Looking for a method to flatten the ends of 3/4" thin wall EMT without splitting the sides of the fold. I have a suitable bench vise and appropriately sized hammers. I do not have access to a press. I understand it's helpful to position the weld accordingly but the weld is not visible in this EMT. Both the bench vice and hammers flatten the EMT easily but split the sides more often than not. Any advice would be greatly appreciated. There must be a trick that someone knows?

Just so you know, EMT is no substitute for structural tube. It WILL fail under stress: IE, your cracking problem.

I have seen too many projects fail catastrophically because of it, to recommend it for anything other than its intended use.

If you are going to use it, put a round plug in the end to support the walls, and drill and bolt thru that.

And if you love your life and lungs, don't heat it or weld it, galvy fumes are no joke.

If you absolutely must have flat ends, go buy structural tube and flatten that.

Welcome aboard Sailin'... have you read this yet?  READ THIS FIRST   It will help in getting the best out of the forum and staying off the moderators radar.

As an Electrician, I've spent most of my time with EMT trying very hard not to flatten it!  John is right about it being a poor choice for structural uses. I suspect it's a bit like rebar in that there is no specific steel alloy required in it's specification, there are only performance based criteria.  The NEC defines the minimum bending radius for every size of conduit so there's absolutely no reason for manufacturers to use steels that would hold up to the strain of tighter bends.  That being said, I've never noticed any difference in the bending characteristics of different conduit manufacturers. I will say that freezing cold conduit doesn't like to bend as easily as room temperature conduit.

 

 

Greetings Salin,

      John said it all. Take heed. 
 

     Forge on and make beautiful things 

Jim