electromagnet box and pan folders

[Shox Dr]

I've thought of a problem with one of these, if you were to fold a short piece of say Stainless as the top bar is pulled down it will bow, causing the fold to be bowed. Also the Gabro folds 1.2mm Steel @ full width, but as the width decreases the thickness you can fold can increase up to 5mmx25mm including

2mm x 300mm
3.2mm x 100mm


Until a few questions are answered and after further thinking I'll stick with my Gabro

 

[rtbcomp]

You could always put scraps the same thickness alongside your workpiece to keep the top bar straight, or use a shorter top bar.

 

[hotrodder]

^^ Scraps of the same thickness as the workpiece are mentioned in the manual/tips page although more specifically for times when the workpiece doesn't extend far enough into the machine to cover both poles of the magnet. I'm thinking bowing of the hold down bar shouldn't be a problem as clamping forces are (or should be) uniform along it's length

Bending a short section of thicker material is mentioned in the tips page too. From the milled hold down bar used for the 1/4" copper i'm thinking (at best) it won't be great for bending small brackets out of thicker material but there's other kit for that. I'm guessing they milled out a special hold down bar because the magnetic flux doesn't extend far enough to just use a short hold down bar and so stacking plates would lower the clamping force.

Always the same... ending up with several tools that do very similar things because they have a short coming or two.

 

[graffian]

Some of those hinge designs are pretty clever too, I might have a go at making some for the folder I build myself

The reason the magnabender caught my eye was the hinges. I made a pair
many years before I saw the magnabender, but realised without some more tools and time spent on them I wasn't going to get them to work nicely. I made a folder to bend up the interior panels of a car and the sills, the only scrap steel in the lengths I wanted that I could find was a fabrication of some sort made from 4x2 10 swg box. I made a folder and the top was a bit like a bridge, I used several[upto five] scissor jacks[it was ugly and awkward to use] to press a strip of steel down[the clamp]. It was the first folder I made and considering I had never seen one, it worked pretty well. I was going to make some mods to make it easier to use, inc multi hinges, but it was in the way, so I chopped it up and made a press and bead roller from it[recycling!!];-)