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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
(Ted can offer longterm or instant help)
finishing.com - Pine Beach, New Jersey
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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