Flashing

[CrabbyBass]

Hi everyone! I have a question. I have two 4.5" gorilla tube molds. The one mold shoots perfectly fine, no issues. The other mold, I get flashing on the one wing and arm. I use two of the heavy Irwin bar clamps and tried clamping different ways and still get it. If I do not use enough pressure on the injector, the skirt does not fill out all the way on the spline. I was wondering if the hinge has something to do with it. Can I remove the hinge from the mold? Does anyone have any other suggestions? Thanks in advance!

Chuck

[hawgthumper]

Chuck,  try this. Take a Q-tip or cotton ball and run it around that cavity.  If you have any burrs there you should find them.  Even a tiny one can cause problems. Maybe the mold is out of true.  Warped a bit. Have you dropped it?

[CrabbyBass]

I will try the Q-tip and see what I find. I have not dropped the mold, but I also didn't buy it brand new. I do not see any indication on the mold that it had been dropped though. Do you think removing the hinge will help? Could that be the cause of not getting a tight seal when clamping?

[sim]

the hinge can be removed - I have one mold that it took more pressure to close due to the hinge being 'tweaked' - I loosened the hinge and solve the problem. 

[Jerry V]

the hinge can be removed - I have one mold that it took more pressure to close due to the hinge being 'tweaked' - I loosened the hinge and solve the problem.

It very well could be a tweaked hinge.  It happens sometimes.  The easiest way to find out is to remove it and clamp the mold together securely.  Shoot it and see what you get.

If you're reinstalling a hinge be sure not to torque the screws too tight as it is possible to twist them off and then you've got another pain to deal with.

Jerry

[CrabbyBass]

Thanks guys! I will play around with the mold and let you know what happens. 

[Frank]

If you do remove the hinge remember it only has one alignment pin. You will need to make sure both halves are lined up.

[CrabbyBass]

I didn't even think about that Frank! I will just loosen the hinge instead of taking it off. I didn't get to play around with it yet. I had a terrible headache last night after putting the kids to bed. You would think it would be the opposite and my headache would go away. LOL!

[gmintimidator]

I had a tweaked hinge and used a thin piece (1/8 or 1/16") of 5/8" mdf that was an off cut on a cabinet I was making.  I placed it at the back of the mold just in front of the hinge and closed it by hand.  It helped true the hinge back up so it closed tightly again.  When I clamped it, I assume it tweaked it again closer to the way it was made.  I purchased this mold used and I assume it was dropped during shipping and it wasn't well protected.