Aluminum Sheet Metal Forming

This series is one of the most preferable for forming applications.

Aluminum sheet metal forming.

The sheet metal takes the form of the design cut into the die. If i could give one bit of advice to those forming aluminum it would be to limit extensive stretching in small areas. This series has the addition of silicon thus lowering the melting point and for this reason it is used entirely for manufacturing welding wire. This forming process is commonly used for manufacturing fences catwalks platforms grating etc.

Follow along as i demonstrate how you can begin shaping metal with hand tools only. In both sheet metal is sunk or pressed into a die. Aluminum sheets and bars the most widely used aluminum 6061 is fabricated into everything from pipe fittings and containers to automotive and aerospace parts. Usually a diamond shaped mesh is preferred as it has a structural advantage over other shapes.

Aluminum strains locally meaning that it has poor stretch distribution as well as poor elasticity. How can you go about shaping metal with hand tools alone. Series 4xxx are the aluminum silicon alloys. Material bend radii and minimum bend size charts.

It is strong and corrosion resistant plus it s easy to machine and weld. Item 168753 model 11786. The four most common aluminium grades available as sheet metal are 1100 h14 3003 h14 5052 h32 and 6061 t6. They exhibit a very good combination of high strength resistance to corrosion formability and good weldability.

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. Hydraulic die forming is quicker and lends itself more to duplicating formed art or other production. The face and head are made of aluminum bronze that is factory mutual approved so these tools inhibit sparking resist corrosion and are nonmagnetic. Most general use aluminum alloys have elongation percentages ranging from 10 percent up to perhaps 25 percent.

Use the domed end of the head for forming soft metal rounding off edges and closing rivets. Aluminum or aluminium in british english is also a popular metal used in sheet metal due to its flexibility wide range of options cost effectiveness and other properties. In this metal forming process a sheet of metal is passed through perforating scissors where it is cut and stretched into a pattern.