48" Press Brake Project

[BESRK]

Been talking about this pressbrake build for a couple years now. I finally have a break in the action where I can start moving forward on this.

Quick rundown of the specs.. 52" window width, 1/2" thick main frame sandwiched between 2 pieces of 1/4" for a total of 1" thick main frame.
Arms and shackles will be 2 laminated pieces of 3/8" for a 3/4" thickness. Same for the shackles.

5"x 14" Hydraulic Cylinder pushing on swingarms with about 3:1 ratio. This will push down on shackles that will increase downward pressure as the shackles get close to swinging "over-center".

Hydraulic System will consist of a 5hp motor, 2500psi pump and log splitter valve.

Not sure if I'm going to buy single dies or pick up a "4-way". The 4-way die would be nice but they're expensive.

I've got all the plate on hand already and plan to cut the main frame pieces this weekend.
Anyhow.. here's what I've got done in TM CAD so far.. since my table is a 4ftx8ft (and the bender is slightly longer than that), I make the upper right corner a "keyed" fit. It'll be scabbed over with 1/4" on either side.




Here's the Iriquois 48" Press Brake that I'm modelling mine after.









Edit:

Here is a list of the major stuff I purchased.. I may have missed a few small odds/ends.. nuts, bolts, fittings..etc.

2 Sheets of 1/2" (4x8).. $350 each
2 Sheets of 3/8" (4x8).. $320 each
2 Sheets of 1/4" (4x8).. $220 each
10ft of 1"x2" Flat Bar.. $50ish
4ft of 2.50"x.25" DOM.. $50ish? (had it laying around)
1ft of 2"x3/8" DOM.. $10ish? (had it laying around)
2ea 1 1/4" Heims.. $70 (fleaBay)
5"x14" Hydraulic Ram.. $350ish (bought it a while back)
5hp 220v1p Motor.. $380 (Northern)
Log Splitter Valve..$80
Stroke Control Valve.. $150
10gal Reservoir..110
Strainer..$20
13.6gpm Dual Stage Pump..$160
Couplers..$55
Filter Housing..$25
Pressure Gauge.. $12
Hydraulic Lines and misc fittings/adapters.. $350
1.5" ID Bronze Bushings (20).. $100ish
1.5" Pivot Pins (4140HT Ground/Polished).. $100
Bolts/Nuts.. $100ish
1.5" V-Die (48" length), 2" V-Die (36" Length), 48" Punch (up to 1/4").. $1530 shipped.
6" DRO.. $35

[kburd]

I hope this project goes well for you I am all hot and bothered over this project. I am ordering a x series 5x10 this comming week and will need to get a decent press up and going soon and on the cheap. Good luck and if it works out well for you I would be interested in buying the designs from you to cut on my unit

[BESRK]

A 5x10 would actually be better as it will allow more meat above/below the window. I think that would control deflection better. I was kind of limited with the 4'x8' material.. although I think this should work.

I've got some ideas for the back gauge too.. it's gonna use a "precision Acme thread" to run the backstop in/out. I'm thinking about using some spring loaded pins that will allow me to lock the backstop into frequently used positions for easy repitition.

Once I'm sure everything works and I'm not just slicing up 1000lbs of scrap, I'll be happy to share the DXF..

[pyrogeek]

this looks like it will be a really kool thread/project, please keep the updates coming.

[JohnC]

Awesome.

I forgot to mention, on the log splitter valve - I'd get the non-detent style. I bought the detent style and it got annoying really fast having to go ALL the way up. It's easy to remove the detent though if you want to.

[JohnC]

On the punch holder, you might consider making as a bunch of individual segments rather than a single long piece. This makes it a lot easier to change out tooling.

For the electric motor, Home Depot has a good 220V power switch. I think it was less than $10.

I also picked up 10 gallons of hydraulic fluid there. They had the best price of I think around $10 a gallon. It's back in the outdoor power tools section for log splitters.

Sorry for all the random comments, but I'm remembering things as I go!

[cobronco69]

going to turn out awesome. how much you selling the plans for?

[BESRK]

John.. feel free to plug away with the info.. every little bit helps. For the punch holder, I'm doing set screws along the bottom every 2". Those should allow me to add/remove segmented punches pretty easy.

Good info about that detent log splitter valve..

[Richie_Rich]

I'll be following along.
We have a large 10' brake, but it's old and is mechanical.
I'd like to have a smaller, more portable machine I can have a guy bring to his workstation and do smaller parts. I've got a project right now where I have a guy bending about 900 pieces of 1/2" plate about 7" wide.

[JohnC]

Originally Posted by BESRK

John.. feel free to plug away with the info.. every little bit helps. For the punch holder, I'm doing set screws along the bottom every 2". Those should allow me to add/remove segmented punches pretty easy.

Good info about that detent log splitter valve..

I was actually thinking to segment to upper punch holder.

[BESRK]

Originally Posted by JohnC

I was actually thinking to segment to upper punch holder.

Right... a typical punch has the 1/2" thick rib along the top. The main punch plate on my press is 1/2". The 2 punch holders will be 3/8" material and would clamp the punch in place. However, since the punch rib and the main plate are the same thickness.. the punch holders might allow the punch to slide out.

So.. I did a row of holes about 1/2" up from the bottom edge of the punch holders. Those holes will be drilled/tapped for set screws that will apply pressure to the punch to keep it in place. Small pieces of punch will be easy to add/remove by just loosening the set screws.

To change punches, I should just run the punch down into the "V" to apply pressure to it, tighten set screws and it should be good to go... I hope..


I actually cut the punch holders today along with the legs and the shackles. Tomorrow, I plan to cut the main frame pieces from the 1/2" and 1/4" plates.. I'll post pics tomorrow evening..

[BESRK]

Okay.. didn't get to the 1/4" plate today but I did finish the 1/2". First thing I had to do was figure out how to get it on the table.. a 4x8 sheet of 1/2" weighs about 640lbs or so. I wanted to use my little ghetto crane but it only has 3/8" hooks on the sling legs. Sooooo.. I made some bigger hooks out of the remaining 3/8" from yesterday..




Got the 1/2" sheet loaded and squared up on the table. Double checked the outer perimeter to make sure I wasn't gonna run the gantry off the track anywhere and then began to cut.

Although the plate was fairly flat, this happened when I finished cutting the punch plate out of the center of the sheet.. I think I can straighten it out though. I'm gonna use a bottle jack and chain to apply pressure and then weld on a piece of 1/4" on both sides to hold it in place.. we'll see how that works.



Since the main frame is longer than 8ft, I had to cut the hydraulic cylinder mount separate and will scab it in. Here's the "keyed" joint that I came up with. This joint will be welded and then scabbed over with the 1/4" plate.. pretty good fit.. just touched the corners with a flapper and it dropped right in place..

[BESRK]

Here's the shackles.. 2 pieces of 3/8" laminated together. The pivot tube will be 2.5"x 3/8" DOM. I'll bore the DOM on the lathe if the bushings (still haven't arrived) are tight.



Heres the bed supports. These will slide into slots on the main frame and then I'll lay a couple strips of 1"x2" flat bar on them as the bed for the lower die.




Here's the main frame center section hanging from the ghetto crane..


Plan for tomorrow morning is to get both main frame outer pieces cut from the 1/4". I may also dig thru my scraps and see if I can come up with enough 3/8" to cut all the arms. That should at least let me begin assembling the frame... welding a little on it each day..

[B.A.M.F]

Nice I can't wait to see finished I've thought about doing something like this but my table is just a 2x4 so it would be small.

[jays68yak]

interesting build

[redpim1]

Looks good I have been thinking of doing a 36" similar to this my self..


Oh yeah take off the slippers and put your work boots on...

[RelentlessTaco]

Subscribed to see how this pans out.
I could really use a press like this in my shop, and was thinking of trying to make one exactly like yours. I've seen one home built one similar to yours in a guy's shop and he bent a bunch of 1/4" plate on it, seemed to hold up good for being home built/engineered.
If you get this all together and it works well, interested in sharing or selling plans for personal use?

[BESRK]

Originally Posted by redpim1

Oh yeah take off the slippers and put your work boots on...

Yeah.. that's my son.. I bought him a pair of steel toed boots but he insists on wearing sandals all the time. It's gonna get too cold soon.

BAMF.. with a smaller table, you could do something similar to my little press brake. I used a 30ton Enerpac ram that pushes down on the press plate. It's only got a 10" wide window but it's great for small brackets.

[BESRK]

Here's the DXF of the 1/4" outer main frame plates with all the holes for rosette welding. I nested some other parts in there to maximize material. The blue piece is what I'm going to add to the main punch plate to try and straighten out that bow..

[BESRK]

We got the 1/4" main frame pieces cut today and did a little mocking up to see if my measurements came out okay..

Basically, I welded the leg pieces together and we "choker hitched" the main frame pieces together. We then dropped them onto the legs.. fit like a glove..



Dropped the Bed Supports into place..



I'm going to use 1"x2" flat bar as the "bed" for the dies to sit on. I dropped a couple of scrap pieces of 1x2 in place to check fit.. along with a small piece of lower die that I had laying around..


I'll slide the bed up a bit before I weld it in place. I want it flush with the 1/4" outer main frame pieces. That will leave a 1/2" wide slot the length of the bed for the dies to fit into..



The "X"s are for Rosette Welding the outer plates to the center. I cut a few holes in strategic place for bolts to help pull everything together nice and snug when I begin welding..


Running out of room..


Hope to get the arms cut this week and start welding some of the smaller pieces (arms and shackles) together.

[jatepper]

UNBELIEVABLE work Eddie! Top quality as usual!

[waynehartwig]

[bigtoy302]

Looks good except the bottom of the upper frame where you lower die is going to sit. There is not enough material under that to keep from bending. Look at the Iroquois it is a lot thick then yours. On my brake that part is 24" tall and 1.25" thick and it still flexes almost .030" at 50 tons. That does no sound like much but that is several degrees of bend you will be off.

If you run this at full tilt, 73 tons, this thing may yield. To bend 4 feet of 1/4" you need over 60 tons. I had to reinforce all my plates with 1/2" plates sandwiching the 1.25" for a total of 1.75" thick.

You run this through FEA?

I learned a lot building my brake like not running it through FEA until after it was done. It was right at yield on my sides plates.

[BESRK]

Originally Posted by bigtoy302

Looks good except the bottom of the upper frame where you lower die is going to sit. There is not enough material under that to keep from bending. Look at the Iroquois it is a lot thick then yours. On my brake that part is 24" tall and 1.25" thick and it still flexes almost .030" at 50 tons. That does no sound like much but that is several degrees of bend you will be off.

If you run this at full tilt, 73 tons, this thing may yield. To bend 4 feet of 1/4" you need over 60 tons. I had to reinforce all my plates with 1/2" plates sandwiching the 1.25" for a total of 1.75" thick.

You run this through FEA?

I learned a lot building my brake like not running it through FEA until after it was done. It was right at yield on my sides plates.

Yeah.. I was concerned about this. If it deflects (which it sounds like it will), I'll add more material to the bottom.

Isn't your brake an open "C" on either side? Were the "C"s deflecting up at full throttle? I'm hoping the "closed" frame will help but I guess we'll see. I don't mind picking up another sheet of 1/2", sandwiching the lower frame (for a total of 2" thickness) and extending it down to the upper leg brace. I'd like to push on it first to see though.

I actually don't plan to run a full 1/4" at 4ft (I say that now).. I'm looking at 4ft of 3/16" and probably 2-3 ft of 1/4".

[B.A.M.F]

Originally Posted by BESRK

BAMF.. with a smaller table, you could do something similar to my little press brake. I used a 30ton Enerpac ram that pushes down on the press plate. It's only got a 10" wide window but it's great for small brackets.

Yeah I was checking that out as well I think If I build a brake i will go for at least a 48" opening or smaller and just have my steel supplier cut the lager sheets for me. Looking forward to seeing this thing in action.