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Post by wisconsinjoe on Nov 25, 2021 5:46:03 GMT -8
I understand that modern skin brake patterns are created by subjecting sheet aluminum to a roller that presses lines into the metal. Is that how it was done back in the day these trailers were created.
Because I used heavy 40 mil sheet, I used a metal fabricating brake tool. Or is it called "break?"
Please educate me
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Post by Teachndad on Nov 25, 2021 5:57:53 GMT -8
Hi Joe, Larry created this video of how skin brakes are made today I will assume that this was how they did it back then, but I could be wrong. I am only making an assumption. Maybe someone knows for sure. Cheers, Rod |
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WhitneyK
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Post by WhitneyK on Nov 25, 2021 8:55:08 GMT -8
I understand that modern skin brake patterns are created by subjecting sheet aluminum to a roller that presses lines into the metal. Is that how it was done back in the day these trailers were created. I'm guessing that's how it was done "back in the day". Roll forming has been around for a looooooong time. Fast, efficient, and those don't appear to be "new" machines. It's probably one of those old processes that "if it's not broke, don't fix it" scenarios. Plus, it's not a high demand machine so there would be no benefit on trying to "improve" it. (there's nothing new under the sun) Just my opinion, didn't say it was a good one... Whitney |
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Post by wisconsinjoe on Nov 25, 2021 18:47:18 GMT -8
Rod,
I think I saw Larry's video. That's what made me wonder if they always were made that way. For my scratch build 40 mil skins, I fabricated with a 10 foot brake (...or break?)
Great holiday avatar
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Post by vikx on Nov 25, 2021 21:18:04 GMT -8
BRAKES
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nccamper
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Post by nccamper on Nov 26, 2021 5:25:16 GMT -8
I vaguely remember an old photo of the brake being done by hand. Their brake was longer and had an open jaw. The Home Depot rental brake I used is actually made (mostly) for gutters...  Hand brake-Home depot rental
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sawset
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Post by sawset on Jan 23, 2022 5:26:36 GMT -8
The first "job" I had was working in a sheetmetal shop for a local HVAC contractor. The owner had inherited the shop through several generations. There were several new powered machines for doing fab work, but there was also a large inventory of late 1800s-1900s equipment. A lot of the specialty work for ducting and metal roofing was done on those old machines. One of them was a roller seamer. It had adjustable roll bands, and a fence for adjusting where on the pc the bands were to be placed. Think of the reinforcing beads on old galvanized pails and containers etc. It was too small to use on a 3ftwide sheet, but I would guess there were larger similar ones for that. For large sheets, we had the 8ft folding brake.
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chriss
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Post by chriss on Jan 23, 2022 8:46:38 GMT -8
There's the roller or extruded method where the coil is fed through one end and the pattern is formed parallel to the direction of the feed. The advantage is you can make any length panel you want, until the coil runs out. They use this for high production runs and the most common you see for RV siding, metal roofing, and rain gutters.
The other method is the brake method. Seems best for custom or low production runs. That's what I remember from Larry's video. Disadvantage is speed and panel length is limited to the length of the brake, but there are long brakes available.
Another method is the panels are cut to length and fed transversely through the rollers with the brake pattern formed parallel into the roller. The rollers stamp rather than roll the pattern and the brake pattern comes out perpendicular to the feed direction. The distance between patterns depends on circumference of the rollers or how many patterns are tooled into the rollers. Disadvantage is panel length limited to roller length.
I'm not a sheetmetal guy, so hope some of this makes sense.
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forkzilla
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Post by forkzilla on Jan 23, 2022 17:55:10 GMT -8
I found a place with a 21’ brake used to make accessories for steel sided pole barns. They bent my 13’ siding including the S joints very reasonably. By the way, my new siding is made of the same steel used to make pole barn siding, before it was run thru the forming mill. It is 43” wide and worked nicely. My trailer gained only 61 lbs using steel.
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WhitneyK
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Post by WhitneyK on Jan 24, 2022 19:13:33 GMT -8
I found a place with a 21’ brake used to make accessories for steel sided pole barns. They bent my 13’ siding including the S joints very reasonably. By the way, my new siding is made of the same steel used to make pole barn siding, before it was run thru the forming mill. It is 43” wide and worked nicely. My trailer gained only 61 lbs using steel. I always wondered about that.  Should make it rigid. Assuming you went with the thinner gauge? What did you do for the roof? |
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mobiltec
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Post by mobiltec on Feb 1, 2022 8:17:04 GMT -8
Back in the day, small companies started by making their own brakes using a hand brake. And in many cases it was a 6 or 8 foot brake which is why you see vertical seams on smaller 15 foot trailers when they are in the early 50s. When some of the companies got larger they bought their material from a supply company who ran their stock through the roller form machines like the ones used by Hemet Valley RV and Siding. I have videos showing all the different types of brakes and seams including roofs and how it is all made.
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forkzilla
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Post by forkzilla on Feb 3, 2022 3:41:58 GMT -8
Whitney, the gauge they use to make ribbed steel barn siding is .015, and it is tougher than aluminum. I used the old aluminum roof.
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/Campers/67%20Shasta?preview=2019-02-03+18.01.00.jpg)
Should make it rigid. Assuming you went with the thinner gauge?
