DIY Sheet Metal Bending Brake: No Welding
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- čas přidán 19. 09. 2016
- I decided to make a homemade sheet metal folder to bend thin metal for fabrication projects. It was simple and cheap to make and it was built with no welder.
Here is everything I used in this build:
(x1) 1/8" x 1.5" x 1.5" x 4' Steel Angle
(x1) 1/8" x 2" x 3' Steel Plate
(x1) 1/2" x 3' Steel Box
(x1) 3/4" x 2.5" x 6' Dimensioned Board
(x2) Hinges
(x6) 1" x 5/16" Cap Screws
(x6) 5/16" Lock Nuts
(x10) 1" Drywall Screws
(x2) 5/16" Wing Nuts
(x2) 5/16" Washers
(x2) 5/16" x 2.5" Carriage Bolts
(x4) #10 x 1" Flat Head Machine Screws
(x4) #10 Nuts
Wood Glue
Spray Paint Primer
Blue Spray Paint
Music:
Severe Tire Damage Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com)
Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0 License
creativecommons.org/licenses/b...
My Tools & Gear (These links are using my Amazon Affiliates account so I get a small commission if you use them. You pay the same price and help support these videos at the same time. Thanks!):
Camera: amzn.to/2d3bKA0
Microphone: amzn.to/2dcMp3e
Small Tripod: amzn.to/2dtkpKo
Big Tripod: amzn.to/2cZXJph
Hacksaw (Similar to mine): amzn.to/2cFbir7
Drill: amzn.to/2d3aL2V
Miter Saw: amzn.to/2dlP0c2
Circular Saw: amzn.to/2d3bZLd
Sander: amzn.to/2dcN3Oz
Vacuum: amzn.to/2cZXURu
Rotary Tool (A newer version of mine): amzn.to/2dtlAcN
Forstner Bits (A larger set, same brand): amzn.to/2dtkldf
Drill Bits (I have a cheaper set, but I like these): amzn.to/2cZXvhY
Metal File (Similar to mine): amzn.to/2cWxCMC
Box Wrenches: amzn.to/2dlQZxd
Allen Keys (Like mine): amzn.to/2dvSImY - Jak na to + styl
I know I didn't demonstrate the use of this brake very much in this video. Believe me when I say I've used it plenty in my videos since then, which you should check out on my channel - the sled ones are my current favorites!
Nice brake but no welding!! Welding with my powerimig is one of my most favorite pastimes! LOL
makjosher maybe one of these days when you get out into the real world and use some equipment you will finally put your shoes on and wear some gloves and safety glasses. You just need to stay at home and let your mommy and daddy change your diapers to you get old enough to wear shoes and then when they say you can go outside don't forget to put your gloves on to.
Lose the gay music
@@ronaldshepard4625 Who pissed in your beer ?
Hey man , how deep should the slot be in correlation with the hinge ? As deep as the radius of the hinge ?
I'm impressed with how you made this on your patio, with limited tools. Great job!
Thanks! It isn't ideal, but the challenge is fun.
Patio?
Gotta give him credit. If he had better tools he would be dangerous.
Thanks for the video. Living at a place where I dont have a garage or outdoor area for my projects, I work in my kitchen. Currently, I have a TIG welder chiller that I put a new pump, added an electric fan and aluminum shroud that is sitting on my kitchen counter top. To do any kind of electric grinding, I have a favorite 3' x 3' x 3' cardboard box that catches any flying debris. Spritz it with water and it wont catch fire. Do what you gotta do.
Wow! I feel like I'm working in a fully equipped machine shop now that I hear about your setup. Way to go though! Most people would be surprised at what can be done in a kitchen.
I do some of my shop work in my kitchen. The light is better, it's warm, and it's not as crowded with junk as the garage. But the table saw stays in the garage, or driveway when the rain stops.
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I’m impressed. As a fabricator my first thought was “where’s the grinder??” But to make cuts like that without one. I give you props!!
Thanks!
Finally a metal bending brake that requires no welding. I know you did a lot of hard work sawing the metal. I really like your work of using just normal tools and parts and not having to buy all these expensive equipment to do what you did by hand. I already was thinking of the angle iron as the pivot stop but you showed me how to make it work. Thanks.
Thanks! I’m glad you found it helpful.
Gotta give you your Props!!! You built the hell out of it with a hand powered saw. And it's very neat. Took pride in your work.
I admire your determination... love the hacksaw.... reminds me of old times.
Thanks! It really wasn't as bad as I imaged it would be - just took some time. Plus, you get some exercise in there as well.
I enjoyed that , it was good to see your doggedness in getting it done despite the initial mistakes, and the manual tools ,it reminded me of when I was young and we never had battery power tools
Props for all the hand cutting with a hacksaw. A person with that much ambition gets me to subscribe!
Thanks man! I'm glad you liked it and I guess the hacksawing does pay off in more than one way.
Very well done.
I Like To Make Stuff sure is a handy channel to get ideas from.
WOW!!! You have a LOT of patience to build that!!!
You sir are a beast, that is dedication cutting all of that with a hacksaw by hand, my hat is off to you. Nice work!
Haha. Thanks man!
Great video😀
Welding with my powerarc is half the fun! I love your design.
Thanks! Someday I want to get better at welding.
Great job - the guys gettin it done with what he has and some ingenuity
Thanks.
Respect to you for speaking the truth.
The type of materials you used would surely bend cardboard and nothing else
i admire how you work with the tools you have. Your projects are in reach of more DIYers including students. i think you are a better engineer than many guys with fancy equipment. keep up the great work!
Thanks man! That means a lot. I really just want to inspire others to make things and show them that they don't need lots of fancy tools either.
Any aspiring entreprenuer should watch this. His determination is exactly what is needed to succeed. Now, if he were to only discover a jig saw. He's good!
Very good! Thank you for sharing!
Thanks and you’re welcome!
I love this vid😍 it's amazing! My digital literacy teacher was write
Awesome vid. Was looking for different techniques on making a sheet metal brake, will be building one this week albeit a bit more elaborate.
What struck home with me is the meager amount of tools you used to construct your project. It reminded me of me at your age. I would set out and build anything with just about nothing. I love seeing the Can-Do attitude!
Of course now I'm 52 and have two garages full of tools plus a 600 sq/ft loft in one of the garages just for hobbies... Well, some would say it's all hobby area.
Rock on.
Thanks man! Your loft is about the size of our entire apartment. Although, since I use the entire apartment for my hobbies, I suppose we're pretty even there :-) Oh, and good luck on the brake. In the year since I've built mine I've used it many more times than I ever expected. Super useful tool!
What a great video DIY the metal brake, just need some simple tools as a hack saw and a drill. Anyone in the world after watching your video, they can do it.
Thank you for useful video.
I'm lucky I have access to a 10' brake since I'm a sheet metal worker but this is really cool for smaller projects. I've always wanted (for home) is a 4' pan/box finger brake for my own projects.
I'm glad you like it - especially coming from someone who works with metal a lot. Thanks!
Very good job.
Thanks Tom!
I knew those old HD hinges would come in handy. Thanks.
Haha. You are welcome!
Very fine man 👌👌👍
thanks for posting this. Will watch it again before I attempt to make my own. Will grab some angle iron as people are throwing out old bed frames in their trash around here all the time. Also see people pushing shopping carts with aluminum sheet headed to the local metal recycling place........can make some good deals on aluminum sheet there along the road (old signs, computer boxes, fixtures etc.)
Yea, I should look into using recycled stuff more. It can get kinda pricy using new parts all the time. I'm glad you found the video helpful though!
Props for not whipping out an angle grinder for those cuts! Nicely done and much cleaner than I can achieve with an angle grinder cut off wheel.
Edit - I know this video is old, but at the end you only showed the finished product really quickly.. the only critique I have, otherwise thank you so much for this idea, I'll probably follow this video very soon.
good job man
Good video except for drywall screws. Deckmate with a T25 is probably a much better choice.
Well done!
Thanks!
Salute you ...really , you want to learn people how to make the brake . Thank you very much
impressive works !
Thanks!
I am seriously impressed how straight you can cut with an unsecured vice. Good work, thanks for the vid.
Thank you. What I did was create a partial cut with the Dremel, which was followed up by the hacksaw. This kept the hacksaw tracking straight, plus there was less metal to cut :-)
I'm impressed.....you didn't scratch your watch !
Thanks. No, I haven't yet. You just have to be mindful that it's there.
Very Cool Mak, you are inventive and creative!
Thank you!
Wow amazing 👍👍
Not knocking you Brother NICE JOB you did a great job for the tools you have to work with, you would be dangerous with more tools keep up the good work my hat is off to you !
Thank you! I do have a few quite dangerous tools though...
with or without a better workbench, its his ideas that counts. good video my friend.
Thanks! I appreciate the kind words.
Nice one.if iwanna band the metal 180 degree.this one it works.
You did a great job and have fantastic problem solving skills. I love the way you showed how to work through snags along the way. Will consider making this for myself, thanks :)
Thanks! I'm glad to have inspired you :-)
THANK YOU FOR SHARING VERY WELL EXPLAINED ....NICE QUALITY VIDEO BY THE WAY ...BEST REGARDS
Thank you Archi!
man your are genius, its much difficult to do such things without power tools, I have them all except welder, you just persuaded me to subscribe, good luck
Thanks man! The funny thing is, sometimes I find that I use hand tools over power tools (which I have some more now) due to the hand tools being more accurate. I'm glad my powers of persuasion are working :-)
a hacksaw! determination, respect
Brilliant Sir!
Thank!
painful watching this without a grinder but credit to you for your great hacking skills and patience
Wow that's impressive, you make that build with tools that most do have or can bye for nearly nothing. Thanks for sharing:-)
Thanks :-)
nice and simple
Thanks Carl
When I get the bed iron rail I'm gonna do one, this way I don't spent only on the hinges :)
very good & nice
Thanks Nelson!
Would this be able to bend a small piece of 1/8" Aluminum plate/sheet?
"No welding"? More like "No bandsaw, no power sander, no angle grinder, no drill press"!! LOL, as much as I was watching this yelling at my screen, "get a drill press at least!" I have to say this is very impressive to build with nothing more than a hacksaw, hand drill, and a dremel. Amazing!!
Hahaha. Very true. Thank you for the kind words!
I really like your Instructables article with this video, so I popped over here to subscribe, click like, and say thanks. :-)
Thanks! That really means a lot to know you enjoy it. :-D
This is great-I need to bend stainless steel to create a backsplash for a gas range and this is exactly the tool to do it! Do you have a web site with the final instructions?
You had my like this video at "No Welding"
Haha. Thanks Justin!
Yeah, if I need something welded, I need to schedule it with my Burner friend, get her to schedule it with someone who has the equipment, give her a ride to her friend's place, and treat her to lunch or beers or whatever. The lunch and beers are cool, but all the scheduling is complicated.
I was looking for a metal sheet bender project and this is the first DIY one that does not need a whole machine shop to be done! Great job!
What have you bent so far? Will it take 2mm aluminum and steel?
It's been 2y since the video, how does it stood the test of time?
Thanks!
Josh
A great little project!! and a great video on the build. I see you are in the Lehigh valley. Me too. Keep it up!
Thanks! That I am, practically neighbors as far as the internet goes :-)
Pa?
You could add a small round piece of steel to the end of the moving bender arm & then fix a piece of flat plastic sheet with degrees of angles marked on it at the end as well. Now the moving piece of round steel acts as a needle against the fixed plastic background giving you a visual bending gauge to help with bending all angles?
I like this idea! Gauges are the best!
I was kind of looking for the dimensions or how long you cut the steel for the hinges and the slot very nice video😊
Well done for primarily using hand tools rather than industrial machinery.
Thanks! It wasn't my first choice to do it this way, but you have to use what you have.
lovely version I do nit have a welder so its really usefull
Brilliant, shows what can be done with the minimum of tools. We all do not own or have machine shops.
Thanks Tony! We do not.
I may be wrong... but at first glance you made that a lot more complicated than it needed to be... but I am not thinking clearly at the moment. I will come back to this tomorrow and take a closer look.
Now you have me curious. I always try to keep things as simple as possible, but I know they aren't always.
I honestly don't know... I have looked at some other videos of other people making a "home made" brake press... but so far yours seems the easiest to make... Especially considering that I like most people do not weld. I think I may have to research this one a little more and figure out if I can simplify it or not. But I will for sure at some point be making my own version because I agree with you... trying to bend metal in a vice using a hammer just doesn't work well. Thanks for starting point though... great video.
wow! The Last Metal Bender ;) :P
Haha. True ;-)
nice!!
I'm also a fabricator myself. I'm pretty impressed with your finished product! You wouldn't catch me cutting steel with a hack saw! lol. one thing I would add to your brake. Put some springs under the top gauge that ride on the carrier bolts. Open up the holes another size up and finish it off with wing nuts. This will make your life a whole lot easier for the extra $3 bucks.
oh yea. subscribed 😉
That's a good idea! I was thinking of doing that, but at the time I didn't find any springs. It was only really sticky the first few times I took the angle off as I needed to clear the paint out of the holes.
Would this be enough to bend 1/8" 5052 aluminum sheet/plate?
hey this is an awesome idea! I was wondering what you think would be the maximum thickness of aluminium this could bend, I am trying to bend 5mm thick aluminum thats 3/16 inches, thanks in advance
My gut feeling is that what I've built would probably not work too well for anything thicker than 1/8" aluminum. That being said, if you were to use thicker pieces of angle and more robust handles you could probably do it. From my experience, thick aluminum can also be difficult to bend as it tends to crack, but that also depends on the alloy you are using.
EXCELENTE APORTE GRACIAS DESDE ECUADOR
Gracias!
Awesome!!
Thanks!!
Damn bruh take care of those fingers with the hacksaw, neat work, keep it up.
I think you deserve alot of credit for doing such a neat job the hard way ,the very hard way ,the vise mounted to a small table perhaps and as others have said an angle grinder, would mean that you will be able to make a few more things before your time on earth runs out,no offence meant
nice video man
So helpful and technically you save my life. lol
Haha. Thanks :-)
Great job considering you used hand tools (with exception of the electric drill). Personally it's all Everlast plasma cutter and welder LOL.
Cool. Thanks.
I'm glad you like it :-)
you really wanted to make this brake... :)
A very nice job. I'm impressed! How many hacksaw blades, haha? One word of advice, never drag your file back across the metal, you're just dulling it. Just push and pick it up for the next stroke. Low budget and well made!!
Thanks Tom! I think it was just one blade for all of it. Point taken. My dad taught me that as well, but often I get lazy with my filing.
Tom Payne is right "it only files on your upstroke" - you're twice as much work! lol
Thanks from my side too, never gave that much thought lol
Also, buy good blades. I bought 2 Starrett 24Ts ($6.99?) a decade ago and haven't killed either yet. A good blade means you don't have to put any downforce on the hacksaw, either. Night and day difference.
I agree , I could tell from the sound of the blade cutting that it was either dull or a cheap blade or both
Buena la idea para construir una dobladora de lamina, voy a arreglar una que construí, utilizando tu idea, fácil de entender.
¡Gracias y buena suerte!
My god. Hats off to ya bud. You got hella determination to use a HACKSAW & FILE. Finished product looked nice and clean too. Ive got like 3 angle grinders if you'll pay for shipping I'll send you one. For the cost of shipping though you could buy one at a pawn shop. You won't be as tired at the end of the day. Nice work tho
love it! subd!
Thanks :-)
interesting vedio. your method is different from all weld metal one, the wood made it possible.
Neat video. Amazing what you can get done with basic hand and power tools if you're careful. But is was sort of painful watching you cut the metal with a hack saw.
Haha. It was kinda painful doing it too.
Welding with my everlast welder is most of the fun! I like your video anyway as it is a fresh look at making a project. Thank you
I love your videos. You, my friend, need a drill press and a work bench with clamps to prevent your work from moving around while your making your cuts. Love your work.
Thank you! I'm glad you enjoy them. I do need them. The work bench is in progress, and I do have plans for making a drill press at some point soon.
Yeah that's the first thing I thought when I saw you work. That scrap of whatever it is that you're using is one rough looking workbench. Did you find that washed up one day while you were beachcombing? I thought my first workbench was meager. But you got me beat by a mile there.
It has gotten progressively worse with time. One day I needed something to work on to protect our deck from errant drill holes. So I grabbed a cheap piece of particle board and screwed some 1x1's onto the bottom of it. Eventually I knelt on it one to many times and it started breaking up all over the place. It's pretty much a mess at this point.
makjosher
you think? I can't imagine it was ever very much to begin with. A saw horse would be more substantial. Then at least you could stand up like a gentleman next to it. The Japanese work on the floor like you do. If they use a saw horse it is only a few inches high.
The light colored saw horse on the right in this picture is pretty sturdy, and the top is a bit to work on. i.imgur.com/jO4JV.jpg It is a pretty neat design. I was going to put other braces between the legs, below that vertical piece, but it was so sturdy without them that I never even bothered.
I want to make myself a new workbench someday. But for now the one I have is getting me by. i.imgur.com/VannV.jpg
Years ago Craftsman(Sears) had a "benchtop workmate" - would make your life & projects much easier and it's very portable. Have to find pics - I use mine for "everything"! Probably make/buy 1 for almost nothing!
Parabéns ! muito bem explicado pois, mesmo sem eu entender sua língua, consegui entender como faço esse acessório.
Muito obrigado!
Nice.👍
Thanks Mike!
I see many of these and everyone can only show making something for really thin gauge metal. like for 22-24gauge and aluminum flashing or maybe only foil lol.
If one would use heavier hardware and really stout material it could handle 18 or 16ga plate with a long handle. how long is the glue and wood screws going to last?
I’ve already run into instances where I want this thing to be heavier. Two years in everything is still holding up well.
I'm impressed with the DeWalt and SnapOn gear. Less impressed with your low profile 'workbench'. :-) Great video and work though. Subscribed.
im exhausted just watching him cut..lol
Hi. Compliments on a great build, especially since you used hand-tools. Talk about perseverance!
Just one safety hint: please don’t use bare fingers for removing metal swarf and filings. They can embed themselves in your skin. Use a brush instead.
Thanks for sharing.
Good design! I was just asking myself how will I bend this chimney flashing without buying a metal brake $$
Thanks! I'm sure it would work great for that!
dude, spend $30 on an HF angle grinder and some cut-off disks
Point taken. I have since gotten an angle grinder, but I need another steel-intensive project like this to put it to good use.
I was kinda thinking that too, but gotta hand it to him, he makes nice straight cuts with a hacksaw. (most people wouldn't ,haha)
I use my grinder for more than just slicing steel! They have sanding discs and masonry blades. Grinders are very much worth the money. Looked like a good project to practice your measuring and planning skills but for the cost of time and supplies...totally would have bought a store made brake. I'm sure it was still satisfying to make your own though. I made my own heavy duty lumber rack for my truck and it was fun...but damn I should've just bought one with all the work it took!
I love to cut that kind of steel with a hacksaw myself :)
I saw the Dremel (or similar tool) for a small cut to accommodate the hacksaw, and wondered why not do the whole cut with the Dremel. Those little cutoff discs cut just about anything, and I'm better with them than a hacksaw.
Make it, sell it to me! Grandma here needs one ...
A reciprocating saw would have been very handy.
Great video. I noticed every cut was toward your hand that was holding the material. Still have all your fingers? But really, nice no-weld method for a brake
Thank you! Yes I do still have them all. :-)
My wife's middle school shop teacher started his talk about table saw safety by holding up his hands and inviting students to count his fingers. Eight of them.
Dude, you're killing me with all that hack saw hand work. $40 harbor freight portaband saw. Loud as hell but worth it.
Haha. Except, I have this rule that I only like quality tools. Not always the wisest rule I suppose.
makjosher Me too. But right tool for the job and all... I got lucky with mine. Only thought I'd use it for one job but I've had it for years now and it's still chooching. I'm the guy why buys knipex pliers, but I just hurt inside watching you do that. Of course, before my portaband I did the same kind of stuff. If you can afford it, get a good one. I made a stand for mine, you could too. Make it one of your videos...
I'll see your rule, and raise you one Harbor Freight heavy duty mill/drill. It'd have ate a pocket into that angle iron like it was chewing on crackers. You wouldn't even know how to act with one of them. I have a vintage horizontal vertical bandsaw from HF too. I've cut rail road track in half with it. Good luck hacksawing through that!
I was about to say I can buy a metal brake at harbor freight or Eastwood for about the same cost. To each their own.
Kevin Kuhn
Harbor Freight's 30" brake looks to be about $230 on their website. On sale, with a coupon, I suppose it could be had for less. Still a chunk of change though.
Someone buy this man a cut off wheel
How to calculate the brake steel thickness vs the object tickness? What mm brake steel thickness if i got 5mm object?
Is it possible to bend metal sheet with any thinkness bcoz there may have a problem after rotate the hinge if the other part of the sheet metal is fixed tightly in the other side
You are correct. I would only go up to 1/16” (1.5mm) thick normally. However, you may be able to go a bit thicker with aluminum.
I'm watching this video because my digital literacy teacher told me about the channel and I like it
+Teagan thank you! I see know my mother-in-law 😀
I seldomly write any comments on the DIY videos, but I feel you have won at least MY THUMBS UP. VERY GOOD it is unique. Apart from a original presentación your metal brake is neat, specially for wood workers none welders. I normally tackel a wide range and all sorts of projects but it is hard to master them all. Thank you again, I am now subscribe to your channel. One question, Anything real of grid energy production apart from solar cells?
Thank you!! I'm glad you appreciate it. Honestly, I've been kinda overwhelmed at the response on this video! I don't have any more energy videos currently planned, but that isn't to say I won't revisit it in the future. The research center that I work at has traditionally worked with coal plants, so I should do some videos on that someday as I know plenty about them. Once again, thanks for the kind words!
Josh I am curious...I watched your video and I get how you built it, but have you tried to bend something more than cardboard with it? It seems a bit pointless to bend cardboard with a brake to me, and to that you could butter toast with a chainsaw....lol....but that got me wondering is your brake could handle sheet metal like the sheets of steel they sell at Home Depot!! Personally I want to build a similar brake to your design to make my own computer server case out of the sheet metal I just mentioned and I wonder how your brake would hold up to bending something like that which I think is 22 to 18 gauge sheets of steel?
Hi Brian. You are very right about it being overkill for cardboard. :-) I've used it on up to 16 gauge aluminum and it works very well - bends super easy and square. I believe it would work for 18 to 22 gauge steel as well, but I have yet to test it. If you are worried about it being strong enough I would just build it out of a thicker gauge angle - although that does make everything a bit more difficult to make. I wish I had a better answer for you, but I don't think I'll have the time to try out some thicker steel for the next couple weeks at least.
Well like I say I am looking at bending steel that is 18 to 22 gauge stuff myself (which is about what they make computer cases out of). So I am not looking at bending anything 16 gauge or thicker like old body steel with it! But steel is a bit harder to bend than aluminum! I did take notes on your materials list and I think instead of using 1/8 inch angle iron I might in fact use 1/4 inch thick steel to build mine to handle the abuse!!! But it you do get your hands on some thin steel I would be curious to see how it bends that as well, before I assemble mine! Thankfully though my son has a welder so I have one advantage there you don't, but for myself I can't weld so I will have to have him weld it for me!!! LOL!! Thank you again for your brilliant video just the same though!!!!