Gasket Making

[Brian Rupnow]

For everyone of us who delves into the magical world of model engines, be they steam or internal combustion, there is always a need for gaskets. Some of these gaskets are very tiny, and all are darned near impossible to cut out with Exacto knives and/or scissors. Here are two tricks to make gasket making a whole lot simpler and better. First, a "leatherworkers punch" which has 6 different size hollow punches on the wheel at the front. They work almost like magic, with a single squeeze and quarter turn they leave amazing holes in a gasket, as you can see in the strip of gasket material in the picture. And for all of the other sizes of holes, here is a trick that I came up with which works very well. take a piece of mild steel rod slightly larger than the hole you want, and using an even larger drill mounted in the tailstock chuck of your lathe, drill a hole in the end of the shaft until the edges of the drill actually break out thru the edges of the steel. Then turn the outer diameter of the shaft to the exact size of hole you want to punch. this will leave a razor sharp edge all around the circumference of the shaft. place the gasket material you want the hole in on a wooden block, position the home-made punch directly over the area you want cut, and give it one good whack with a hammer. instant perfect sized hole!!!

 

[Gordon]

Another good thing is brad point drills. I bought a cheap set from Harbor Freight and they work well for making holes in gasket material.I don'd know how well they work in wood.

 

[charlesfitton]

Somebody out there must have a spouse that is scrapbooking for a hobby.

I've oft wondered if the precision cutters that they use could be programmed to cut gaskets...or something useful.

 

[ICEpeter]

I am sure somebody has done that, and if so, it would be nice to see some pictures of the how to and result.

Peter J.

 

[idahoan]

I'm going to find out; I just ordered a Cameo by Silhouette.
http://www.silhouetteamerica.com/shop/machines/cameo

I understand the you can import DXF files directly into their software. I have some other modeling uses planed for it also.

Dave

 

[canadianhorsepower]

For everyone of us who delves into the magical world of model engines, ]

you can get this


[http://www.princessauto.com/en/detail/12-pc-hollow-punch-set/A-p8548059e

 

[Brian Rupnow]

Thanks Luc---I knew about those, but never bought them because I really don't make that many gaskets. I always seem to have a bunch of left over "short ends" of roundstock in my junk drawer, so I just make the punches as I need them. as you can see in the picture, I save them each time, and have quite a collection now.---brian

 

[10K Pete]

Somebody out there must have a spouse that is scrapbooking for a hobby.

I've oft wondered if the precision cutters that they use could be programmed to cut gaskets...or something useful.

Hey, now that is really interesting!! Never knew about those.

Pete

 

[Gordon]

I have used my CAD program to draw a gasket and print it out on gasket material.

 

[Brian Rupnow]

I have used my CAD program to draw a gasket and print it out on gasket material.

Gordon--I always print mine out on plain old printer paper. Then I use a glue stick to glue it to a piece of gasket material. Then I leave it right in place when I install the gasket.

 

[Blogwitch]

I find one of the cheapo compass cutters indispensable when making cylinder gaskets, they can be had for just a few bucks.

John

 

[RonGinger]

I found a drag knife at a craft store that is made for these paper cutters. I made a mounting bracket to install it on my CNC router. I use a clean melamine covered board as the table and cut vinyl graphics and paper. To adjust the paper thickness I pile a few steel washers on top of the knife holder to set the weight. It works great.