The 360° Rule: How Many Bends Between Pull Points

What the rule says

Each raceway article carries the same sentence: there shall not be more than the equivalent of four quarter bends, 360° total, between pull points, for example conduit bodies and boxes. It limits the total of the angles, not the number of bends. Four 90s reach it, and so do twelve 30° bends.

Every bend between two pull points counts, whether you bent it or it came from the factory as an elbow. A box or conduit body ends one count and starts the next. The limit exists because each bend adds drag to the pull, and a run with too many puts more strain on the wire and its insulation.

How offsets, saddles and kicks count

The small bends are the ones people forget. A 10° offset into a box is only 20°, but two or three of them along a run, plus a kick, can take up most of a quarter bend.

A worked tally

It passes, with 10° to spare. Add one more 30° offset to clear a duct and the run comes to 410°, which is over: it needs a pull point somewhere in the middle, or fewer degrees.

What to do when you are over

• Add a pull point. A pull box, a junction box or a conduit body such as an LB splits the run into two counts. It has to stay accessible once the job is finished.
• Use shallower bends. A 3" offset at 22.5° counts 45° where one at 30° counts 60°, but its bends sit 7 13/16" apart instead of 6", so you need the room.
• Put the kick on the 90. A kick and 90 with a 30° kick counts 120°. A 90 followed by a separate 30° offset counts 150°.
• Roll the offset. A rolling offset moves the conduit up and over in two bends. An offset up and an offset over take four.
• Use a flatter saddle. A 3-point saddle with a 45° center counts 90°; with a 60° center it counts 120°.
• Reroute. Going around an obstruction, or changing height once instead of twice, can drop a whole saddle from the run.