Home » Plastic Injection Molding Basics » Plastic Injection Mold Quality
Plastic Injection Mold Quality
The "Quality" of a plastic injection mold can be looked at 2 ways. The injection mold lacks "quality" if there is a defect in injection mold making. The injection mold is built to a "quality" level based upon the budget and needs of the customer.
The Society of Plastics Engineers outlines plastic injection mold standards from Class 105 to Class 101 based on the tolerances the finished part needs to achieve and the number of parts the plastic injection mold needs to produce.
Each class has a specific list of features and characteristics that allow the plastic injection mold to achieve the desired number of shots.
There is no difference in part quality from a class 105 or 101 tool. Errors in injection mold making that lead to defects in parts are errors in injection mold making not a reflection of standard to which the injection mold is built.
The quality plastic injection mold tooling should be the one that attends the customer requirements. There are many kind of injection molds. If you need a short cycle it must have conditions to give you a short cycle. If you need good surface quality in your product, the injection mold must be done with good steel and must have a good polish or treatment. In fact your question is a little bit subjective.
The good quality of injection mold depends of your expectations, and you must specify it when you are buying a plastic injection mold.
Many plastic injection mold makers can attempt to make your mold but any small error makes the mold useless and impossible to fix. Also, injection mold shrinkage can be different on the various part axis (x,y,z) and can make the part not function properly. You have two choices:
1) go with an experienced gear design molder who may even tell you your project is too high tolerance for success or make you aware that you can succeed but only with expensive tooling and exacting production control..
OR
2) you can work with lower cost inexperienced plastic injection mold makers and have a project with all kinds of problems and final failure. I have done both, even a simple polycarbonate ring gear we made, had a host of production problems before we got it right.
The Society of Plastics Engineers outlines plastic injection mold standards from Class 105 to Class 101 based on the tolerances the finished part needs to achieve and the number of parts the plastic injection mold needs to produce.
Each class has a specific list of features and characteristics that allow the plastic injection mold to achieve the desired number of shots.
There is no difference in part quality from a class 105 or 101 tool. Errors in injection mold making that lead to defects in parts are errors in injection mold making not a reflection of standard to which the injection mold is built.
- Class 101: exceeding one million cycles.
- Class 102: not to exceed one million cycles.
- Class 103: not to exceed 500,000 cycles.
- Class 104: not to exceed 100,000 cycles.
- Class 105: not to exceed 500 cycles.
The quality plastic injection mold tooling should be the one that attends the customer requirements. There are many kind of injection molds. If you need a short cycle it must have conditions to give you a short cycle. If you need good surface quality in your product, the injection mold must be done with good steel and must have a good polish or treatment. In fact your question is a little bit subjective.
The good quality of injection mold depends of your expectations, and you must specify it when you are buying a plastic injection mold.
Many plastic injection mold makers can attempt to make your mold but any small error makes the mold useless and impossible to fix. Also, injection mold shrinkage can be different on the various part axis (x,y,z) and can make the part not function properly. You have two choices:
1) go with an experienced gear design molder who may even tell you your project is too high tolerance for success or make you aware that you can succeed but only with expensive tooling and exacting production control..
OR
2) you can work with lower cost inexperienced plastic injection mold makers and have a project with all kinds of problems and final failure. I have done both, even a simple polycarbonate ring gear we made, had a host of production problems before we got it right.
Post a Comment:
You may also like:
Category
Featured Articles
How to Choose a Good Chinese Injection ...
It is very important to choose a good mold manufacturer, because they not only can provide you with satisfactory molds, but also ...

Precision Injection Mold Technology in ...
The development of precision injection molds, precision injection molding was first produced in the 1970s. With the development ...

Plastic Injection Molding Process ...
The propositions behind injection molding process simulation are very basic. First, that although our plastic materials and ...

Visit injection molding factory in ...
Not being in the injection molding industry, I was looking for tips on how to judge a company or factory on their capability or ...

Injection Mold Cooling Design
The design of the injection mold cooling system is very important. The cooling time takes up 70% to 80% of injection molding ...
