Press-Brake Max Bendable Thickness
The thickest material a press can air-bend.
Example
You enter
- Available press tonnage (tons) 100
- V-die opening (in, ~8 x T) 0.5
- Bend length (ft) 4
- Ultimate tensile strength (ksi) 60
You get
- Max material thickness 0.147442
Details, formula, and sources
T = sqrt(tons x V / (575 x (UTS/60) x L)). A 100-ton press with a 0.5 in V-die over a 4 ft bend in mild steel tops out at ~0.147 in; stronger stainless drops to ~0.120 in. Air bending only - bottoming and coining need several times the tonnage. The die maker's chart governs.
T = sqrt( total_tons x V / (575 x (UTS/60) x L) ), the air-bend tonnage rule tons/ft = 575 x (UTS/60) x T^2 / V solved for the thickness; recommended die ~8 x T.
Press-brake air-bend tonnage formula (the 575 mild-steel constant) solved for the thickness, as published in press-brake tonnage charts / Machinery's Handbook, by name; empirical method.
Empirical air-bend rule, cited; the user supplies the geometry and may override the strength. Bottoming and coining run substantially higher.
Estimate. AHJ and licensed professional govern.
Field names used by the API: available_tonnage_tons, die_opening_in, bend_length_ft, uts_ksi, max_thickness_in
- Air bending the 575 rule is the air-bend form; bottoming and coining run several times higherpress-brake tonnage chart
- Die opening recommended V-die ~8 x T; a wider die lowers the tonnage and opens the radiuspress-brake practice