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#1
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disc cutter die - other shapes?
Hi. I have a disc cutter that cuts various sizes of round discs. It's the
kind that you slide the sheet of metal in and then hit it with a hammer to punch the disc. I would like to find (or have made) some that would produce different shapes. My problem is that I don't quite know what to call them. I have done internet searches on disc cutters, dies, tool and die, punch dies, punch cutters, and chatted with someone at a tool and die shop who said they could do it for around $10,000, so I obviously wasn't communicating what I wanted. Can anyone point me in the right direction for my search? Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated. thanks!! |
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#2
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disc cutter die - other shapes?
On Mon, 10 Jul 2006 07:23:50 -0700, in rec.crafts.jewelry "La Stella Celeste"
wrote: Hi. I have a disc cutter that cuts various sizes of round discs. It's the kind that you slide the sheet of metal in and then hit it with a hammer to punch the disc. I would like to find (or have made) some that would produce different shapes. My problem is that I don't quite know what to call them. I have done internet searches on disc cutters, dies, tool and die, punch dies, punch cutters, and chatted with someone at a tool and die shop who said they could do it for around $10,000, so I obviously wasn't communicating what I wanted. Can anyone point me in the right direction for my search? Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated. thanks!! Well, I'm a bit of a tool-a-holic, and I've not seen alternate shape versions of those nifty cutters, at least not the simple hammer driven type at similar price structures. This is likely due to the fact that a non-round cutter would be MUCH more difficult to manufacture. You can't just drill and bore out a precise non-round hole (especially if you want precise corners), and you can't just use existing ground drill rod for your punches. And because the cutting die would have to hold a non round punch in much closer rotational alignment than a disc cutter needs, the fit between punch and die would also be more critical. Making a non-round cutter like this, while possible, is not likely to be in the same price range at all. However, three options reasonably exist that i can think of, if you really require such a tool. The first is to make your own. This would not be the same type of cutter, but rather, RT cutting dies. it is possible to make an RT type die to cut virtually any simple shape you wish. Each tool is a single, one piece tool that incorporates both punch and die in a single connected piece of metal. Requires some experience to make a die where the cut piece has a fully connected outline rather than some edge section not cut by the die, but it's possible. Go to the Bonny Doon web site to find Lee Marshall's instructions for making such dies. You can make these with just a hand driven saw if you're good enough, but a sawing guide of some sort makes it easier (the sawing is done at a precise angle through heavy sheet steel), or one of the guided saw frames, which cost a bit more, make it even more predictable. Or you can have the dies made. Commercial non-round dies exist. One company is Profiform. These cutting dies are optional accessories for the Profiform shear/bending brake tool, a neat little bench shear and multi purpose forming tool. Swiss made, it's not cheap, and the optional cutting dies aren't either. Frei and Borel is one firm that carries these nice tools. Pricey, but worth the money if you need such a tool. You've all seen these hand held heavy duty plier type hole punches made in China. They sell for about fifteen bucks from Harbor Freight.. They're somewhat poorly made copies (though still nicely functional) of the original design made by the Roper Whitney company. If you look up Roper Whitney, you'll find that in addition to that neat little hand punch, they also make a lot of other punching tools, including punches that will do lots of other non-round shapes, and you can have punches made for virtually any shape you wish. Again, this is in a different price level than those simple disc cutters. But not at all in that funky ten thousand buck range you've found. More like a hundred or two, i think, for each punch (each individual punch size). This is pretty close to what the Profiform cutting dies go for too. All in all, if you're willing to learn how to make them, and take the time to make them, making your own RT blanking dies in the sizes and shapes you need, is likely your most economical route. It requires some precise and careful metal working skills, but nothing terribly out of the ordinary, and not a large investment in equipment or something (though a guided saw frame for the sawing is a good idea if you've got more than one or two of these to do, and don't want to be doing them over the first few times. The Bonney Doon saw is better than the RT one. Or have Dar Shelton (I think that's his name, from Shelltec) make them for you. That's what he does. Google it. Hope this helps. Peter Rowe |
#3
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disc cutter die - other shapes?
La Stella Celeste wrote:
Hi. I have a disc cutter that cuts various sizes of round discs. It's the kind that you slide the sheet of metal in and then hit it with a hammer to punch the disc. I would like to find (or have made) some that would produce different shapes. My problem is that I don't quite know what to call them. I have done internet searches on disc cutters, dies, tool and die, punch dies, punch cutters, and chatted with someone at a tool and die shop who said they could do it for around $10,000, so I obviously wasn't communicating what I wanted. Can anyone point me in the right direction for my search? Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated. thanks!! Dar Shelton (www.sheltech.com I THINK) made a custome pancake die for me - very reasonable. Carl -- to reply, change ( .not) to ( .net) |
#4
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disc cutter die - other shapes?
On Mon, 10 Jul 2006 14:23:51 GMT, "La Stella Celeste"
wrote: Hi. I have a disc cutter that cuts various sizes of round discs. It's the kind that you slide the sheet of metal in and then hit it with a hammer to punch the disc. I would like to find (or have made) some that would produce different shapes. My problem is that I don't quite know what to call them. I have done internet searches on disc cutters, dies, tool and die, punch dies, punch cutters, and chatted with someone at a tool and die shop who said they could do it for around $10,000, so I obviously wasn't communicating what I wanted. Can anyone point me in the right direction for my search? Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated. thanks!! If you will send me your email address, I can help you. I realize that there are very good reasons for using a 'smudged' address, but it would be nice if your smudging could be interpreted. Charlie |
#5
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disc cutter die - other shapes?
Thanks - I appreciate everyone taking the time to reply and provide
information. Will look into the suggestions! "La Stella Celeste" wrote in message ... Hi. I have a disc cutter that cuts various sizes of round discs. It's the kind that you slide the sheet of metal in and then hit it with a hammer to punch the disc. I would like to find (or have made) some that would produce different shapes. My problem is that I don't quite know what to call them. I have done internet searches on disc cutters, dies, tool and die, punch dies, punch cutters, and chatted with someone at a tool and die shop who said they could do it for around $10,000, so I obviously wasn't communicating what I wanted. Can anyone point me in the right direction for my search? Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated. thanks!! |
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