The Home Machinist!

Hi folks. I'm working on designing the pattern for a large estate-railway wheel. Given the deep dish shape and cross section, how would you suggest setting up the match plate? The top plate seems straight forward, but getting the deep dish in the back is where I'm lost.

Thanks!

Chris
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Look up "cheek". As in Cope, Cheek & Drag. That may help you get where you need to be.
I tried it on a journal box... made a hellofamess because I didn't think it all the way thru first.
Scotty

Match plate will have to have an irregular parting line.

Basically illustrated in this video by MrPete where he does this basic concept with a mini frying pan as a demonstration:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Wmaku9GZdBQ

(He flips the match plate over in the first 2 5seconds of the video and I think you will see what I mean.)

Adirondack, I have a YouTube channel Dave Clark The Pattern Guy. I do some segments called chalk talks. I will make one showing how I would go about making this project. As a matter of fact, I made a wheel similar to that a few years ago. I still have the pattern. I'll try to get the chalk talk out in the next couple days.

patternguy wrote: ↑Thu Sep 16, 2021 6:57 pm Adirondack, I have a YouTube channel Dave Clark The Pattern Guy. I do some segments called chalk talks. I will make one showing how I would go about making this project. As a matter of fact, I made a wheel similar to that a few years ago. I still have the pattern. I'll try to get the chalk talk out in the next couple days.

That would be awesome. Thanks!

Chris

My two cents, for what it's worth. If the foundry requires match plates then that's what you do, if you need a lot of wheels then you'll want to use a match plate, but if you're making just a few castings, a match plate is a lot of work, think about using cores. John

jscarmozza wrote: ↑Fri Sep 17, 2021 11:41 am My two cents, for what it's worth. If the foundry requires match plates then that's what you do, if you need a lot of wheels then you'll want to use a match plate, but if you're making just a few castings, a match plate is a lot of work, think about using cores. John

In this day and age most match plates are CNC machined out of solid (tooling board or aluminum) and/or 3D printed and simply attached to the match plate. Sometimes its a combination of these two methods. In either case its "a lot" work in CAD/CAM but not so much in actual pattern making.

Fantastic 3D printers are available for extremely cheap so these methods are well within the average hobbyist's means - especially with the barrier to entry of CAD basically non-existent due to good free software.

Making a match plate the old school way is a lot of work but it's also a lost art in todays world.

I got a video up for this subject. I, also going to do another one showing a match plate made from a mold. As soon as I figure how to post links I will do so. If anyone has other subjects they want me to touch on leave me a note.

Would it do to use "lost PLA" and skip the match plate altogether?
Scotty

patternguy wrote: ↑Sun Sep 19, 2021 8:25 am As soon as I figure how to post links I will do so.

All that is required to post a link is to copy and paste. No buttons are required unless you wish to embed the video.

Link for those who are interested.

https://youtu.be/kKxBMzeYQHM

BTW, I am running these in iron in batches of 24.

Chris

Hi Chris,

Qty.24 at 14" is a good bit of Iron!

How are you making the pattern? I know you do a lot of 3D printing but 14" is fairly large... multiple prints and glued together afterwards?