Sheet bending machine - we make a manual bending machine with our own hands. Home workshop: homemade carpentry machines and equipment Which machine you can make yourself

Diverse plate bending operations are an important part general works construction or renovation own house. Without the use of special equipment, it is impossible to perform them qualitatively. For one-time bending of sheet blanks, it is permissible to rent a suitable fixture from a neighbor or acquaintance. But with frequent performance of such procedures, it is more expedient to have a manual sheet bending machine of your own manufacture at hand. If you have certain skills, tools and premises, making a homemade bending machine is not so false.

Preparation of terms of reference

Thanks to the capabilities of the Internet, you can quickly find the necessary set of drawings, and on the YouTube channel you can even watch promotional and informational videos about the device and the principle of operation of the required unit. However, all these materials are strictly individual, and therefore were intended by their authors for specific sheet-bending operations. Therefore, before building a sheet bender with your own hands, you need to do right choice his future specifications. The main ones should be:

maximum width of bent metal, mm;
the greatest thickness of the workpiece, mm;
desired range of bending angles;
overall dimensions of the mechanism (length, width, height);
required bending accuracy.

The direct choice of the limit values of the listed parameters depends on the conditions of use of the machine, which will bend sheet metal products. In particular, when constructing a roof, you will most likely have to deal with galvanized sheet or steel with a thickness of no more than 1 mm. In the processing of copper, more often is used even more thin sheet or a strip, and when making fences and railings with your own hands, on the contrary, the thickness of the metal can be 2 - 3 mm.

When choosing optimum width workpiece - sheet or strip - it should be assumed that the width of the part rarely exceeds 1000 mm (in last resort adjacent blanks can then be folded using the same machine).

The most difficult point terms of reference the choice of the optimal range of bending angles of metals is considered. If everything is clear with the upper limit - 180 °, then the lower value should be chosen very competently. A natural consequence of bending most sheet metals in a cold state is springback - a spontaneous decrease in the actual bending angle due to the elastic properties of the deformed metal. Springing depends on:

How to choose the kinematic scheme of the bending machine

The most accessible for do-it-yourself machines are machines in which sheet metal will be bent as a result of turning a movable traverse. The principle of operation of such a machine is as follows.

The workpiece to be bent is installed on the guide plane of the lower table of the machine and fixed on the stop, which is fixed on the support frame of the device (it is desirable to provide for the stop to be adjusted).

In the frame guides of the sheet bender, the upper traverse reciprocates, which, when moving downward, clamps the bent product with its ruler.

In front of the lower table is a swivel beam that can rotate around its axis. Turning can be done with a lever-operated handle, but a foot-operated version can be made. In the latter case, the operator's hands remain free, which facilitates the manipulation of the workpiece when it is pressed against the ruler of the upper traverse. In addition, with foot control of the bender, hands get tired less.

The set of bending tools on the upper and rotary beams can be changed. For this purpose, the easiest way is to order a set of punches and dies with the required bending radii, and standard seats. You will have to send all the details to the order - a ruler, clamp, etc. - which will require qualified milling work for their manufacture.

The bevel of the top beam will determine highest value the angle of the bend that the sheet metal can change its axis to.

In order to make such a unit with your own hands, you will need the following materials:

steel channel number from 6 and above;
set steel corners, intended for the manufacture of the support frame of the machine with their own hands;
thick-plate broadband steel, from which the rotary, upper and lower beams will be made;
fasteners in assortment;
a bar for the manufacture of a manual lever drive for turning the beam.

To facilitate the work, you can also use a bench vise, guides from a decommissioned lathe, as well as massive hinges from steel entrance doors.

By a similar principle, you can make a homemade sheet bender using wooden parts. He, however, can only bend aluminum and sheet steel(up to 1 mm thick), but in many cases these possibilities are quite enough, and the laboriousness of building a bending machine with your own hands will noticeably decrease. In particular, there is no need for welding operations. It should be noted that the working parts of such a machine should only be made of hardwood (pine, spruce are not suitable).

Having decided on the principle of operation of the sheet bender, you can also search for suitable drawings. However, a person with engineering education, will be able to make a set of drawings and independently. The advantage of this option is that a number of working drawings are quickly modified and processed for specific capabilities and source materials.

The drawings of the sheet bender must take into account the way it is installed. For small units, for example, the bending machine can be mobile or even portable. Otherwise, you will have to make a stable base using welding, otherwise the excessive mobility of the machine will reduce the accuracy of work on it.

When the machine is ready, it is necessary to check its performance and accuracy. To do this, bend a test strip of thick cardboard of the required thickness. If the bend is made correctly, then the height of the strip shelves will be the same, and there will be no traces of the deforming tool on its surface.

Forged metal products in any interior give color and look very aesthetically pleasing. But not every owner of a house or a summer residence wants to have standard solutions offered by the market. In addition, forged decorative elements are very expensive.

Hot forging requires serious skills, equipment and work space. The ideal solution to realize their design fantasies are devices for cold forging. Buying such machines is not affordable for everyone, but making a device on your own is not so difficult.

1 Advantages of cold forging

When processing metal in this way, it does not require heating. Therefore, no furnaces, temperature exposure, hot metal skills, special working areas, etc. are required. In addition, there is no danger of serious burns.

Cold Forging Tools include bending and pressing metal. Machines for performing these processes can be either electric (you will need an electric motor and a gearbox) or manual. They are easy to make with your own hands, to maintain. The design of the units themselves is absolutely elementary, but it is worth knowing that the manual forging process itself requires considerable effort from the worker.

Unlike decorative elements, obtained as a result of processing hot metal, the product of cold forging, if necessary, can always be redone. It unbends just as easily as it bends.

The method of creating decorative elements from metal without heating is very convenient when you need to make a lot of the same. In this case, it is made homemade device for a specific drawing with specific dimensions and template actions are performed.

The bending machine significantly saves time, effort and financial costs for the equipment of the premises and the very performance of metal processing work.

1.1 Purpose of the device

The device for cold forging allows you to perform absolutely all the work, performed by a blacksmith for processing hot metal. Hand tools perfectly cope with the production of such decorative elements as:

window bars;
constructive for handrails of stairs, benches, chairs;
legs, bylets and other elements of home furniture;
construction of various fences, gates, gates;
stands for flowers, fireplace grates, shelves and much more.

The cold forging process uses only soft metals such as aluminium, duralumin, steel, copper, brass, magnesium and nickel alloys.

1.2 Varieties of units

To create a decorative forged metal interior, you will need several types of parts. Among them are spiral rods, arcs, spirals, various sheet metal parts.

It is almost impossible to make a universal machine for cold forging with your own hands, therefore, to create each element you will have to make a separate device. These devices include the following units:

Gnutik. Allows you to make metal arcs, curved at a certain angle.
Snail. Such a device is intended for bending reinforcing and profile rods into a spiral.
Twister. Tool for bending the rod into a spiral along the axis.
Wave. A device designed to bend a reinforcing or profile bar into a wave element.
Ring. For making rings and ovals.
Press. A device for flattening metal products.
Hammer and anvil. Very useful universal tools to fix flaws.

All units designed to perform the above tasks can be either manual or electric.

For the latter to work, you need an electric motor and a gearbox. Electric machines, having an engine and a gearbox, perform work much faster and make the worker's life easier.

2 How to make a cold forging machine at home?

Making a machine of any of the above types with your own hands at home is very simple. This does not require any tricky tools or expensive mechanisms and materials. Everything you need for such a device can be found in almost any garage.

2.1 Materials and tools

Regardless of what kind of device you plan to make, you will need the following materials:

sheet metal 4-5 mm thick;
reinforcing bars, profile bars or profile pipe;
stable bed;
if we are going to make not a manual, but an electric bending machine, we will need a low-speed engine and a gearbox.

To organize the process of manufacturing a unit for cold forging, you need to stock up on the following tools:

grinder for cutting metal elements(in case of its absence, we use a metal file);
welding machine;
emery stone and sandpaper;
vise and pliers;
paper, pencil, marker;
tape measure or centimeter.

2.2 Manual machine "snail"

Spiral elements are most often used in creating a "forged" interior. So let's start looking at production process from the machine "snail".

A home-made electrical unit will require, in addition to the usual set of parts, to use an engine and a gearbox. The gearbox is used to reduce engine speed. But we will talk about this later. In the meantime, consider step by step how to make a manual device.

We also note that one machine can make spirals of different diameters, but this will require a removable snail. This can be achieved in two ways: one-piece metal removable circles with a welded volute, or one circle with removable parts of the spiral.

Homemade apparatus for cold forging is ready. You can lay a rod, fix it, rest against it with a bending barrel and go around until you get the desired product.

2.3 DIY cold forging machine 3 in 1 (video)

2.4 Electrical counterpart

The only difference is that the engine through the reduction gear must rotate the working circle. The bending barrel is welded directly to the circle without affecting the gearbox. Otherwise, the manufacturing principle of the unit is absolutely identical and the gearbox with an electric motor only complements it.

The electric drill is a compact, lightweight, easy-to-operate and transport machine. It is indispensable in the home workshop, in the garage and at the construction site. In addition to drilling operations, it can be adapted to perform turning, milling, grinding and other work. Many craftsmen create on the basis of a drill homemade machines and accessories for the home workshop. They are used in the garage for simple turning work on wood and metal.

Workshop Equipment

Not always with hand drill you can drill a precise hole. If such a need arises, use a stationary drilling machine. It is certainly accurate and safe, which is what you need when processing hard elements with a large diameter drill.

You rarely see such a machine in a garage or workshop, mainly because of the price, it is expensive, in addition, bulky, takes up a lot of space, and is rarely used. The drill on a tripod is a light, easy-to-transport design that will fulfill all the requirements for a bench-top drilling machine.

Stationary drilling device

A home-made machine based on a drill will provide high drilling accuracy in any conditions - it is installed on a workbench tabletop or on the floor. It consists of several elements. The main ones, of course, are the base and the column. The first part is responsible for the stability of the machine, installed on a flat surface. The second, in turn, allows you to smoothly and very accurately move the drill up and down while drilling.

The steel column does not deform even under the highest pressure to ensure the drilling is perpendicular. In addition to high accuracy, it is worth mentioning the safety of work. If the workpiece is securely fixed in a vise on the work table, then there is no risk of injury during drilling.

Drill-based desktop machine for precise drilling of holes in parts complex shapes, for example, round, oval, and also at an angle of 90 degrees. Can't do without it home master where the tool is not used intensively. For the manufacture of a desktop vertical drilling machine based on a drill, you can use ready-made racks or tripods. They are quite usable.

As the manufacturer guarantees, the vertical drilling stand will come in handy wherever there is a need to perform drilling operations during repairs. metal structures, wooden parts. The product is made of high-quality materials, provides stability and reliability of fastening, so that the work quality is good. This type of product is excellent for reducing the time to work.

In private garages you can find homemade machines, where tripods from photographic enlargers and overhead projectors, jacks and car steering racks are fitted as a stand for a drill suitable design. There are machines made entirely of wood. The drill is a universal mechanism with which you can design home-made woodworking machines.

Woodworking Machine

Using a drill as electric drive, you can assemble home-made machines and fixtures for the garage. For example, lathe on wood in a few days from a board and a handful of screws. No one makes drawings for the manufacture of machine tools, everything is created according to an invented project.

In addition to home-made drilling and turning equipment for a home workshop, you can make a wood milling machine with your own hands. For the drive, you can choose an electric drill or manual frezer.

Bed for grinder

The grinder, like the electric drill, quickly entered our lives and took the place of a universal tool. With it, you can cut pipes, sheet metal and rods, stone and tiles, grind and polish. She found wide application in a car service when repairing car bodies. For ease of use, you can make a cutting machine.

To make it cheaper and easier, they make it from wood. As in every machine, a base is made, the material can be chipboard size 400 x 400 x 20 millimeters. From below, to the plate with screws, attach the legs in the form of two rails 40 x 40 millimeters. Attach a bar 100 millimeters high and 50 millimeters thick to the top of the plate. Fastened to the bar with screws door hinge with long plate. The grinder is attached to the plate with a clamp. All, makeshift fixture for the home workshop, acting as cutting machine ready. For safe work, a machine vice is installed on the base.

Garage sharpener

Emery, electric grinder, grinding machine - this is the name of the tool, without which the workshop, private garage, car service cannot do. Sharpened the most necessary device for car repair, plumbing, tool sharpening, grinding metal surface crafts. It is not necessary to buy this useful mechanism; it is quite possible to get by with a homemade product based on an electric drill. First you need to choose a place on the table and use two wooden brackets 40 mm thick and two screws to fix the drill.

To stop a hand or tool, you need to make a handguard. To do this, you can use thick-layer plywood with a thickness of 20 millimeters. The handcuff is attached to the table, exposed under the emery wheel. In order for the chips to fall freely on the floor and to be able to use emery wheels of different diameters, a rectangular hole is cut out in the handpiece with a width slightly larger than the thickness of the abrasive tool. To adjust the handbrake to different height it is necessary to install a set of plywood plates, and fix with screws. Close the upper plane of the handbrake with a steel plate. Everything, useful power tool home ready for use.

Milling machines

There is an opinion among woodworking specialists that the router is the most essential tool for carpentry. It can even replace some power tools, such as circular saw, drill and even jointer. There are two main types of cutters:

submersible;
edging.

Submersible works as follows: the cutter is immersed in the material and moves along a given contour. The edge cutter does not allow the cutter to be immersed, its milling depth is set in advance and fixed. Power cutters are divided into three categories:

small from 500 to 1200 watts;
medium from 1100 to 1900 watts;
powerful from 1900 to 2400 watts.

Low power routers are light, compact, manoeuvrable, easy to use and allow you to perform all the tasks of a home workshop - this is the best choice for home. True, low power imposes its limitations. Device with a diameter of up to 32 millimeters, there are restrictions on the length. If you have to make boxes, frames, this machine is enough.

Using an electric drill or a milling cutter, you can make useful device for do-it-yourself power tools - milling table. Such a device is useful if you have to make profile wood products. For these purposes, you can adapt an ordinary table by reinforcing the countertop sheet metal two millimeters thick.

A milling cutter is attached to the tabletop under the table. A stop board is installed on the table, which moves under the set size and is fixed with clamping bolts. The cutter feed mechanism - an elevator, is made from a conventional car jack, which is installed on metal brackets under the table. Ready homemade pleasing to the eye.

By changing the cutters, you can perform various milling work. In general, the device is a professional wood router for the home workshop. It is convenient to choose grooves on it, mill a quarter on the frames, process the configuration of skirting boards.

An electric drill, a grinder, a hand mill are tools on the basis of which you can create fixtures and multifunctional machines that greatly facilitate the work of a home master.

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If you assemble a home-made lathe for metal with your own hands, you can get at your disposal functional equipment for metal processing without extra costs. For objectivity, consider not only the assembly process, but also current offers market finished products. The information below will help you make the right comparative analysis taking into account financial capabilities, professional skills and other personal characteristics.

High-quality homemade is in no way inferior to the factory counterpart

What can you do with a homemade lathe for metal with your own hands

To select the required accuracy of movement of the caliper, change the thread pitch of the lead screw. It is cut into strips screw cutting machine. To strengthen the structure, the joints are made using welding. Headstock cases are created from a channel (No. 12/14).

How to choose the right motor for your lathe

The project presented above is designed for the use of a power unit with a power of 450-600 W with a maximum speed of the working shaft - 2500-3500 rpm.

Such solutions are quite suitable if you choose an operating engine of sufficient power.

In order not to be mistaken, you can study examples of factory machines for metal, successful homemade products. Based on such a mini-study, it is easy to conclude the following proportions: for processing parts with a diameter of 8–12 cm and a length of 60–80 cm, electric motors with a power of 600–800 W are used. fit standard models asynchronous type with air cooling. Collector modifications are not recommended. They sharply increase the speed with a decrease in the load on the shaft, which will be unsafe. To prevent such situations, you will have to use a gearbox, which will complicate the design.

One advantage of the belt drive should be emphasized. It prevents direct mechanical action on the shaft from the tool in the transverse direction. This prolongs the life of the support bearings.

Expert point of view

Viktor Isakin

Specialist in the selection of tools for the retail network "220 Volt"

Ask a Question

"Electric motors direct current differ in large dimensions. But they can be connected according to a relatively simple scheme, which will provide smooth speed control.

Assembly order

This algorithm explains the sequence of actions when working with the above drawings. Using other design documentation implies making appropriate changes to the assembly process.

Starting with the front headstock. Install the spindle in it. Next, the entire assembly using bolting is connected to the running pipe. Preliminarily, threads are cut on the fastening parts. When performing this operation, the alignment of the parts is carefully controlled.

At the next stage, a power frame is assembled from the channels. When the frame is made, the headstock is installed on it. Here you also need to carefully control the parallelism of the running tube and the long parts of the frame. Mark up accurately. Holes are drilled sequentially with an additional reamer bore, checking each attachment point. One or two errors will not unduly compromise the strength of the channel, so it is better to make a new precise hole in a different place, if necessary.

Note! Do not forget to install spring steel washers, which ensure the reliability of bolted connections in high vibration conditions.

When assembling this assembly, special attention should be paid to the accuracy of the placement of the central axes of the spindle (1) and quill (2). If a mistake is made, conical surfaces will be obtained instead of cylindrical when machining workpieces. Also check the parallelism of these elements of the running pipe. The support bar (3) prevents the tailstock from turning. Steel spacers can be used for height adjustment.

The caliper parts are installed sequentially in accordance with the assembly drawing diagram. Here, particularly high accuracy is not needed, since numerous adjustments are provided. If heavy use is expected, make individual assemblies split so that wear parts can be replaced at no extra cost.

At the final stage, an electric motor is installed, connected to the mains according to the selected scheme. They check the functionality of the lathe for metal with their own hands in practice. For improvement appearance and corrosion protection, some parts are coated with a primer and paint.

How to make a lathe from a drill with your own hands

For , plastic, others soft materials the power of a typical household power tool is enough. This example shows how to make a functional machine with your own hands in 15-20 minutes. Via recent photos the table describes the creation of an improved design:

A photo	Assembly sequence with author's recommendations
	A serial drill was used as a basis. Processing of rather small preparations is supposed. For the bed, in this case, a sheet of plywood is selected, which is fixed on the table. Any other sufficiently strong and even base will do.
	It is necessary to securely fasten the power tool in a convenient position so as not to spoil it during operation. This problem can be solved with the use of an auxiliary body. It is made of thick plywood (20 mm), taking into account the appropriate overall dimensions.
	Separate parts of the structure are fastened with self-tapping screws. An element with a figured cutout is installed in the front part. This seat is created with a shape and dimensions that are suitable for mounting the protruding part of the solid body of the drill (marked with arrows).
	The base is screwed to the tabletop in right place. Power tools are installed inside. For rigid fixation, a clamp is used. As a support bar, a wooden plate is fixed nearby.
	The cutter can be made from an old file. A standard grinder is suitable for processing this workpiece.
	A strong steel bar is inserted into the cartridge. A piece of wood is screwed onto it.
	Next, check the performance of the machine.
	If the cutter removes a small thickness with each pass, it will be possible to process workpieces from fairly hard materials. Finish surface created using sandpaper.
	For processing larger workpieces, you can create a machine with a headstock and a tailstock. The photo shows the main elements of the structure. The power tool is fixed securely, but, if necessary, it can be removed for use for its intended purpose.
	A support with a metal insert (handguard) is installed here, which helps to accurately and accurately move the cutter.

Video: lathe in 15 minutes

Features of creating a lathe for metal with your own hands

The previous chapter talked about the simplest designs that will help you make a lathe from a drill using inexpensive improvised materials. In some cases, even detailed drawings will not be needed. This approach is sufficient when working with wooden blanks, when high accuracy is not needed.

Related article:

But it will not work if you need to create a metalworking lathe with your own hands. The video demonstrates not only the potential of high-quality equipment in this category, but also the tasks solved by the author of the project:

How can you independently upgrade a lathe

The drawings discussed above are a time-tested project. With their help, you can make a functional mini lathe for metal with your own hands. But some modern improvements will be appropriate:

The belt drive should be covered with a casing to prevent potential danger.
For an emergency shutdown of the power supply, a special button is installed in a conspicuous place (at a distance of close accessibility).
Instead of a grate, a protective screen made of a transparent polymer is used.
The incandescent lamp is changed to an economical, mechanically resistant LED lamp.
Automata (sensors, fuses) are installed in the power circuit of the electric motor, which prevent overheating and other emergencies.
The frame is mounted on damping pads, reducing the level of noise and vibration.
The driving chuck is changed to a more convenient three-jaw version, which automatically centers the workpiece during the clamping process.
Clamping in the grinding wheel chuck expands the possibilities of processing.

Note! To create quality milling machine with your own hands for metal, you need to apply other design solutions.

Features of work on homemade lathes

Mastering metal processing is a topic for a separate article. To obtain the desired result, take into account the viscosity and brittleness, other characteristics of the metal and working edges. The technology is optimized taking into account the speed of rotation of the workpiece, the temperature regime.

Metal lathe video (tips experienced craftsman):

Safety precautions when working with a homemade lathe and proper care

After assembly, it is necessary to make sure that there are no malfunctions before connecting to the network. Check the free rotation of the spindle, the absence of delays in the operation of drive mechanisms and extraneous noise. Accuracy is carefully controlled. It is necessary that the parameters of the power network correspond to the needs of the power unit in the mode of greatest power consumption, when turned on.

Before starting work, make sure that there is (serviceability) protective screens, casings. A new tool is installed with the motor stopped using all standard fasteners. Observe the processing modes corresponding to the parameters of the cutters and the workpiece.

After completion of work operations, waste is removed. Timely perform lubrication and other work provided for by the maintenance regulations.

Metal lathe market offers: varieties, prices, additional equipment

Brand / Model	Length* Width* Height, cm / Weight, kg	Power consumption, W	Price, rub.	Notes
Jet/ BD-3	503039/ 16	260	31500− 33400	Miniature metal lathe for the home workshop. Three-jaw chuck (50 mm). Turning diameter - up to 100 mm. Optional equipment with longitudinal feed.
Corvette/401	753331/ 36	500	45000− 48200	Maximum spindle speed (1100/2500 rpm). Workpiece dimensions: up to 180*300 mm.
Proxxon/ FD 150/E	361515/ 4,5	100	43800− 46100	Spindle speed (800-2800/1500-5000 rpm). Workpiece dimensions: up to 33*150 mm.
JET/ BD-7	873029/ 44	590	55200− 57600	Semi-professional metal lathe. Smooth adjustment of the spindle speed (100-3000 rpm). Threading gears as standard.
Kraton/ MML-01	69,53130,5/ 38	500	51300− 54600	Spindle speed - from 50 to 2500 rpm.

Equipment "Snail" for cold forging - mandatory hand tool any craftsman who makes forged products without heating the metal. "Snail" is designed for bending a metal bar during cold forging of metal. Making a "Snail" for cold forging with your own hands is not so difficult.

With the help of home-made cold forging machines, you can make a lot of openwork metal products. Forged fences, fences, gates, gates, railings, benches amaze with interesting outlines, rounded smooth lines. It is the curved forms of forged products that are made using a "snail" - a machine for cold forging metal.

The production of the “snail” tooling takes place in several stages.

In the next video, you can see how the craftsman made a home-made "snail" with his own hands, as well as how and what blanks can be made on such cold forging equipment.

This video features another interesting view a home-made "snail", on which it is convenient to bend forgings into curls and volutes. According to the master, "everything is made more convenient and easier on this machine."

The following video contains a drawing and description of the snail device and necessary materials for the manufacture of a bed and patterns for the production of forged curls.