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I am contemplating making a set of end plates for the windshield posts. I plan on using 1/4-inch thick aluminum. I have never worked with aluminum so…how difficult is it to bend 6-inch x 12 inch aluminum stock, 1/4-inch thick? It’s either that or purchase 2 1/4-inch thick aluminum stock the same size as the 1/4-inch stock and mill it out to fit which would cost quite a bit.
Allen Caron
VW based 53MGTD - "MoneyPenny"
"If one thing matters, everything matters" - from the book The ShackAnnealing is the key. Don’t just clamp it in a vice and hammer it. Use heat.
There are also these handy dandy alumiweld rods for brazing parts together at low temperature. I’ve not tried them yet but plan to. Or maybe these Alumibond 3000s as demonstrated by Speedster Guy David Stroud. They may or may not be the same basic product…edsnova2013-07-16 20:11:48
Allen, a propane torch will work. I have done it many times. Heat up the piece (where the bend is to be) to as hot as the torch will allow first. Bend as much as possible with a jig or by hand. You can use a hammer but it will leave scars.
I’ve always read that you anneal aluminum by first turning the Oxygen off on your torch and then coat the metal with black soot. Then turn the oxygen back on and with a well spread blue flame, burn off the carbon. When the carbon is gone, so is the hardening of the metal. It rehardens when it gets hammered. this process can be done more than once. Read about the minimum bend radius here.
PMOSSBERG2013-07-17 09:00:38
My plan is to heat the piece at each of the four bends while in a vice and then bend it 90 degrees using a flat bladed pair of vise grips I have. Then I’ll see if it was worth the effort. If so, I may make a number of sets. I’ll just have to test and see.
Thanks for all the replies.Allen Caron
VW based 53MGTD - "MoneyPenny"
"If one thing matters, everything matters" - from the book The Shack
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