal bending machines

Stationary hydraulic sheet bender

Plate bending machines can be either stationary or mobile (portable) and they can be divided into three categories:

1. Press.
2. Rotary.
3. Rotary.

But all these units can be classified by the drive, which can be:

• hydraulic (stationary and mobile);
• pneumatic (stationary and mobile);
• electromechanical (stationary);
• mechanical (stationary);
• manual (mobile).

Note. The workpiece can be fed manually or automatically, and the dimensions are marked either manually or using CNC (Computer Numerical Control).

A few words about application

The scope of application of the machine is quite extensive

For some reason, there is an opinion that a sheet bender is a construction machine, but this is not entirely true or even not true at all. In fact, such units are used in mechanical engineering and the automotive industry, in instrument making and for the creation of aircraft. This is not a complete list of its applications, but the main task of such machines is the production of any products from various (non-ferrous and ferrous) sheet metals.

Manufacturing of press brake

It can be said that a manual sheet bending machine, driven by the muscular strength of the worker, is the most convenient unit for the repair and construction of objects. It can be applied directly at the place where it is needed at a given time, and then quickly transferred to another point.

How to draw up a technical specification plan

First of all, don't scatter. This means that there are many articles, photos and videos on this subject on the Internet, but in each individual case individual details are needed. Therefore, before you decide to draw up a work plan, decide on the technical characteristics, and these are:

• maximum permissible sheet width in mm;
• maximum sheet thickness in mm;
• the range of bending angles you need;
• bending accuracy;
• dimensions of the machine (length, width, height).

Video: homemade sheet bender

If everything is clear with the width (a sheet is rarely wider than 1000 mm), then the thickness is not entirely clear; for example, for a seam roof, sheets no more than a millimeter thick are used. The thickness of gutters is the same, but when it comes to handrails for stairs or other fencing, the thickness can reach 3 mm.

Note. If the metal turns out to be narrower than is required for the manufacture of something, then it can always be folded on the same machine. Folding should not be confused with rolling, since the second option requires special rolling rollers, which sheet benders do not have.

Plate bending machine, drawing

Do-it-yourself sheet bending machine - drawings and description of how to make it:

1. Roller knife. It is best to make it from alloy steel, and if necessary, replace it with a new one.
2. Back table. Serves to place the workpiece. The cutter and bender are supported on its supports.
3. Wooden stand. Serves to prevent the workpiece from slipping. The height of the stand is adjustable.
4. Front stops. Allows you to set the width of the cut.
5. Corner stop and measuring plate. Allows you to vary the angle and the bend will be arbitrary, that is, as required in a particular case.

Perhaps the most difficult moment when drawing up a plan is choosing the required range of angles when bending metals. But, whatever it may be, with such structures, the maximum bending (depending on the rotating beam) can only reach 135⁰, but if necessary, bending can be done up to 180⁰. A given sheet thickness is determined by the power of the clamping frame - the more powerful the frame, the thicker the metal can be bent.

Selecting the kinematic diagram of the machine

One of the options for do-it-yourself sheet bending

You can choose different options when making such a mechanism, but it is best to prefer the most popular scheme. In such cases, the bending of the sheet is carried out by turning the movable traverse - everything is very simple and very reliable.

Most popular design

Drawing No. 1

1. Wooden pillow.
2. Support beam (channel with a cross section of 100-120 mm).
3. Cheek made of sheet 6-8 mm thick.
4. Blank for processing.
5. Pressure beam made from corners 60-80 mm (connected by welding).
6. Smooth reinforcement with a cross section of 10 mm, as an axis for rotation of the traverse.
7. Traverse (angle 80-100 mm).
8. Handle of the device (smooth reinforcement with a cross-section of 10 mm).

To make the machine more efficient, its design can be improved as shown below.

Drawing No. 2

This drawing examines all the nodes in more detail, therefore, you can more clearly imagine the design of a homemade sheet bender.

1. Homemade clamp. A 40-60 mm angle and a heel screw were used.
2. Cheek.
3. Machine beam made of channel.
4. Pressure beam bracket made from 110mm angle iron.
5. Pressure beam.
6. Axis of rotation.
7. Traverse.

Complete structure

Note. This section shows a more powerful design, which is assembled according to the same principle as in the upper drawings No. 1 and No. 2.

Drawing of the assembled sheet bending structure

You can compare these drawings and make sure that they are basically the same, only the last one was made with an increase in power and service life.

1. The wooden support beam is reinforced with a sheet of metal.
2. Threaded flywheel element.
3. The beam for pressing the workpiece is reinforced.
4. Clamp.
5. Traverse for bending the workpiece.
6. Channel for additional fastening of the support beam.

Note. You can see pressure flywheels in the drawings, but finding them on sale is extremely difficult. Therefore, when assembling a sheet bending machine, you can make a homemade device. These are ordinary screws with collars welded to them. Only after completing the welding work should the thread be updated with a tape measure, since in most cases it will be clogged with metal splashes.

Video: how to make a sheet bending machine yourself

Conclusion

We hope that you received the answer to the question of how to make a sheet bending machine with your own hands at home and understand the types and classification of machines. As you can see, the manufacturing process is not that complicated, but it requires the necessary materials, which you should stock up on in advance.

Making a sheet bending machine with your own hands is sometimes much more profitable than buying a ready-made mechanism. This way you will save financially and get exactly the machine that will meet your requirements.

When planning to make a sheet bending machine with your own hands, you must adhere to a certain principle - the entire load when working with a manual device should fall on the strongest muscles. And the return of the unit is to press your feet to the floor. This way, the process of working on the machine will require a minimum of physical effort.

Using a roller or simple sheet bending machine, you can make an unusual roof pattern, make some additional elements, and create entire structures. It all depends on what type of machine you are going to make with your own hands.

1. Roller devices are the most compact sheet benders. They are often used when installing seam roofing. Roller machines ensure the production of bypasses, additional elements, roofing patterns of non-standard types, increase the rolling depth on the inside of a seam roof, etc.
2. Machines that bend sheets at an angle of 90 degrees. Such devices are the most popular among those who decide to make a sheet bending machine themselves.
3. Press. Trying to make such a unit with your own hands is almost pointless. These are machines for industrial use, the assembly of which should only be carried out by professionals.
4. Broaching benders. Here, the radius of bends directly depends on how the rolls are positioned. Such devices are multifunctional, but there is no objective need for them for domestic use.

From this we can conclude that the most attractive sheet benders for DIY production are those that provide a bend at an angle of 90 degrees. With their help, you can carry out minor repairs, correct unevenness on metal products, make some crafts, etc.

Buy or make

Making a sheet bending machine with your own hands is a task that requires certain skills and free time. It is the need to waste their time that forces many to give preference to purchased machines, despite the abundantly presented diagrams and drawings of machines on the Internet.

But what is the right thing to do - buy or make a sheet bending machine yourself?

1. To create a homemade sheet bender, you will need a minimum of tools and materials.
2. The main costs of creating a sheet bending machine are temporary. Many machines are assembled from scrap parts, so you rarely have to spend money.
3. It’s not uncommon for factory-made machines to turn out to be less efficient and easy to use than a homemade sheet bender.
4. A large number of ready-made machines are designed for bending sheets up to 3 meters wide. This device is too large even for those who have a spacious yard or a large garage.
5. Price issue. By comparing a homemade manual sheet bender and a ready-made machine in terms of cost, you will be pleasantly surprised at how much you can save by spending literally a couple of hours on making a homemade sheet bender.
6. Many factory machines have a mechanical drive type. But it is completely inconvenient if you need to carry out delicate, accurate work with metal sheets. Plus, their operation will require a connection to the electrical network, additional costs for paying for electricity.
7. There are models with hydraulic drive, which are more convenient and preferable for home use. They allow you to work delicately with workpieces. But the price of a hydraulic machine is impressive, the design itself is quite complex. Even if you regularly plan to bend sheets, the payback period for this machine will be too long.
8. The best option is a manual drive. Here you control the force and distribute it over the workpiece. Manual machines for bending sheets are very easy to use, and they cope with their tasks no worse than their mechanical and hydraulic counterparts.

But the most important question is your real need for such a machine. If you need a sheet bender for a one-time use, it’s easier to borrow from a neighbor, or pick up a simple mallet.

For those who plan to actively use a sheet bending machine, we will tell you how to make a sheet bending machine without resorting to complex structures.

Assembling a sheet bending machine

Finding sheet bending drawings is not a problem. Therefore, first of all, think about what dimensions of the machine you presumably need, for what purposes you are going to use this tool.

Each drawing provides a detailed description of the assembly process. Complete the drawing with a video guide, which will allow you to make a full-fledged compact sheet bending machine in just an hour.

In our case, we will look at a drawing of a machine designed for minor repair work in our own garage.

The drawing includes several basic elements of the sheet bending design:

• Clamp;
• Crimping punch;
• Lever handle;
• Base.

The material for manufacturing the machine can be metal. Although more than one drawing provides for the use of ordinary wood for these purposes. Wood as a basis for creating a sheet bending machine allows you to carry out minor work when you need to bend small sheets of iron, aluminum and other materials.

1. The wooden base can be left in its original form, or reinforced with metal corners or sheet metal. Based on the strength of the selected tree, as well as the expected loads on the base.
2. Secure several strong loops that will be responsible for the movement of the bending link of the sheet bender.
3. If the bending link has impressive dimensions and weight, there is no need to install an additional frame. Its installation allows you to increase the pressure created when bending metal sheets.
4. The crimping punch is a structural element of the machine that matches the profile of the matrix used. The punch acts as a closing component that forms the product from above. The punch is used for stamping, marking or pressing.
5. The punch should be secured to a wooden base using wing nuts. Be sure to install washers underneath them.
6. If you plan to bend sheets with different parameters on a machine, it is better to make several different punches at once, differing in the thickness of the grooves.
7. If you want to get a high-quality 90-degree bend on this simplest machine, it is recommended that the surface limiting the span of the bending component be made with a slight slope. Literally 5 degrees will be enough. Otherwise, problems may arise in obtaining a right bend angle.
8. If you notice during the first bends that the result of processing the sheets is not very accurate, try making guide cuts in the bend areas.

Some require bending of larger parts, metal sheets. For these purposes, the design of the sheet bending machine presented above will not be powerful enough.

A self-produced sheet bender, designed for working with large sheets, has an identical design. It only differs in its larger size and other materials used for its manufacture. Use channels and angles, and make connections by welding.

Plate benders are an essential hand tool for many homeowners. They are easy to make with your own hands, and their scope of application is limited only by your needs and imagination.

Nowadays, sheet metal rolling is gaining momentum. More and more often, one or another person has a brand new fence made of metal profile sheets.

The question arises, what kind of machine creates this wonderful and necessary building product for humanity.

Bending machine design.

Plate bending machine

This is a specially created device with which you can bend sheets of galvanized metal of a certain thickness. This miracle machine is usually used for production purposes.

Such a device never became widespread among skilled craftsmen. However, nowadays there are people who were able to reproduce the prototype of the production module and make their own sheet bending machine.

This thing is quite easy to do with your own hands; it will not take up much space in your garage or workshop.

Direction of application

It would seem that this is quite simple equipment, but it covers a huge industry. This invention is capable of producing products in the following fields of activity:

Widest scope of application

This is construction. It is in this area that you can find a huge selection of corrugated sheets, metal profiles, metal tiles and their components. Also metal siding - it is used for interior decoration of houses and buildings. Ventilation shafts are also produced using sheet benders.

Mechanical engineering and aviation

And also shipbuilding. This area is very expanded, as various parts for bodies, aircraft skins, and also skins for shipping equipment are created.

Electronics

Not everyone knows that sheet bending machines are used to create housings for household appliances (microwave ovens, ovens, refrigerator and washing machine housings, computer housings, and much more).

Furniture manufacture

In this area, boxes, lockers for changing rooms, lockers for storing things, etc. are created.

Many areas were covered in the operation of a sheet bending plant. Each of the above areas is very common among the population.

Types of sheet bending devices

Like many other machines, sheet bending machines differ according to one of the most important criteria - this is the type of drive action.

Consider these types:

Manual drive action

This type is used mainly in everyday life. These include homemade inventions. It is with the help of this device that you can make any devices from galvanization for your home or garden. And if you correctly install support beams and staples on a manual sheet bender to the required bend radius, this will allow you to create complex elements.

Mechanical impact

Such units belong to stationary machines. The acting force is distributed from the flywheel. This design has limitations in its use. The fact is that the device is equipped with a special lever, through which the sheet is folded. The downside is that it requires physical force.

Electromechanical option

Electromechanical drives have received widespread approval among their owners. This is because this machine is very convenient and versatile. The process begins with laying galvanization on the surface of the matrix. After pressing the start key, the punch, pusher and the gearbox itself come into force. Due to this, the galvanized sheet bends or bends with the necessary parameters. The force produced by such a machine is at least 100-200 kilograms; in some cases, this characteristic can reach up to one ton.

Electromagnetic drive action

Electromagnetic machines, nowadays, are mainly used in the metal rolling industry. The percentage of use of such equipment in mechanical engineering is 70%. It has only one advantage. Small dimensions, high productivity (this device is capable of producing about several hundred parts in just one minute), it is completely silent.

Hydraulic drive

This category belongs to the category of press brakes. Presses with hydraulics are used in the serial production of parts. They are very productive, high quality, fully automated, and have control over the bending angle of the sheets.

Zig machine

This device has a very important side. They are used in the manufacture of components. Using a zig machine, you can make flanging of galvanized sheets, corrugating edges, rolling connecting bends and much more.

Making a sheet bending machine with your own hands

If you look at it, detailing a sheet metal bender is not that difficult.

Types of metal profiles

Bending beam

Due to it, the metal sheet is bent at an angle from 0 to 180 degrees.

Pressure beam

This part holds the sheet with clamping force and prevents it from sliding.

Goniometer disc

A special disk that displays all the necessary angle dimensions.

Disc knife

A sharp, sharpened blade made from high-strength steel that cuts steel without problems.

Back table

Consists of end-to-end designs with a flat, top surface on which the galvanized workpiece will move.

Clamping handle

Due to it, the pressure beam is brought into readiness and action.

Stretching device

Allows you to select the position and shape of beams to produce high-quality bending of rolled metal products.

Development of a technical device

Advice: Before you get ready to draw drawings, look for various details for your future brainchild, it is very important to make a choice, choose what is most suitable for you. It is also important to take into account the area in which your homemade module will be used.

During the design process, it is important to assemble it in a way that is comfortable for you. So that the entire load is distributed to the most enduring muscles of your body and to the support posts of the device. When developing a unit that you want to create with your own hands, it is important to consider the following parameters:

• The width of the galvanization should not exceed one meter.
• The bend angle should not be less than 120 degrees.
• The number of continuous production cycles should not exceed 1200 units.
• The use of various alloys of steel and other metals as workpieces is strictly prohibited.
• Permitted thickness of the following metals:
• Aluminum - permissible thickness 0.7 millimeters.
• Galvanization - optimal thickness 0.66 millimeters.
• Copper - a thickness of one millimeter is allowed.

When all the necessary criteria are taken into account, you can safely assemble your instrument.

This is what sheets of steel and metal will look like when they are bent and passed through rollers. In addition, the figure shows in what ways the sheets can be bent to obtain the desired shape.

Variety of folding galvanized sheets

Drawings of a sheet bending machine

Drawing of a bending machine made from simple parts.

The drawings of any device are considered the basis of your invention. After all, it will indicate the dimensions and location of a particular part. When you have everything you need

dimensions and sketches, then assembling the device will certainly end in success. Nowadays, on the Internet there are a huge number of different drawings with dimensions. As they say, the choice is yours! Below we will look at one of the simplest drawings.

This variety is quite productive and successful model.

Selection of materials

All materials for this machine can be easily found in your garage. So, let's look at what these materials are:

Wooden insert

Indicated in the drawing by the number “1”, it is created from a simple wooden block.

Metal channel

Size 100x120 mm will fit well into the base design.

Right cheek

It is made from steel sheet, 6-8mm thick.

Iron corners

60mm and 80mm will serve for the manufacture of a pressure beam.

Punch axis

Can be created from an iron pin with a diameter of 10 mm.

The punch itself can be created from an iron angle 80x100 mm, or you can use a channel.

Steel rod

10 mm in diameter is suitable for creating a punch lever.

Tip: To create a punch, it is best to choose a channel rather than a metal corner. This is because the channel can withstand much more bending than the corner.

Detailing and assembly process

The assembly process is presented to your attention, as well as the description and location of the parts. A welding machine will certainly help you during assembly. The seams after welding must be processed so that the seams are flush with the plane of the part on which the seam is located.

So, let's look at the parts indicated on the assembly diagram:

Location of parts during assembly.

• A medium-sized clamp (the M 10 screw has a knob on one side and a heel on the other), located in a corner measuring 40x60 mm.
• The cheek is made of sheet steel, 8 mm thick.
• The base is made of channel 100x120 mm.
• Angle bracket 110x110 mm.
• Pressure beam made from angle 60x60 mm and 80x80 mm.
• The punch axis is made of 10 mm rod.
• The punch itself is made from an angle 80x100 mm.

After all of the above parts are in place and secured, you should prepare your machine for operation. To do this, you simply need to remove all construction debris that remains after assembly.

Rules and safety precautions during operation

Everyone has long known that safety is the key to health and longevity. And also a chance not to remain disabled. This machine, in its category, is extremely dangerous. The thing is that the machine itself can cause a huge number of injuries. In addition, the material itself that will be used on it is very sharp.

Therefore, it is important to take into account the simplest rules in order to avoid danger:

• If your machine is purchased, then it is important to check all components of the device for serviceability.
• Before work, it is necessary to tighten all clothes so that a hanging jacket does not stick out, a belt or lace does not dangle, etc.
• When working with a purchased or homemade machine, you need to purchase safety glasses and thick gloves that will be comfortable to work in.
• Check the condition of the installation fasteners to ensure that everything is tight and nothing is loose.
• All workpieces must be placed near the machine so that it is convenient to pick them up with your hands.
• Ensure sufficient lighting in the workplace.
• The workplace must be cleared and have free passage within a radius of one meter.
• The frame must be grounded if an electric drive is present.
• If you work with electricity, it is strictly necessary to have a rubber mat at your workplace.
• It is unacceptable to put various materials into the machine that are not intended for this work.

When these rules are followed, you don't have to worry about your safety.

Advice: Due to the fact that the work will be carried out with iron, it is imperative to protect access to the machine from children and not leave the workplace unattended! Also, always be on your guard, as metal is an unpredictable thing!

Video

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