Which steel bends easily?

[sheepherder]

Olle, I have a similar project on the shelf but it's been sitting because my 1-ton press isn't strong enough. What did you use to press/bend the rod through the first set of dies [pg 2]???

[Olle]

Originally Posted by sheepherder

Olle, I have a similar project on the shelf but it's been sitting because my 1-ton press isn't strong enough. What did you use to press/bend the rod through the first set of dies [pg 2]???

I just used a large bench vise. I don't know how much pressure it generates, but (even if it has been a while) I can't recall it being extremely hard to turn the handle. There was quite a bit of initial resistance, but once the rod started to bend it just slid right through. IIRC, there was a bit of trial and error before I had the clearances figured out, there's a fine line between getting sharp bends and not being able to push through at all. The only major difference the clearance makes is in the radius, so if you add clearance you will probably have to reduce the radius of the "ram" as well. The loop will spring back and won't be 100% square after pressing it anyway, so the legs will have to be squared up after pressing regardless of clearance.

Beveling sharp edges and polishing the bearing surfaces really helped more than anything, so that's something you might want to try first of all (if you haven't already). Some copper grease might also help.