How to bend 1/4" plate into 18" radius?

[Danno1]

.



I thought these guys were closer to you but I guess not. We use them to fab parts for us at work. They do good work.


Southbridge Sheet Metal Works, Inc.



.

 

[Jesse masterson]

I would never ever cut into a propane tank,good way to push up() get my drift.

 

[ray66v]

A pipe line fabricator could possibly have a piece of pipe you could cut it out of, provided there is such a company in your area.

 

[sandman2234]

I mentioned stitch cut and weld in an earlier post. Thought it might have gotten overlooked, whereas pictures seem to get peoples attention.
Basically I laid out the lines where I wanted a bent, cut slots with a torch on the line, while never actually cutting the piece in two, just basically weakening it so that I could easily bend it. Bent it to the position I wanted, tack welded a piece to hold it in place, and went back and welded the slots I had cut in with a welder. Trying to heat and bend a piece this size would take a lot of pressure, or more heat than my rosebud torch would put out. If you stitch cut it, you end up only having to bend the small amount of metal you leave in between the cuts (3/4" in my case). I welded every other slot from the back side starting at the middle and working outward to prevent an excessive amount of movement "draw" as the welds cooled. I actually ended up with a very good replacement bucket for the pond scoop.(then I filled in all the cuts from both sides just to add strength and reduce places for water to hide)
David from jax

 

[sandman2234]

You say you used both torch and welder. Did you bend the angles using heat or did you cut and weld to get the angles?

see above post... David from jax

 

[sandman2234]

To get a true radius bend, it won't be easy. I bent some similar plate using a stitch cut and reweld, but that isn't a radius. Might be better to find a drop of 18" pipe and go from there. If you just have to use your plate I make consider farming it out. David from jax

Most people noticed the mistake of 18" pipe not being correct and missed the stitch cut and reweld that I mentioned.
David from jax

 

[sdkubota]

I would never ever cut into a propane tank,good way to push up() get my drift.

I have watched workers cutting gasoline lines with torches while gas was running out of the ends of pipe. A little would catch on fire and they would be like meh.... Surprisingly, nothing blew up over the course of 2days of this activity going non-stop. I have also watchjed gas company men smoke within a few feet of a ruptured natural gas line without concern. When I would ask they would say it has to be an exact combination of gas and air before it would ignite. It is amazing I have reached 53 years old.

 

[Jesse masterson]

I know it CAN be done , and people shoot themselves in the head and survive, I'd rather not go with the law of averages.some thing are better left alone,a few dollar savings dosent add up to taking that kind of risk, in my humble opinion.but that's just me.

 

[IslandTractor]

I would never ever cut into a propane tank,good way to push up() get my drift.

Remove valve, fill with water or blow out with compressed air before cutting. Not sure how that would be dangerous.

 

[sdkubota]

Remove valve, fill with water or blow out with compressed air before cutting. Not sure how that would be dangerous.

All you need is to remove/displace the oxygen. I have seen petroleum tanks purged using dry ice and by actually running a vehicles exhaust into the tank prior to cutting. Once the oxygen is gone...there is no risk of explosion.