Archive: 2019

Kicking off with a straightforward explanation, one that forming equipment maintenance professionals know all too well, oily films neutralize friction. If there’s little to no friction during a machine’s operating stroke, then there’s less wear and less broken parts to replace. Sure, the sheet metals and tool linkages do their best to dissipate such energy […]

If a multi-tonnage press snaps down at breakneck speed, will a punch eject a razor-sharp blank? Not necessarily, not if there are certain quality-attenuating factors hindering the process. For one thing, what kind of shape is the die in? If it’s worn and chipped, then metal punching quality issues are going to surface. Anyway, let’s […]

A J-hook is a type of punch deformity, one that occurs due to tool wear. It’s a shape, a wear pattern that appears as an inward-curling burr of punch tip metal. Left like this, the tool will pick and snag at an opening as it performs its full stroke. If things go downhill from here, […]

Process-wise, a zinc coating is electrically deposited on a substrate. That’s a barebones description for a much more complicated process. Sure, scant details are handy when articles are skimming over trivial subjects, but that’s not the case here. Really, the above statement can only be used as a jumping-off point, as an introductory sentence. One […]

Made from hardened tungsten carbide alloys, tool punches should last for ages. That may be the case in an ideal world, but we clearly don’t live there. Punch life issues occur, they frustrate equipment operators, and they cause periods of machine downtime to accumulate. A productivity loss graph could probably chart the problem. Or, better […]

During a punching tool’s short journey, it strikes down, penetrates or indents a sheet metal workpiece, and then it retracts so that it lines up with its next strike. The whole process is over in less than a second. With dies, a more complex tool geometry adds shape to the strike zone. Blade tool functions […]

With EDM Spark Eroding equipment in-situ, very precise material incisions become entirely possible. That might not seem like a big deal, as any abrasive cutting disc or milling tool can subtract workpiece material. Of some concern, however, aggressive cutting edges can’t make complex incisions, not without impacting the surrounding area. Well, electrical Discharge Machining uses […]

CNC Milling and CNC Punching, the Computer Numerical Control prefix does imply a link, but aren’t they two different machining processes? Controlled by computer codes, CNC Miling involves the use of a “milling” cutter. Unlike that subtractive material shaving machine, CNC Punching equipment processes sheet metal feedstock. The punching turret or head drops down to […]

Productivity losses can quickly kill a machine shop’s productivity margin. Narrow enough already because of high material costs and increasingly unmanageable overhead problems, that manufacturing facility can’t afford a run of rejected products. To correct that issue on a food processing line, some tweaks to the recipe would take care of matters. For punch and […]

Slug pulling occurs when a “slug” gets stuck to a punch as it’s pulling back from a strike. The tool pierced a panel of sheet metal, the slug (punched scrap) separated from the sheet, but it hasn’t dropped free. In lieu of the expected scrap removal action, the ejected waste clings to the tool. This […]