Wexmar provides custom die and mold components machining for tool and die shops, mold builders and molders that need non-standard components or extra capacity. From our Canastota, New York shop we produce CNC machined guide pins, guide bushings, leader pins, core pins, sprue bushings, return pins, retainer plates, wear plates and gibs to your drawings, with hardened parts ground in-house after heat treat.
What die and mold components do and who buys them
A stamping die or injection mold is built from a base, alignment components and working components. Guide pins and bushings align the halves. Core pins, inserts and sprue bushings form or feed the part. Retainer plates, wear plates and gibs hold and guide moving members. Catalog components cover standard sizes, but many tools need special lengths, diameters, venting, cooling or materials. Our buyers include tool and die shops, injection mold builders, captive molding operations, stamping and metal forming plants, and die cast tooling builders.
How we machine CNC die and mold components
Round components such as guide pins, bushings, core pins, sprue bushings, ejector sleeves and locating rings are turned on our Mazak and Doosan CNC lathes and on our four Maier MLK-32 Swiss-type machines for diameters up to 32 mm. The Swiss process holds size and straightness on long, slender core pins. Parts are turned with grind stock, sent for heat treat through a qualified outside processor, then centerless ground in-house to final diameter. See Swiss machining and CNC turning.
Plates, retainers, inserts, wear plates and slides run on our Mazak horizontal machining centers with pallet changers and 4th-axis rotaries, which machine pockets, bored holes and water lines on several faces in one setup. Our surface grinder finishes plates and wear surfaces flat and parallel. These are 3- and 4-axis machines. Sculpted cavity surfaces that call for 5-axis milling, and sinker or wire EDM work, are arranged through qualified outside processors, and we can supply the components around them. See horizontal CNC milling.
Materials
- Tool steels: A2, D2, O1, S7 and H13 for pins, inserts and wear components.
- Mold steels: P20 pre-hard and 420 stainless for plates and inserts.
- Alloy steels: 4140 pre-hard for retainers and support plates, 8620 for case-hardened guide pins, 52100 for bushings.
- Bronze: aluminum bronze and graphite-plugged bronze for self-lubricating guide bushings and gibs.
- Others: beryllium-free copper alloys for heat transfer inserts, 17-4 PH and aluminum for prototype tooling.
Critical features and how we hold them
- Guide pin and bushing fit: pins ground and bushings bored or ground for the specified running clearance.
- Core pin diameter and straightness: ground after hardening to hold size along the full length.
- Plate bore position: guide and leader pin bores located on CMM-verified coordinates in one horizontal setup.
- Plate flatness and parallelism: surface ground after machining and heat treat.
- Head and shoulder geometry: heads, shoulders and radii under head held to the component standard or drawing.
Typical tolerances and finishes
| Feature | Typical tolerance | Tighter on request |
|---|---|---|
| Ground pin diameter | ±0.0002 in | ±0.0001 in |
| Bushing ID | ±0.0003 in | ±0.0002 in |
| Plate bore position | ±0.0005 in | ±0.0003 in |
| Plate flatness / parallelism | 0.0005 in | 0.0002 in |
| Pin length | ±0.002 in | ±0.0005 in |
| Ground finish | 16 Ra | 8 Ra |
These are typical values. Hardened components depend on heat treat distortion and grind stock, which we plan into every job.
Secondary operations
Heat treat, nitriding, PVD coatings, black oxide, and electroless nickel or hard chrome plating are performed through qualified outside processors. Wire EDM, sinker EDM and cavity polishing are also arranged through qualified outside processors. We manage the sequence so ground diameters and faces are finished after the thermal steps.
Quantity patterns
Die and mold work usually comes as sets for a new tool, 4 to 50 components, or as replacement parts during tool maintenance. Molders running many tools often order wear components such as core pins and bushings in recurring small lots.
Inspection
Ground diameters are measured with calibrated micrometers, bores with bore gages, plate hole positions on our Brown & Sharpe CMMs, and head profiles on our Mitsubishi optical comparator. Heat treat certs, material certs and CMM reports are available. See inspection and quality.
Getting a quote
Send component drawings with material, hardness and quantity, or a tool build list. You can upload a drawing for an instant estimate, and an estimator will confirm pricing. Or call (315) 400-2654. Related: tooling components and plates and base plates.