Bending Stainless Steel

You need a good vice and a big hammer. It won't fracture. How long is the bend?
3mm SS is tough stuff, especially if the strip is more than a very few inches wide.
Edit; 15 mm should be OK.
 
You have to heat it up until cherry red.

I have just had my old 25mm propshaft turned into a "U" by the local blacksmith to make a mount for my cruising chute (see an older thread by me). They heated it up and then it bent to a U with 200m diameter - though even then it was not easy!
 
You'll get a load of workhardening, even of you get it to 90 degrees without breaking it, which will leave it very prone to cracking. I shall have a think how to mitigate or avoid the workhardening.
 
If you heat it you will stuff up the finish if it is bright polished. You will also risk carbide precipitation which will cause the s/steel to rust. The longer the steel soaks at "cherry red" heat the more carbide precipitation will occur. You should be able to bend that thickness of bar easily in a vice without any special precautions. I'd be surprised if you have any problems, but if you do hear are some tips:

1) Put a magnet against the steel before bending. If it don't stick the steel hasn't been previously work hardened so no problem should be experienced

2) if the edges of the bar are square and sharp (e.i. if it was lasercut or similar), then linish them to round it off. The idea is to remove a sharp edge that could initialise a crack

3) Clamp the steel in the vice against a steel (mild or stainless) rod of say 3 to 5 mm diameter. This will let you bend it around a radius which will help it to resist cracking.
 
ReefMagnet said:
If you heat it you will stuff up the finish if it is bright polished. You will also risk carbide precipitation which will cause the s/steel to rust. The longer the steel soaks at "cherry red" heat the more carbide precipitation will occur. You should be able to bend that thickness of bar easily in a vice without any special precautions. I'd be surprised if you have any problems, but if you do hear are some tips:

1) Put a magnet against the steel before bending. If it don't stick the steel hasn't been previously work hardened so no problem should be experienced

2) if the edges of the bar are square and sharp (e.i. if it was lasercut or similar), then linish them to round it off. The idea is to remove a sharp edge that could initialise a crack

3) Clamp the steel in the vice against a steel (mild or stainless) rod of say 3 to 5 mm diameter. This will let you bend it around a radius which will help it to resist cracking.
Click to expand...


Excellent helpful contribution.
All stuff that I for one hadn't known and will try to remember.
 
Bending without hardening

The more you hammer the steel the more it will work harden, so use a largish hammer so that to attain the most deformation with each blow at the same time as you pull around the end if if has some length.
Also make sure that the face of your hammer is smooth and blemish free, because the stainless steel is initially a softer metal than steel and can be marked easily.
Working with stainless has to be done in positive and confident manner in which case it is easily worked. If you are timid and 'play' with it, it will harden and resist.
 
gus said:
The more you hammer the steel the more it will work harden, so use a largish hammer so that to attain the most deformation with each blow at the same time as you pull around the end if if has some length.
Also make sure that the face of your hammer is smooth and blemish free, because the stainless steel is initially a softer metal than steel and can be marked easily.
Working with stainless has to be done in positive and confident manner in which case it is easily worked. If you are timid and 'play' with it, it will harden and resist.
Click to expand...

With that thickness of metal you can put a piece of hardwood over the steel and hit it with the hammer.This way there won't be compression of the metal by the hammer and you'll get a lot less work hardening .A lead hammer would be even better.
 
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