MORE PROGRESS ON  X – 6  MOLDS

We've made lots of progress on The New Math, and the end is now in sight. The first graphite chassies should be produced on Friday April 28th, with other parts following one at a time until we have a few prototypes of every part in late May.

Advantage Mold is working full time on the X-6 molds. We've experienced two setbacks, but it's going along now as quickly as possible. First, Keith had to be pulled from our molds to design some other work for an automotive company. But he's back working full time on the X-6 now, and Larry, the owner, promises that Keith will have everything designed for us before he leaves on vacation May 6th.

Second, as we reported in our first story, the C.N.C. mill broke while making our chassis mold, the first work that the brand-new machine had done. It took several days to get the factory repairman there, and parts had to be flown in, so we lost about a week. The major thing is that our mold was not hurt when the machine broke down, and it's up and running full time now on our molds.

In the photos here, you see this ultra high-tech machine working on a pocket for the loose piece that makes the holes in the wing mount. The machine runs faster than most C.N.C. mills, with the table accelerating through a speed curve as it starts to move and decelerating through a curve as it stops. So, even though it runs faster, it "jerks" less, giving fewer tool marks and better curved surfaces while making parts more quickly.

Normally three jets shower the work in lubricant, which makes it cut smoother while keeping the work cooler and clearing the chips. Again, this allows faster work. Todd shut the jets off briefly for our photo. Notice drops of lubricant everywhere.

The C.N.C. mill working on the mold for the rear control arms & wing mounts. The cooling jets have been turned off momentarily for this photo.

Cover side of chassis mold is done.

As you can see, the cover side of the main mold is done. This mold will make the chassis, nose piece, and rear shock tower. It's covered in Prussian blue so they can hand-mate it to the ejector side of the mold. Prussian blue is a paste-like material (about the consistency of Vaseline) that can be spread in a very thin layer on a part. When you offer up the mating part, blue material will come off onto the mating part wherever they touch, and you can sand down the high spots. The cover and the ejector sides of the mold must mate perfectly so plastic does not come out around the sides of the part. Remember there's a lot of pressure and heat when the mold is working.

Here's the finished ejector side of the main chassis mold. You can see a few of the ejector pins sticking out. There's Prussian blue in the pockets where loose pieces will go to make various holes in the shock tower. Those pieces also must fit perfectly. Notice the small trace of Prussian blue around the nose piece. That's exactly where the mold must fit tightest.

Main chassis mold. Back of the ejector side, with most of the ejector pins sticking out.

Todd checks height of an ejector pin.

Here's Todd, the machine operator, working on an ejector pin. They are perfectly round pieces of very hard steel which move in the mold to push the part out. They must be perfectly flush with the "top" of the mold so they don't make a mark in the part itself, and they must fit perfectly in their holes through the mold so the plastic does not leak out. After the molten plastic has been injected and cools for a few seconds, the press pulls the mold apart and the part usually sticks to the ejector side of the mold. Then, the ejector pins push the part out. Sometimes you can see little round spots on the part where the ejector pins have pushed.

So we're making lots of progress. The main mold is almost completely finished. We've taken the graphite material over to Advantage, and they hope to make the first test run of X-6 chassies on Friday, April 28th. As soon as that happens, we'll have photos and a story.

The second mold, for the rear control arms, is almost finished in the big machine. it will still have to go through the Prussian blue and hand sanding process, Keith has finished designing the M.U.D. molds for the bottom covers and transmission case, so those will go into the new mill as soon as the control arm mold is done. It will take several days to machine each of those molds.

Ejector side of the main chassis mold.

Measuring the length of an ejector pin.

Meanwhile, Keith is working to design the servo mount system and then the battery posts and strap. Then he'll design two M.U.D. insert molds, one for the servo stuff and one for the battery stuff. Keith will finish all that design work by May 6th, just about the time Todd and the new mill are finished with the tranny case and bottom cover molds. So hand work, ejector pins, etc can be done on them while the last molds are being made.

Larry Bowlander, owner of Advantage Mold, has great confidence in his employees. Keith Julius, chief designer, has been in the tool & die business more than 25 years. Keith started out as a machinist, and began designing about 15 years ago. Todd has been making molds for almost 15 years. Larry and a partner started Advantage Mold six years ago and the company specializes in plastic molds for the auto industry.

Larry Bowlander seems happy.

Look closely at the screen and you'll see the numbers for the X, Y, and Z axies. They track exactly where the edge of the cutting tool is at this moment.

So here's the current schedule: We're going to make about 25 production prototypes of every part, and hope to have this finished before the end of May, about three weeks later than planned at first. Each of the five Team drivers will get a complete car and a stock of spare parts, and they will run the cars hard for a week or two trying to find out where the weak spots are, if any.

If all the parts and molds have been designed properly and it all stands up to all the punishment the Boys can dish out, we'll make the first production runs - about 1000 of everything - in mid-June. We estimate it will take two weeks to make the parts and get them into bags & boxes, so we hope we'll be ready to ship in late June.

If there's a problem with something - for example, the Boys break all the wing mounts - we'll have to re-design the part, or the mold, or both, and that will take time. Then we'll have to make and test new prototype parts, and that will take more time. If there's a problem with something things will be delayed, but we don't want to ship cars with bad parts.

Shortening an ejector pin. The table moves back & forth under the stone so the top of the pin is perfectly flat.

CAD of Wing Mount and Body Posts.

Cad Of Transmisson Cases.