Press brake tonnage

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I was looking at buying a press brake and wanted to know how many tons I need to bend 1/4"steel plate.
Reply:See if this helps. It should show how many tons per foot you need based on what dies you get.http://www.americanmachinetools.com/pressure_table.htm.No government ever voluntarily reduces itself in size. Government programs, once launched, never disappear. Actually, a government bureau is the nearest thing to eternal life we'll ever see on this earth! Ronald Reagan
Reply:Depends on how long the piece is and the shape of the dies.  I know that with my homade 20 ton press and brake, I am maxed out at 14" x 1/4" steel.My name's not Jim....
Reply:Thanks DSW.. I'll check it out.
Reply:Something to consider is how often you are going to be bending your 1/4 plate.  Make sure you purchase an machine with adequate reserve over your service tonnage.  If your calculations tell you that you need say 75  tons I suggest that a 100 ton machine will barely meet your requirements 8 hours a day.  I learned that there is a wide variation in yield strengths of plate.
Reply:Check out this web site  http://www.powerbrakedies.com/Click TONNAGE CHART on the left hand side.  This is the same chart I use every day in our shop.  It's a strain for our 60 ton press to break 48" of 1/4" with a 2" bottom die.  Looking at the chart it's 15.3 ton/ft...it works.  Be sure to look at the multiplication factors at the bottom of the chart, for example stainless steel you add 50%, 15.3 ton/ft + 50% = 22.95 ton/ft for 1/4" stainless.  Oh yeah, buy a brake larger than you think you'll ever need.  We only have the 60 ton, and I wish every week it was about 200.Hope it helps