ASTM E290 describes the testing requirements used to determine the ductility of metals through bend testing. Bend testing helps provide a visual indication of the material's ductility. ASTM E290 is divided into four methods for bending the specimen:

• Guided Bend
• Semi-Guided Bend
• Free-Bend
• Bend and Flatten.

These tests are performed by supporting the two ends of a specimen while loading it at the center with a mandrel or plunger. The test is completed when the designated angle of the bend, or other specified condition, has been reached. Afterwards, the specimen is visually inspected for cracks or defects, and failure is determined by the size of the cracks and imperfections allowed by the material specification.

For ASTM E290 testing we recommend using an Industrial Series DX or HDX model with Bluehill Universal software and a W-6810 test fixture. This fixture allows for adjustment of the support span and is supplied with various sizes of loading mandrels to accommodate different specimen thicknesses. The loading supports are held together with two tie rods to provide extra stiffness during loading. The DX or HDX Model dual test space load frames allow the bend test fixture to be positioned in the lower compression test space. Any tensile testing can also be accomplished in the upper tensile test space.