Bending Terminology

Here are some diagrams and terms that you may find useful in helping to describe your product to us.

Arc - The degree of bend for the curved portion of an pipe, tube or beam.

Bevel - A type of end finishing for a pipe, tube or beam.

Centerline Radius (CR) - Distance from the center of curve to the centerline axis of the pipe, tube or beam. Abbreviated as CLR.

Cold Forming - Using cold shaping methods to bend a pipe or other object.

Degree - An increment of angle to form a bend above the plane of 0 degrees, to which the bend is formed (i.e. 10, degrees, 45 degrees, 90 degrees, 180 degrees, etc.) See Diagram

Easy Way (EZ) - Bending of a rectangular pipe, tube or beam along its shortest dimension of length.

Hard Way (HW) - Bending of a rectangular pipe, tube or beam along its thickest dimension of length.

I.D. - The Inside diameter of the pipe or tube.

Neutral Axis - The unbent portion of an object (pipe, tube or beam) that is neither compressed or under tension due to bend.

O.D. - The Outside diameter of a pipe, tube or beam in inches.Out of Plane - The deviation from a horizontal plane of rectangular object by a single bend, between its tangent points and the centerline of the bend.

Ovality - The distortion of pipe or tube from it's a circular shape caused by bending.

Material Grade - Manufacturers' specification of material for pipe, tube or beam material, (i.e. A53B, T304W SS).

Plain End - Square cuts made to a pipe, tube or beam prior to bending.

Roll Past - Degree or fraction of degree that a pipe, tube or beam is bent beyond a specified point.

Rough Cut - Pipe, tube or beam end cuts that are not required to be straight.

Square Cut - End cuts to a pipe, tube or beam that are square to the centerline of a bend after the bending process.

Tangent - The straight portion of material on either side of arc of a bend.

Tangent Point - A point where the bend of a pipe, tube or beam begins or ends.

Taper Bore - A milling or grinding out of the inside diameter of the end of a bend to create a tapered pipe or tube diameter.

Wall - The thickness in inches of the outside wall of a pipe or tube.

Wrinkles - Ribbed or wavy indentations in the inner bend angle of a bend of a pipe, tube or beam.