Cheap easy sheet metal break

[bigmuddy]

Can anybody point me to an easy cheap sheet metal break I can make at home. I got one peice to break and don't want to spend the money right now. I would like to get a nice sharp line but at this point will take what I can get.

thanks ben

 

[Tgure]

I used my vice and a hammer to make several pieces. If you have to make a long bend you could probably get by with a few pieces of angle iron and come c clamps. ;D

 

[66halfdone]

Po Man's Brake

I learned this trick from an A/C duct installer, which is of course uses lighter gauge sheet metal. But I think will work for body work. He welded two pieces of 48" angle on the ends to form a "T",
with a gap large enough for the sheet metal. This would be clamped into a vise and used to form the angles he wanted. He used the bottom of the "T" to form angles that were less than 90 degrees. Good luck.
Are you still in Missouri or have you moved South?

 

[craigaria]

I used to do a lot of flashing work when I built sunrooms. Depending on how thick the sheet metal is, this might work... We would use a level for a straight edge and score that line with a razor knife 3 or 4 times with a lot of pressure. Then step on the level and pull the metal up to bend it. It would always bend perfectly. The metal we were using was 1/16" thick. Hope this helps. Craig

 

[Paco]

My brother-in-law and I built a 24"x24"x36" cargo box for our motorhome using some angle iron and vise grips/C-clamps.

 

[Ryans71]

For light gage material that need straight brakes, I've used the door & door jamb. Just stick it through the hinge side of the door. When you slowly close the door the material is bent by the corner of the door and is "coined" into the jamb. May need to be tweaked as the this doesn't allow it to flex past 90 degrees to make up for springback.

For small pieces I use my vise.

Ryan.