section bender

BENDING ALUMINUM TUBING

Profile bending machine can bend most all aluminum structural shapes. Structural shapes can be rolled in to rings for many uses, the corrosion resistance as well as its strength-to-weight ratio make aluminum rings very useful. Many sports and entertainment arenas use curved aluminum for its light weight and strength when making curved supports for overhead signage, display boards, and monitors.

Description

Profile bending machine can bend most all aluminum structural shapes. Structural shapes can be rolled in to rings for many uses, the corrosion resistance as well as its strength-to-weight ratio make aluminum rings very useful. Many sports and entertainment arenas use curved aluminum for its light weight and strength when making curved supports for overhead signage, display boards, and monitors.

Curving or rolling aluminum can be a little bit more difficult than curving or rolling normal carbon steel. If the operator is not familiar with the tendencies of aluminum, the material can crack or become deformed.

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Further reading：Working with Curved Aluminum

Further reading：10 Things Everyone Should Know About Curved Steel

Aluminum is available in varying grades and tempers, and must undergo state-of-the-art processes to avoid cracking, work hardening, or collapsing at the bend.

Some types of aluminum are popular for decorative and ornamental use, while other alloyed grades deliver heavy-duty durability for industrial applications.

Benefits of Aluminum for Rolling & Bending

Aluminum is available in varying grades and tempers, and must undergo state-of-the-art processes to avoid cracking, work hardening, or collapsing at the bend. For your peace of mind, our team has specialized experience working with aluminum profiles in order to preserve their strength and appearance. After bending or rolling, each bent aluminum product goes through our stringent quality control process to assure its integrity.

Some types of aluminum are popular for decorative and ornamental use, while other alloyed grades deliver heavy-duty durability for industrial applications. Features and benefits of aluminum grades include:

Weldability

Ductility & formability

Strength & fatigue resistance

High conductivity

Lightweight construction

Rust & corrosion resistance

Attractive design characteristics

Hygienic for food- and hospital-grade use

Sustainability & recyclability

Aluminum Bending & Rolling Applications

Applications

Condenser tubes & HVAC equipment

Transportation equipment

Electronics

Food & pharmaceutical processing

Aerospace & aircraft manufacturing

Commercial lighting fixtures

Signage & displays

Difference between 6061-t6 and 6063-t52

Although there are many different grades and tempers of aluminum, two of the most frequently worked with are 6061-T6 and 6063-T52.

6061-T6

6061-T6 has great formability, weldability and corrosion resistance. It has a tensile strength no more than 18,000 psi (125 MPa), and a maximum yield strength of no more than 8,000 psi (55MPa). One of the reasons that 6061-T6 is the most commonly worked with is that it can be elongated approximately 25-30% before it fails. While 6061-T6 has great qualities to work with, these qualities are most prevalent when the material is “fresh”. One of the unique qualities about aluminum is that it precipitation hardens, or in other words it age hardens. Precipitation hardening (age hardening) is a technique used to amplify yield strength of malleable materials. This process is also used on nickel, titanium and some stainless steels. Sometimes, aluminum has encountered too much hardening and must be heat-treated or stress relieved to adjust the formability. Included with this blog are photos of an example of how proper stress relief can take a tube that could not be rolled into one which rolls beautifully.

6063-T52

6063-T52 has generally good mechanical properties as well, and it is heat treated and easily welded. It has a tensile strength of at least 20,000 psi (152 MPa) and a yield strength of no more than 14,000 psi (110 MPa). Unlike the 25-30% elongation that 6061 presents, 6063-T52 can only be elongated 8%. The unique qualities of 6063 make its useful for architectural and ornamental applications.

What tempers are best for bending aluminium?

This is an important question when buying material as the temper can greatly affect the outcome of the bending process. Using the correct temper for the job can reduce work time and costs over the course of a project.

We would suggest using the 6XXX series for bending as the grade has been very successful during bending trials over many years.

Harder or stiffer sections will often call for more tooling, time and effort to get the curves within dimensional tolerance.

Another aspect affected by the alloy and temper is the minimum radius. Some alloys are more forgiving during the bending process while some will be more prone to breaking or cracking. This means that stiffer sections are often limited with how tight each bend can be.