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Oil rubbed bronze flexibility

I am amidst a bathroom overhaul (last room after IVAN) and am unable to locate a shower arm to my liking. I would like to change the configuration of the shower arm that matches the rest of the oil rubbed bronze fixtures I purchased. Here is where my question relates to "finishing": Will the oil rubbed bronze finish stress, crack or otherwise deteriorate if I tenderly alter the shape of the shower arm with a tubing bender? I want to increase the roll so it aims directly down. The arm can be viewed here: http://www.showhouse.moen.com/catalog/selectfinish.cfm?sku=S113&ctype=keyword.
Thanks for a really interesting site.

Bruce J Cavallin
DIY consumer - Gulf Breeze, Florida, USA
2007

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This is a very familiar but unanswerable question because we don't know what the finish really is, Bruce. There are no rules, and if it looks like a duck they can call it a duck even if it's only a picture of a duck :-)

We all know what oil rubbed bronze is actually supposed to be, and I would expect no problems if it really were oil rubbed bronze -- but the odds are probably small that a given item with a oil rubbed bronze finish is actually oil rubbed bronze. My educated guess is that this is actually a PVD deposit on top of nickel plating and that it can sustain a reasonable amount of bending, but it's also possible that it's a very brittle paint that will crack.

As you know, the warranty disappears as soon as you try to bend it and it's a rather expensive experiment. Hopefully someone will already have done the experiment and will tell you the results!

Ted Mooney, P.E.
Striving to live Aloha
finishing.com - Pine Beach, New Jersey
(Ted is available for instant or longterm help)

2007

Thanks for your response, Ted, I found the product to be a powder coated finish. The corrected viewing site is (http://www.showhouse.moen.com/catalog/selectfinish.cfm?sku=S113) then click on the finish preferred.

Bruce J Cavallin
- Gulf Breeze, Florida, USA
2007

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