In this study, a macroscopic approach was carried out to gain insight into the bending mechanism of metallic sandwich plates. Shear force-punch stroke curves for various clearances were analytically derived for mild steel (CSP 1N) sandwich plates with the total thickness of 3 mm and 0.5 mm face sheets. As the clearance increases, shear force of the inner structures and sensitivity of punch stroke decrease. These data are useful to derive a criterion of judgment for core shear failure and de-bonding failure during U-bending.