Thermoform mold making

[Deerhurst]

Im working on thermo forming a nissan d21 body. What you guys suggest for making a mold? I already have a polystyrene male mold made but it will melt if i try to lay hot plastic on it.

Any suggestions for making a nice cheap durable mold?

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[mark reel]

Originally Posted by Deerhurst

Im working on thermo forming a nissan d21 body. What you guys suggest for making a mold? I already have a polystyrene male mold made but it will melt if i try to lay hot plastic on it.

Any suggestions for making a nice cheap durable mold?

Sent from my Transformer TF101 using Tapatalk 2

Hi There,
i am a thermoforming Engineer for a living (damn its been 15 yrs all ready) all of our molds are made out of aluminum.
the protoypes are made from Renshape 460 Google it its a foam epoxy mixture that is pressed in to a solid block. its alot cheaper and if you take your time forming it will last a long time.

you can cnc machine the renshape tool board at line 200 in a min.... aluminum
cuts at about 50 in a min ( before the machinist go crazy.. these are general and i know the feeds and speeds depend on the dia. size of the endmill and depth of cut, not to mention flat or ball 2,3 or 4 flute... ok now im just showing off a little Sorry)

if you cut the renshape at about 80 in a min. you should get a nice smooth finish.

sincerely, Mark

[Deerhurst]

I'll take a look see. The only reason I didn't go with the CNC approach is that the professor in charge of the CNC machines in kind of an idiot and is not really interested in helping students with the machines if they are not in his class. Basically, he's too "busy" to help.

My inventor drawing is about 98% complete, teaching myself 3D cad. Just haven't figured out project geometry or how to get the curve of the body from top to bottom.

[hotwheels000]

MDF or hardwood is easy/cheap to work with and will give you a few good pulls for personal use.Its great for proof of concept without the extra cost or need for special equipment. If you plan on going into production...The post above is the way to go.

[Deerhurst]

Originally Posted by hotwheels000

MDF or hardwood is easy/cheap to work with and will give you a few good pulls for personal use.Its great for proof of concept without the extra cost or need for special equipment. If you plan on going into production...The post above is the way to go.

I really only want to make a couple for my own use. I guess if it turns out well I'll make more.

I originally planned on using a wood CNC but that fell through for the above reasons.

[mark reel]

That sucks the professor is an ass
For a few shots wood is good as suggested above
Most wood molds are a hard wood like Mohogany hope I spelled thatright