3d printed press tool in action. I may have to try this.

[robothut]

 

[Brian..]

I've seen prints used as injection moulds with variable results. In my wilder moments I've also thought about pressing components like this. It works well for vac forming domes but tin is less co-operative. 

 

This guy's using annealed copper but would tinplate work as well? Didn't the old factories use a sequence of moulds to produce shapes - a sort of slow progression towards the shape that was needed? It's easy to get patterns printed on to thin aluminium and it would be wonderful to be able to shape, for example, a litho chest plate. But what about the anamorphose shape that's needed - that distorted 3D image that you need before you produce something decent?  Then there's (for me) killer problem of cutting the tin to the final shape. 

 

I look forward to seeing what you can achieve, John. 

 

 

[robothut]

I was thinking of thin tin as well, as being maybe the way to go. The guy in the video was using some thick copper. As for real production tin toys the number of strikes from the press and the number of stamp molds does depend on just how much deformation they need in the part. Also they will do extra strikes for  things like  holes, slots and bends. But still a simple shape could be cool. You can powered coat metal at home easy, I did it back on the early Alpha Bot "kit" bots. And then with a low coast diode laser you can etch off the powered coat in as much detail as you want if a two tone finnish is OK.

[Ranger]

interesting. 

[Ranger]

Or you could just make something similar in 10 minutes with a hammer! No, it’s not exactly the same but I am sure I could make it pretty close but I don’t want to spend time on that at the moment. 

It is very interesting though, there will be and are endless possibilities for sure with computers making the dies and molds.  Die making was I always thought the very clever and expensive part of tin toy making. I was thinking of buying a milling machine but I am not sure about that yet.  The sheet I knocked this piece up with is 0.3 mm tinplate. It’s pretty hard metal really but obviously it does bend. If I were to flame anneal it then it goodbye to the tinplate and it’s just a piece of steel. That’s ok if your going to paint it but not for shiny or matte finish as I did on this part. Copper is of course way easier to use but not really any good if you want a tin robot!  Anything to do with working on a computer always has bored me rigid (apart from playing games) even though I can see the many advantages it can provide. I have got design spark and have made up robot heads, shapes and parts, printed some stuff off etc but I would rather be in the workshop doing what bit I can (not a lot!) with a bit of graph paper, a few drawing implements and a few good hand tools, I am a bit old schools don’t you know! I get excited by saws and hammers, of which I have many! I find it far more therapeutic hitting things with hammers and I get no pleasure at all from sitting at a computer. Makes me tired and go to . I used to do a lot of work on the website for one of the people I made jewellery for...... totally boring, the computer work that is and not the jewellery making.  I suppose after being in a workshop environment for 36 years it’s just what I am used to. I am enjoying trying to make bits for this project and it makes me realise how fantastic and how just clever the old toy robots really are. I am used to making rings, pendants, earrings etc so some of that is useful but doing this makes the old grey matter tick over trying to figure out the best way to make a robot part. I am and never will be anywhere in the same league as some of you guys and shibakin and the like and I am not trying to be, it’s pointless but when something good comes out of a piece of flat sheet it floats my boat. My son is an IT guy and I am sure he could do all that die making stuff on the computer for me and who knows, one day I might ask him to take a look at it.  I am sure you others will create some amazing stuff with it though. For now I am happy just messing about in my workshop, no deadlines or rushing around to fulfil orders etc anymore, it’s great and I am just hammering metal until I get it right or near anyway. If I can’t make a part in metal then won’t be making it, I am (was) a jeweller, not a panel beater and my tools are pretty basic to say the least. My heater is the most modern thing in here! Anyway, thanks for posting that John!  I am off back to to my cave and my lovely hammers and saws. Better change my avatar to Captain Caveman!