Metal mold maker

[Mark842]

Through the years I have purchased molds such as the one pictured made from metal. They were always purchased from other leather companies that were selling out. I've never been able to find a place that will actually make the molds to spec out of metal. I've found places that will make them out of plastic or wood but they don't stand up to long term heavy production. I have several products that my current rate of orders is getting to the point that I'm ruining my plastic molds quicker than I can buy them.

Anyone know of a manufacturer that does this stuff? I know nothing of metal types but I would assume these are cast. The few foundries out here in Utah treated me like I had three heads when I asked about them. One said they could make me the mold by I would have to order a minimum of 1000 of them.

Any one know of a place that can do this in one offs?

Thanks!

Mark

 

 

[Studio-N]

I don't know who you've been checking with but any real machine shop can do that. 

Downside is it will be pricey for a one-off.

[RockyAussie]

@Mark842 I would be surprised if the moulds you show were  actually cast as they would seem unnecessarily expensive. These could easily be laser cut from a proper cad drawing and some would weld/braze or even just screw bolt together. Are your plastic moulds done from Cad drawings to start with? If so are they 2d for cutting or 3d for CNC or printing?  You can get the 3d printed in metal from the 3d drawings if you want. If going from scratch testing the block in plastic first then getting it printed in metal is way way cheaper than years ago getting mould made. If you want to get a bit more understanding have a look into the Shapeways - 3d printing service.https://www.shapeways.com/ You can even see how much it would cost if you know how to get your weight sorted out, on more different metals and materials than I would care to mention here. If you haven't seen it before here is a link that within it shows a bit on some mould that i printed for handcuff pouches.
http://leatherworker.net/forum/topic/77677-how-to-make-a-press-for-moulding-leather-pouches-and-such/?page=3 The cad drawing for this gets converted into an STL file and from that you can get your Mould made. Let me know if you need any more help. Brian

 

[Mark842]

Thanks for the replies guys. Very helpful info. I figured my lack of knowledge on metal was leading me to look in the wrong place. I check out some local machine shops and see what they say. I do expect the prices for one off mold to be pricey, be hey i have clicker dies for cutting fringe in the thousand dollar range. I want these for items that are proven sellers that we manufacture daily.

@ RockyAussie I checked out your linked post on the pla mold. I believe this is probably what I have purchased a few weeks ago. I know they were 3d printed. Maybe my expectations of what the molds could handle were not realistic. I had to pop out 42 items in one day for a last minute holiday order and we attempted to use the mold with our clicker press like we do with our metal molds. It fulfilled the order but the mold is done. I do have several hand presses but unless we are just looking to make one or two it just comes down to a time thing. 30-40 seconds hand cranking the press and trying to judge when enough is enough or a one second hit with the clicker and its done, dry the leather with a heat gun and get to the next step of manufacture. I'll gladly pay for a metal mold that will work for thousands of hits.

[DrmCa]

I can confirm with 100% certainty that the above pictured molds are cast.

The only other technology which could produce a similar surface pitted pattern could be powder metallurgy, but that would make them even more expensive.

Bolting or brazing (heck, even soldering!) bars onto a plate to reproduce the above should not be difficult for any machine shop with a band saw, mill and a belt sander. But I personally would try casting them out of pot metal or zinc using a fresh plastic one for a template first, before outsourcing to a shop.

[Mark842]

6 hours ago, DrmCa said:

I can confirm with 100% certainty that the above pictured molds are cast.

The only other technology which could produce a similar surface pitted pattern could be powder metallurgy, but that would make them even more expensive.

Bolting or brazing (heck, even soldering!) bars onto a plate to reproduce the above should not be difficult for any machine shop with a band saw, mill and a belt sander. But I personally would try casting them out of pot metal or zinc using a fresh plastic one for a template first, before outsourcing to a shop.

 And here in lies the problem. Every other person we talk to swears up and down that it is either cast or no way they are cast. As for trying to cast them myself,  I'm already working 12-16 hours 6 days a week filling orders. I have no time or interest in learning how to cast pot metal or any other metal. I'm willing to pay someone to make them, just can't find the someone... Will be trying a lead that another forum member here recommended trying. Maybe I'll get lucky.

[TLP]

Are there any art / bronze foundries in your area?  carve./ mould a pattern in wax and have them cast it

 

[baroness]

I like replying to older posts. 

Try a looking for a place that does metal stamping or weldments, rather than sheet metal.  Like someone that would make heavy steel or aluminum brackets.  In MN I could name some places I've ordered from for work.  But seeing you're in UT you might want to work with someone closer.  If you look at the web site for Clow Stamping they're the sort of shop that could do what you want. 

I don't know if the one you have is cast or not, but I don't think you need it to be cast.  It could be 'hollow' or have voids in it.  The right shop should be able to plasma cut and weld together what you need. Then recommend a shop that does powder coating or painting in small quantities.

[Nuttish]

Laser or waterjet cut pieces screwed to plate. File and buff the filleted edge yourself. The die you showed a picture of would only take a few minutes to cut in a few dollars worth of scrap aluminum or mild steel. Tool steel then hardening would cost a lot more, and you don't need it if you're just wet forming leather. Waterjet will be the most cost effective since it can be made from a single piece of plate and the shop can gang your job with a larger one using the same gauge steel. In a big city, your part might cost less than $100 one off if ganged with other jobs.

If you've got technical drawings, I'll give you a quote to machine the die part in one piece out of aluminum and cut the counter out of aluminum plate. I can't do steel. It will cost a lot more than getting the parts waterjetted locally and assembling the die part yourself.

[DrmCa]

I still contend that there is no simpler method to reproduce this than casting out of pot metal or pure zinc scavenged from old golf clubs, window operators etc. in a mold made of castable refractory cement or any suitable clay by duplicating the original.

[Brianm77]

Cast or machined should both do the job reliablely for many years. 

If you had them machined your local machine shop or even a local fabricator should be able to make them from a drawing on a sheet of paper with dimensions.  If you can’t seem to find one, I can put you in touch with one in central Texas that would be glad to help.   He makes machine parts for me all the time and starts with nothing more than a sketch with dimensions.  

 

If if you want to have it cast, you could try some of the forums on the interwebs. The are several deticated to foundry work.  There are a lot of guys out there with foundries in their back yard that do it for the fun of it more than anything else (and beer money).  I have also seen a lot of knife makers on knife forums with foundries also.  Something else that may help in your search, you could beef up your mold a little and have it made out of aluminum.  Aluminum has a lot lower melting point and is easier to machine if you need to sand down to get the pits out or round over corners etc.

hope that helps,

Brian

Edited March 16, 2018 by Brianm77