precision punch and die set - .0625" thick neoprene

[widgitmaster]

Would a precision punch and die set in a Danley Die shoe be able to punch .0625" thick neoprene rubber parts with a square OD, round ID and 15° slot on one side entering the center hole which looks kike a "C", and has 4 small holes, one in each corner?

I can make the hardened and ground punch & die parts with serious precision, but before I go to all the trouble to design and make it, I need to know if anyone has punched rubber in a die like that, and what to expect or avoid!

I can only assume that a stripper plate would be needed to release the blank part after punching! That a die with a few tenth's of clearence should cut with little effort! So a large arbor press would be all I need to work it!

I will be needing 100's of these parts, 16 at a time!

Any comments?

[lerman]

Originally Posted by widgitmaster Would a precision punch and die set in a Danley Die shoe be able to punch .0625" thick neoprene rubber parts with a square OD, round ID and 15° slot on one side entering the center hole which looks kike a "C", and has 4 small holes, one in each corner? I can make the hardened and ground punch & die parts with serious precision, but before I go to all the trouble to design and make it, I need to know if anyone has punched rubber in a die like that, and what to expect or avoid! I can only assume that a stripper plate would be needed to release the blank part after punching! That a die with a few tenth's of clearence should cut with little effort! So a large arbor press would be all I need to work it! I will be needing 100's of these parts, 16 at a time! Any comments?

I needed some EPDM gaskets, so I made the first ones myself using a combination of home made and off the shelf punches. Then (on the web) I found:
Quick Cut Gasket 192 Erie Street PO Box 330 Lancaster, NY 14086 qcgman@aol.com Phone: 1-800-448-3808

They made the tooling for much less than I could have and the parts were surprisingly cheap in qty 250. There are companies that are equipped to do this work.

Give it a try.

Ken

Ken

[widgitmaster]

Thanks Ken!
I had not considered outsourcing the parts, but I will surely give them a call!
Eric