Yet another running Systainer³ charge - they redesigned the lids

[Cheese]

1. With injection molding... the cost is in the machines, the supporting energy infrastructure, the building, the molds... not so much the very few guys needed to operate them. Running them more often is just pure profit out of the same cost. If you offer enough money... there are always people willing to work. In fact, if you stop a production run... you got to clean the whole thing out which costs..


2. If you have a mold with multiple chambers you might want to use a chamber number. In case you find faults in the end-product you can way easier deduce if it's random or chamber-specific and act accordingly.
Or it stands for production run number X in that month.


Yeah that makes sense too. They came out later so they probably included known possible improvements into the mold. Removal of the two notches on the side meant adding metal back into the mold, something that isn't very popular... then when the mold wore out, the new one got the improvements too.

1.
2. That's a possibility that this is a multiple cavity tool. However, given that each Sys cover has an area of approx. 178 sq. in multiplied by each of the 8 cavities and needing a clamp factor of 3-4 tons per sq in means the clamp pressure needed to keep the mold closed during injection cycles is astronomical. Not impossible but presses that large are rare.
3. Ya, mold makers hate to add metal, they'd rather come up short and then have to machine a little more metal away. If they did insert the tool or weld the tool, there should be some very faint witness lines visible in the area.

 

[Packard]

Is the A2.1, model number or the cavity number for injection molding tooling?

The company I worked for owned two 48 cavity molds. We could identify the mold by the first number (“1” or “2”), and the cavity by the numbers 1 through 48.

It may be that in this case it is a distinction without a difference. But it really reads like a mold number and a cavity number to me.

 

[Cheese]

Is the A2.1, model number or the cavity number for injection molding tooling?

The company I worked for owned two 48 cavity molds. We could identify the mold by the first number (“1” or “2”), and the cavity by the numbers 1 through 48.

It may be that in this case it is a distinction without a difference. But it really reads like a mold number and a cavity number to me.

I read the A2.1 nomenclature as a revision level as opposed to the A1.1 nomenclature. Tough to know that for sure but I'd readily take bets on that assumption.

 

[Packard]

I read the A2.1 nomenclature as a revision level as opposed to the A1.1 nomenclature. Tough to know that for sure but I'd readily take bets on that assumption.

Well, someone knows the answer. I doubt we will hear about it here.

 

[Sys_Tim]

Though I can't speak to nomenclature or reveal internal secrets - really, I'm not trusted with all the information. What I do know is that there have been mold refinements put in over time. One as noted in this thread. And please recognize there are multiple molds at multiple production locations, so it takes time to get tooling updated.

 

[demographic]

All this details of the injection molding techniques is fascinating...

But, do these handles last better than the old ones that wear and then the box drops off leaving a person holding the handle like a numpty?

 

[Imemiter]

All this details of the injection molding techniques is fascinating...

But, do these handles last better than the old ones that wear and then the box drops off leaving a person holding the handle like a numpty?

In the nineties I was rocking Kennedy tool boxes, and bomber tho' they were, they'd only last me a few five or ten years before the hinges or handles gave out. Now I'm closing up on eight years with T-locs and so far I've only broken two.

 

[Sys_Tim]

All this details of the injection molding techniques is fascinating...

But, do these handles last better than the old ones that wear and then the box drops off leaving a person holding the handle like a numpty?

In my eight years of selling T-Loc and Systainer3 generation I've only had one customer write in and complain of such an instance and I sent him a new systainer.

 

[Cheese]

If they did insert the tool or weld the tool, there should be some very faint witness lines visible in the area.

So, here's the answer to my own question, these handle detents are inserted. This makes complete sense as the mold can be run with of without detents and only the 2 mold inserts need to be changed out. Also, when tweaking the amount of handle/detent interference, all the machining can be simply done on the mold inserts. Inserts removed...inserts machined...inserts reinstalled....run mold for sample parts...measure/validate sample parts...rinse & repeat.

 

[Coen]

They have to have sliders in the mold as well to get the area where the feet of the next Systainer hook under.