Sorry for my English, I'm from Europe, Poland, and I work with injection molds. I have a question: what's the best way to weld injection molds besides laser welding? Any ideas or tips? Maybe TIG, and if so, what TIG options? Thank you very much for your help.
Hi everyone,
I'm an injection molding tech currently fighting a losing battle with colorimetry on one of our projects.
Here is the basic setup:
Machine: Arburg (25 mm screw)
Base Material: PA6-GF15
Colorant: Various masterbatches (we run a full range from light to dark colors)
Mold Setup: 8-cavity mold, hot runners with pneumatic valve gates
The Problem:
Visually, the molded parts look absolutely perfect – there are no visible streaks, spots, or signs of degradation. The issue is purely in the colorimetry numbers, which keep failing QC.
It often happens that out of the 8 cavities, only a single part passes the colorimetry check. We've tested multiple colors from light to dark, and the pass rate is extremely low across the board.
What I've already tried / checked:
Material drying is on point (moisture verified via Aquatrac).
Adjusted back pressure for better melt homogenization.
Tweaked melt temperatures and residence times in the hot runners.
Tuned injection speed profiles and the timing/sequencing of the pneumatic valve gates.
Verified masterbatch dosing times on the unit (proportional dosing).
Has anyone dealt with a situation where the parts look flawless to the naked eye, but the instrument catches such shade differences between cavities that it fails them?
Hey y'all maybe it only appeared every few cycles, disappeared when you tried to investigate or turned out to have a completely unexpected cause. What was the issue, and how did you solve it?
I've never seen this happen before. The screens changed to a blue background.
This is the side shot monitor on a 2 barrel press with a rotating plate
CC300 controller, loading screen stops at 90% then goes to the ENGEL service application screen. Any ideas?
I’m building a book mold for a vertical injection molding machine and the molding house sent me this image for their…injector nozzle? I need to find the matching hardware insert/sprue bushing for the mold.
TIA
what material would you choose for a small (about the size of laptop) part that is thin (about .04" thick), and relatively temperature and UV stable (because it will sit outside in the sun for long periods of time)? is there a good option that is clear or translucent?
I am a complete beginner in injection molding and I am looking to manufacture my first part.
My mold supplier sent back a DFM report with several areas flagged in red for heat shrink mark risk (see image).
My part is a functional component used in a manufacturing plan — zero aesthetic requirements. No one will ever see it. I only care about dimensional accuracy and mechanical performance.
Information:
My question: For those of you with hands-on experience — do heat shrink marks actually affect geometry/dimensions, or is it purely a cosmetic issue? Should I be concerned about the red zones in the DFM report? Does is indicate a problem, or is it supplier covering his ass?
Hi again, still very green in this discipline, I'm back asking for more tips.
I took the initial advice I got in this sub and decided to do two identical cavities to keep fill volume balanced. I've done another proof-of-concept with a 3d printed mold and a two-part urethane material, this time with a 70A Shore rating, and removal from the cavity was still very easy despite the slight undercuts, so I'm still confident no ejection will be necessary. There are still some gas traps (see last image), which I kind of expected since there isn't great venting in my 3d printed molds. Before I start cutting metal, I need a sanity check on my vent gate design. I've been reading all the online resources I can find on the topic, and this is where I'm at currently:
Cold runner system. Tool material likely to be 6061 Aluminum. 1.5oz / 2.7in³ total fill volume including runners and sprues. Injector has a 2oz. shot capacity so I think I have a decent buffer for the machine. Melt material is Nylabond 6091-70 PA-6.
The closest equivalent TPV I could find is Santoprene, so I used those venting guidelines as a starting point. Vent lands are .001" deep and about 0.125" wide, the horizontal clearance/vents to atmosphere are about 0.125" wide and 0.02" deep. The vertical (cylindrical) vents to atmosphere are .05" diameter.
Do you see any glaring red flags here? Is it ok to connect a parting line vent land and top-of-cavity vent land+relief to the same hole, as is shown in the second image, or do I need separate vents to atmo?
Will the vents in the 3rd image be functional as designed or do you think they will be prone to clog?
Any other tips?
Thanks in advance.
ETA: A coworker suggested I try to keep all the vents at the parting line to keep them from clogging or to be able to clean them out if they do get flashing in them. In order to vent to atmo at the parting line this would mean some really long clearance channels to get around the runners. Is it worth redesigning the vents I have?
I need to pick a company for low volume injection molding for a small run of sensor housings (700-1500) with snap tabs, screw bosses and a cosmetic front face. Ive found Quickparts, Protolabs, Xometry, Fictiv and a few local molders. Im a little confused about how tooling changes and feedback works. Definitely need the parts to be consistent. Also mold quality, pricing, lead time and communication for adjustments if the first samples are off matter a good amount. Which company is better for a first low volume run?
(first three images option A, last 3 images option B) very last two are both
So, i need to make a motion controller for a college project, and i was trying to establish the line between the two parts. This product is supposed to be made through injection molding. The material is PC/ABS, and the wall thickness is 2 mm. Can both of them be made to eject from the mold despite the undercut, via temperature deform? or is the undercut in one or both too much? So, either: both can be unmolded, only one can be unmolded, or none of them.
Hi everyone ! So I will try my best to explain my project. English is not my native language so please excuse me if something is not very clear. I'll try my best !
I am completely new to injection molding too.
So :
I want to create a circular plate, 30 cm large with a 2mm thickness, and a hole in the middle (like a record, you know?) And the material I want to use is Petg plastic.
At first, i wanted to buy large sheets of petg and cut them to the correct size, but they doesn't seems to come in differents colors...
So, is it possible to create a 2mm thick and 30 cm wide circular plate with injection molding ? I've seen videos of DIY Injection molding systems but I don't know If you can inject something this large with these type of machine.
Thanks a lot !
Have an issue with a press. Previous shift.. screw was pulled and check ring checked for metal.
Put back in.. can't fill a part. Usually peak pressure with tool in press is around 14,000... now running at 26500, and 26000 is max.
1st
Looking down the feed throat, I shouldn't see a flight like this staring directly down it, right?
2nd
These are fill only parts with the transfer set 1in apart from one another. Can't get a "98" because we're pressure limited. Transfer is typically at 1.4in. Shots ran in picture are at 1in and 2in.
Lastly, even with being pressure limited and not being able to fill the part, screw bottoms out with hold pressure.
Obvious issue is the check ring, but what else?
I've been getting this alarm for a few days now, usually after a mold change or stopping the machine for whatever reason.
I've already replaced the EtherCAT cable and cleaned/reseated the connections. The fault still occurs intermittently, which is why I'm leaning toward a failing EL1904, specifically A34 or safety controller.
The only way I've even been able to get the motor to kick on is by power cycling the robot's electrical cabinet several times. I know of no way to test the card itself.
It's showing FSoE watchdog timeouts, safety controller in faulty condition, plus everything else that runs on that same circuit. Robot safety gate, E stop, the whole shabang.
Anyone had this same issue?
What was the fix?
I'd like to be sure before we sink the money into a new card or a service tech.
Thanks in advance, guys and gals.
The mold just came out of our Tooling area "ready for production" found the leak after about 10 cycles and said screw it lol... I think they need more thread tape
Hopefully this is a decent place to ask, but my company started compounding our own materials (pelletizing) starting with Kynar due to cost.
We are currently pelletizing more than we can use, and want to sell the excess.
Any tips? I have been dealing with multiple material companies that specialize in this area (EG, Sattler Plastics), but get nowhere or am offered next to nothing for the pelletized material.
Any recommendations on economical outlets for premium materials like PVDF?
I'm a machinist who dabbles in tooling design and I've been tasked with creating an injection mold to apply over-molding to an inductive proximity sensor cable on two ends. The two halves of the mold are 2x4x8" approximately and will be made from aluminum. There are 3 inserts on each half that will handle unmachinable geometry and a small undercut. I have the cavities designed, and I have a fill nozzle port location from the molding house. I'm assuming I won't need ejectors to remove this from the mold, even there is a small undercut in one section. The material should be pliable enough to remove it without damage. It will be relatively low volume (a couple hundred units a year probably), so it doesn't need to be overly complex. I believe I have chosen good locations for the fill/vent gates, but what I need direction on now is fill/flow path design considerations.
The ratio of the fill volumes between the two ends is about 1:6. How important is balancing these two volumes? Can the disparity be compensated for with the runner volume and vent gate orifices?
How do I select fill and vent gate orifice sizes? I don't want to go so small that the cavities don't fill properly, but I don't want to go so big that I have to start all over if the orifice needs fine-tuning/modification.
Are there any glaring issues you can see with my design so far?
Thanks in advance.