Bending materials
Bending plastics
A A machine with a heated element, used to heat and shape polymers. has a heated element that provides heat, concentrated to just a few millimetres wide, along the length of the long machine. These are used to heat polymers along this line so that they can be bent. Once the polymer softens, it will bend easily into shape around a A solid shape that is often used to make a mould. before being left to cool. It is a fast and easy process but can only form basic shapes. Heated polymers can be placed in a A tool used to hold a polymer in place until it has cooled. so that the bend produced is the same each time.
Bending metal
Metal A way to describe that a material is normally much thinner than it is long or wide., such as aluminium, steel and copper, can be bent using A tool used to aid the repetition of a process and/or to hold a work in place. with the metal clamped in place during bending. These examples can be bent in straight lines quite easily by hand or using a hammer.
