Teardrops n Tiny Travel Trailers

Has anybody made a jig to bend the aluminium angle to go around the radius of the profile? more to the point is one needed? I know about anealing etc.

I plan a flat board wide enough to have the tight radius cut in it, the ally is then clamped along the shorter straight edge and is teased around the radius by a wooden batten pivoted at the centre point of the radius that has 2 wheels, one to do the bending and the other to flatten it down.

Am I dreaming or do I need it?

I think what you describe can be done, but the construction of the unit would have to be very ridgid to take the forces involved. Don't think you can do it with wood. Harbor Freight makes stretcher/shrinkers that will form 1/16th inch thick al. angle well. See my album for a piece that I "bent". You do have to sand out the marks left by the tool.

Hope this helps,

Cheers

Gus

This is the jig I built to bend the trim for my doors after annealing the aluminum using a temp stick and mapp gas.



For the larger radii like on the front and hatch, it is probably just as easy to anneal the aluminum and bend directly on the trailer body.

Tonyj did it but only with a very small flange. I heated up al in the dark and you can see a dull glow when it gets hot enough. Can't do this in normal light. Easier than temp sticks or soot. You can see the glow and then just move the torch up the piece a bit.

Hope this helps.

Cheers,

Gus

cheers guys. Tony did you just tap the top board into the curved former to bend, thats how it looks to me, just need to be sure.

Mini Renegade wrote:cheers guys. Tony did you just tap the top board into the curved former to bend, thats how it looks to me, just need to be sure.

You got it.

After annealing, I installed the trim with an index mark to mark the center of the radius and matched it with the center line of the jig. Even after annealing the memory in that angle still makes it want to flatten out a bit, so the orange mallet helps with the convincing. Just a few smacks with the mallet usually did the trick. The jig did not guarantee the angle would be perpendicular or flat, so the short legs still required a little tune up to make them lay flat.

That jig was for 4 inch radius corners on the doors and door surround. I personally wouldn't try a radius any tighter than that. Any tighter and you would want to get your hands on a shrinker/stretcher.