How does one define a true sheet metal professional, and what does it take to become one in the various metal manufacturing sectors? Press brake guru Steve Benson provides insight and why it's important for metalworkers to never stop learning.

Las herramientas de cepillado y rectificado con precisión podrían verse parecidas cuando doblan, especialmente si las herramientas de cepillado están cortadas en tramos cortos. Sin embargo, si ve más a fondo encontrará lo diferentes que realmente son estas herramientas.

Press brake guru Steve Benson covers the sharp bend’s parabola as well as strategies for bending high-temper aluminum.

Bending guru Steve Benson works through a backlog of reader questions, where he addresses the k-factor and the role of material thickness when predicting an air-formed radius.

Modern press brakes and precision-ground tools are made with precision air forming in mind. If machine operators run into trouble, they should verify forming method and check the material.

Press brake guru Steve Benson catches up on reader emails to answer questions about hemming and bend calculations.

The press brake ram descends, the metal bends, the cycle repeats. It looks pretty straightforward to the uninitiated. But it’s not that simple, writes bending guru Steve Benson. Not by a long shot.

Bending guru Steve Benson shows what can happen when minimum flange lengths aren’t taken into account while designing for a press brake operation.

When press brake operators calculate the tonnage limit of a tool, they're finding the absolute tonnage limit. The forming tonnage a specific job requires should be less.

What’s the future of the bending craft? That depends on the nature of the press brake operating jobs. Will shops employ knowledgeable operators or disengaged button-pushers?

According to bending guru Steve Benson, common errors by a new press brake operator fall into four categories: paperwork, the machine, operational mistakes, and hand measurement tools.

Press brake guru Steve Benson gives readers a quick seven-question quiz on bending sheet metal and plate, covering everything from k-factors to springback. How do you think you will do?

Should a bending operation rely heavily on homemade tools? That depends, writes press brake guru Steve Benson. If made well and for the right application, homemade press brake tools can be very workable and as practical as factory-made tools.

Bending guru Steve Benson writes a letter to a rookie about the challenging, sometimes frustrating, but ultimately rewarding career of the press brake operator.

Modern press brakes are incredibly accurate and increasingly intelligent. But even modern machines don’t always account for every process variable.