fingers for a brake

[moose]

I know a box/pan brake is not truely a shaping tool but we all need to fold an edge once in a while. Anyway I recently acquired a Roper Whitney 16 ga 48 inch box pan brake. It is a nice strong unit. The only issue is a few of the fingers appear to have been dropped. There is a bend on a corner. i have attaced a pic showing the damage. What would be the best method to fix them?fingers.jpg

moose

[Marty Comstock]

They have likely been flame hardened to some degree, if it were me, I'd mig weld the corner and file the ol girl back to square.

No, I lie. If it were actually me, I wouldn't bother much with it, use it as is.

Marty

[Warpspeed]

Agree with Marty. If a sharp bit is sticking out that may mark the job, grind or file it off. A missing bit right at the very corner is not going to make much practical difference.

[John Buchtenkirch]

I also agree with post #2 and #3. Many times you will not have the exact width of fingers you need so you will have to leave a little space between the fingers to get the exact total width of fingers, it’s rarely a problem. You can always bend a 18 or 20 gauge nose cap over the fingers to span the gaps and re-adjust your setback for fussy jobs on softer metals like copper & aluminum. Another trick is you can stack 2 or 3 nose caps if you want your bend to have a softer radius. Whitney brakes are great for radius bends, my 6 footer will be sold when I’m dead & buried . ~ John Buchtenkirch

P.S. It’s true that brakes aren’t true shaping equipment but every professional shaping shop has at least one and usually several so I certainly don’t see them as off subject. There’s tricks to using them that should be passed along. A final point is sometimes you can make better (easier, faster) money doing a simple bending job which can’t be a bad thing .

[HEATNBEAT]

Whitney brakes are great for radius bends, my 6 footer will be sold when I’m dead & buried . ~ John Buchtenkirch

I"ll be waiting for the estate sale, and be first inline

[mmacmmac]

if it were me , i would put that 1 on the end.... we have a 4 ft 10ga chicago at the shop. that thing is older than the hills and went through alot. the nicks dont show on the material at all.