bending metal

heat helps... careful, alum melts easy and also likes to snap... what are you doing... options ?

heat helps... careful, alum melts easy and also likes to snap... what are you doing... options ?

I'm trying to bend on "leg" of some light weight right angle aluminum to use as track guides I had some made of plastic but they proved to be very brittle. It is very thin, like a bit thicker than a tin can but 8 feet long.

there is a tool called a shrinker, small tool, 6" x 6", 20" handle, bolts to your bench... it makes ripples tapering from zero at the center to max at the outer edge absorbing lenth as the metal is bent...
crimp slow... any reputable sheet metal shop will do that pretty cheap....
..... this will not leave a smooth surface on the vertical leg...
...
maybe tin snip the vertical leg every 1" ... no...
more like snipping it every... 3", 2", 1", 1", 1",TC, 1", 1", 1", 2", 3" ...
TC = transition's center... should make a fairly smooth transition... duct tape the vertical leg when happy with the fit...
... stroll on !

there is a tool called a shrinker, small tool, 6" x 6", 20" handle, bolts to your bench... it makes ripples tapering from zero at the center to max at the outer edge absorbing lenth as the metal is bent...
crimp slow... any reputable sheet metal shop will do that pretty cheap....
..... this will not leave a smooth surface on the vertical leg...
...
maybe tin snip the vertical leg every 1" ... no...
more like snipping it every... 3", 2", 1", 1", 1",TC, 1", 1", 1", 2", 3" ...
TC = transition's center... should make a fairly smooth transition... duct tape the vertical leg when happy with the fit...
... stroll on !

Okay sounds simple...... I will try.

A small tube bender or metal spring will do small diameter tubing.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w9GOBXdK11g

A lot of the big box home improvement places have conduit benders in house now for bigger pieces.

We also used to pack the smaller tubing with sand and hand bend them.