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Thread: Sheet Metal Folder WIP
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17th Oct 2020, 01:33 PM #76Diamond Member
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Ah I thought this was built using the simso plans for some reason, which is around 600mm.
Just having a look at some of the photos, it looks massive.
I think I will settle for the 600mm version.
Yours will come in handy for bending some thicker sections though.
If I had a large enough shed I would buy an old piece of iron and restore that, I wouldn't have the patience to build something like that.
I think you did well building it in the timeframe you did.
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18th Oct 2020, 07:58 AM #77Most Valued Member
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Hi Vc,
Thanks but its taken me much longer than it should. Its been a constant source of embarrassment for me because of how long its taken. I think I've learnt not to post WIP threads because it shows everyone how slow I am at making stuff!
Some of the parts were down 2 or 3 times before I was happy with the result!
I think a 600mm folder would be a more realistic size, even for me.
Thing is, with a bigger folder, such as this one at 1220mm, if its not made strong enough where it needs it, it will end up weaker and producing inferior results than a properly made 600mm folder.
Simon
Sent from my SM-G970F using TapatalkGirl, I don't wanna know about your mild-mannered alter ego or anything like that." I mean, you tell me you're, uh, super-mega-ultra-lightning babe? That's all right with me. I'm good. I'm good.
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18th Oct 2020, 09:44 AM #78Most Valued Member
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Doesn’t really matter how big your machine is, the job you want to do will always be 10mm bigger.
Crack on with it Simon, you’ve got the bulk of the fiddly stuff done. Might not seem like much fun now but you’ll certainly get a return on investment once you have it finished.
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18th Oct 2020, 11:28 AM #79Most Valued Member
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Thanks tadpole.
Yea I've come too far for it to just sit half finished in corner of the shed.
I still have a fair amount of welding to do. The last pic shows everything test fitted together. Im very happy with the alignment of all the critical components.
Ill have to be very careful with the welding to avoid too much heat and avoid lots of warping otherwise it will revert into a boat anchor!
Simon
Sent from my SM-G970F using TapatalkGirl, I don't wanna know about your mild-mannered alter ego or anything like that." I mean, you tell me you're, uh, super-mega-ultra-lightning babe? That's all right with me. I'm good. I'm good.
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22nd Dec 2020, 08:28 AM #80Most Valued Member
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Done a bit more on this project.
Made a start on the fingers. I currently have 900mm of the 1200mm required.
The fingers are mainly 75mm wide although I'm hoping to cut two down and make a couple of 25mm and 50mm fingers. The last 300mm will be made up of a 100mm and a 200mm finger.
These ones are made from 20mm Bohler M200 which I bought from scrap metal at $1 per kg.
Surface grinding to final dimension took for ever because I cut them into pieces BEFORE milling the scale off and then had no way to mount them on the mill!
Simon
Sent from my SM-G970F using TapatalkGirl, I don't wanna know about your mild-mannered alter ego or anything like that." I mean, you tell me you're, uh, super-mega-ultra-lightning babe? That's all right with me. I'm good. I'm good.
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22nd Dec 2020, 08:35 AM #81Most Valued Member
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I'd like to ask a question about these fingers if I may;
Currently these fingers finish to a 45 degree point and are sharp. Im not really interested in putting a radius on each finger but I think I should at least take the edge off.
Would grinding 10 thou off the edge be the go or is that too much?
Simon
Sent from my SM-G970F using TapatalkGirl, I don't wanna know about your mild-mannered alter ego or anything like that." I mean, you tell me you're, uh, super-mega-ultra-lightning babe? That's all right with me. I'm good. I'm good.
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22nd Dec 2020, 09:56 AM #82Most Valued Member
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You cant hold 75mm on the mill?
Couldn't have clamped it to the table and taken the middle 50mm out?
That depends.
If you are only folding 1mm MS or less and aren't building rockets you'll be fine.
I think in a perfect world you really want minimum radius = materiel thickness. But you can fudge that a little with setting the fingers back and dropping the leaf. You can even use another piece of folded material to give you the radius.
Aluminium is less forgiving of tight radius.(some alloys will damn near snap with a small radius)
Tight radius can make matching a welded corner to a folded corner easier.
Tight radius increases the force required substantially.
Tight radius means less or no need for fold allowance.
Having typed all that I realise that's not the question you asked lol To late you've read it now.
I cant see 10 thou being an issue, but 10 thou bisecting the angle or so that it is vertical when mounted?
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22nd Dec 2020, 10:52 AM #83Most Valued Member
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Hi Stu,
No I can't hold 75mm wide piece in my mill and mill the entire surface in one go.
The question was not in relation to the actual fold radius. I can do that by sliding the top beam back or by lowering the leaf.
The question was more about protecting the edge of the fingers from damage and/or preventing me from slicing my fingers on a knife edge if I don't need to be a knife edge.
PS. I want to build rockets.
Simon
Sent from my SM-G970F using TapatalkGirl, I don't wanna know about your mild-mannered alter ego or anything like that." I mean, you tell me you're, uh, super-mega-ultra-lightning babe? That's all right with me. I'm good. I'm good.
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22nd Dec 2020, 04:40 PM #84Philomath in training
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I'd knock the sharp edge off. A quick wipe with an angle grinder is probably all that is needed - just something to not cut you (or the material).
Michael
(PS - not tempted to take the width down to 900mm to save some work?)
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22nd Dec 2020, 05:45 PM #85Most Valued Member
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Hi Michael,
Take to my hard work with an angle grinder? Maybe the done thing if you live in Adelaide!
You gotta try harder than that to wind me up these days michael!
Take the width down to 900mm? Based on my habbits over the last 50 years, i'm tipping it's gunna go something like this:
I'll finish the 900mm worth of fingers and finish the rest of the folder...... It will stay like that for another 5 years until I get a project that requires a 1000mm folder. I'll then make a 100mm finger. Stay like that for a few more years until I need a 1100mm folder and I'll make another 100mm finger.....................................
See the pattern forming here?
I think I'll knock 5 thou off with the oxy torch and see what it feels like and go from there.
SimonGirl, I don't wanna know about your mild-mannered alter ego or anything like that." I mean, you tell me you're, uh, super-mega-ultra-lightning babe? That's all right with me. I'm good. I'm good.
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22nd Dec 2020, 10:36 PM #86Most Valued Member
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23rd Dec 2020, 06:57 AM #87Most Valued Member
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What do you mean isn't that how all the commercially available pan brakes work?
https://www.machineryhouse.com.au/S255
I took 5 thou off last night and they still felt sharp, so I took 10 thou off and it seems like a good number. Just the sharp edge off.
Simon
Sent from my SM-G970F using TapatalkGirl, I don't wanna know about your mild-mannered alter ego or anything like that." I mean, you tell me you're, uh, super-mega-ultra-lightning babe? That's all right with me. I'm good. I'm good.
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23rd Dec 2020, 11:07 AM #88Most Valued Member
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Yes they have adjustments for material thickness and radius.
I've been out of this to long, I'm struggling to put a post together that makes sense. I think you'll find as you try and fold larger radii with a knife edge they go a little wonky. Folding thick material with a knife edge will likely damage it and/or mark the material.
What I was trying to get at with my first post is you really don't want to tight a radius so knocking the edge off shouldn't matter. Just that from memory if the tool just has a flat rather than a true radius the flat is vertical to the bed rather than bisecting the angle of the tool. But really, at 10 thou who's going to notice?
Clear as mud.
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23rd Dec 2020, 06:38 PM #89Most Valued Member
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Understand what your saying.
Thanks Stuart.
Starting working on the clampy bits that clamp the fingers to the beam.
Sent from my SM-G970F using TapatalkGirl, I don't wanna know about your mild-mannered alter ego or anything like that." I mean, you tell me you're, uh, super-mega-ultra-lightning babe? That's all right with me. I'm good. I'm good.
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14th Jan 2021, 05:21 PM #90Most Valued Member
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Nearing completion of this folder, thank goodness!
I have got better at making things whilst building this project and certain things done on it in the past annoy me because they are not as good as I would like.
However, I think I will just get it to "finished" and see what appetite I have to redo some things later.
The fingers and clamps are mostly done. Although I only have 900mm of the 1200mm fingers. I may at some point make 3 x 100mm fingers later.
The biggest challenge of all has been the alignment of the fingers, bottom beam and the leaf so that they all meet at the axis of rotation. Given that the finger beam can slide back and fourth (to allow for material thickness) and the leaf can slide up and down, these do allow for some wiggle room but they must still align in one of the planes when rotating.
With the top plate of the leaf tacked in place, I test fitted for alignment. Not entirely happy. It's out by and 0.3mm which looks like a huge amount!
I found some scrap stainless. About 500mm long and 1.6mm thick. Bloody hell, that was hard work folding that to 90 degrees! The folder managed it OK but it gave me an appreciation of the forces involved. Granted, I did it without a counter balance which would have helped.
Simon
Girl, I don't wanna know about your mild-mannered alter ego or anything like that." I mean, you tell me you're, uh, super-mega-ultra-lightning babe? That's all right with me. I'm good. I'm good.
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