Head gasket

[Mike Ginn]

Gordon
This is the process I use. Basically you draw a box around the gasket in Autocad, export to Studio and then resize the box and contents to the correct size. In the past I posted the following:-

I have been using the Silhouette cutter for many years. Originally using Design Master as the interface between dxf and the Silhouette but unfortunately this no longer works due the licencing and obsolescence. Using dxf with Studio Design was a real pain. I tried Inkscape with little success. The main problem with Studio and dxf is scaling but there are commands to change the scaling. There are other issues so I generated the procedure below which I find works. It is based on surrounding the required shape in a box of known size in AutoCAD or other dxf apps. I then scale the drawing in Studio so that the box is the correct size.

If anyone has a better method, I would love to hear about it!

• Cutter – Silhouette SD from eBay
• Silhouette Studio Design Edition version 4.1
• Create dxf file in AutoCAD 2000 format – this is my default format for greatest flexibility.
• DO NOT JOIN lines – if joined expand. (If joined the cutter makes many small cuts)
• Make sure there is a box around object of known size in inches
• In Studio Designer File/Open/select file – takes time to load
• Using arrow in top left corner select box and content
• Right click object and select - Make compound path
• Open transform panel – 3 vertical lines on RH menu
• Double click to Select the 45deg line (takes time)
• Close padlock
• Type the correct width of the box into one of the boxes and click the second box to see the new value, apply
• If necessary, move object using the single up/down/left/right arrows
• Select Send and then send. Cutting lines are in Red
• For thin card set to single cut, for gasket material 0.25mm select 2 cut. Use FLEXOID Gasket Paper 0.25 thick – from eBay

Note that 1 cut is the default

Mike

 

[Gordon]

Gordon
This is the process I use. Basically you draw a box around the gasket in Autocad, export to Studio and then resize the box and contents to the correct size. In the past I posted the following:-

I have been using the Silhouette cutter for many years. Originally using Design Master as the interface between dxf and the Silhouette but unfortunately this no longer works due the licencing and obsolescence. Using dxf with Studio Design was a real pain. I tried Inkscape with little success. The main problem with Studio and dxf is scaling but there are commands to change the scaling. There are other issues so I generated the procedure below which I find works. It is based on surrounding the required shape in a box of known size in AutoCAD or other dxf apps. I then scale the drawing in Studio so that the box is the correct size.

If anyone has a better method, I would love to hear about it!

• Cutter – Silhouette SD from eBay
• Silhouette Studio Design Edition version 4.1
• Create dxf file in AutoCAD 2000 format – this is my default format for greatest flexibility.
• DO NOT JOIN lines – if joined expand. (If joined the cutter makes many small cuts)
• Make sure there is a box around object of known size in inches
• In Studio Designer File/Open/select file – takes time to load
• Using arrow in top left corner select box and content
• Right click object and select - Make compound path
• Open transform panel – 3 vertical lines on RH menu
• Double click to Select the 45deg line (takes time)
• Close padlock
• Type the correct width of the box into one of the boxes and click the second box to see the new value, apply
• If necessary, move object using the single up/down/left/right arrows
• Select Send and then send. Cutting lines are in Red
• For thin card set to single cut, for gasket material 0.25mm select 2 cut. Use FLEXOID Gasket Paper 0.25 thick – from eBay

Note that 1 cut is the default

Mike

That is basically what I do. I make a DXF drawing using Visual Cad, my usual 2D program and load it into the cutter. Select the parts on the loaded drawing and there is usually some part with a know size and so I rescale the entire part using whatever the % change works out to. Not really a big problem, mostly just a PITA. After the last software update I had a problem repositioning the part. Default is to center the part. In the past I could just select all and drag it into a position. Now that does not work so I ended up cutting a gasket centered in the sheet. I finally found that the move command would move things in specified increments.

 

[TimTaylor]

Just as a footnote, any of the craft cutting machines (Brother, Cricut, etc.) should work for this. Paper based materials such as Flexoid or Karropak, as well as cork and cork composites, can also be easily cut with a good quality hobby laser.

I had a compressor rebuild project that needed some new gaskets. Instead of trying to locate and order precuts and waiting for delivery, I picked up a small sheet of Karropak material from the local NAPA store and cut them myself on my 20W diode laser cutter/engraver. They worked great. For the head gasket I gave it a thin coat of Permatex copper gasket coating spray, which helps seal any little surface imperfections.

The whole process of drawing them up in Lightburn and then cutting them took less than an hour, and my total material cost was about $6.

 

[HMEL]

How do you do holes for hold-down bolts?

Don

There are commercially available gasket punch sets ranging in size from 1/8 to 1-1/4 size or 1mm to 10 mm varying in costs from 25 to 75 dollars. Felpro also sells a variety of gasket materials to choose from. However be careful as one of the products I have has reinforced wires embedded in it. Its an old school skill making these. Using the right material and laying out the gasket is the tricky part. I have used cad to do the layout of the gasket and then transferred the print to the material. But I have also not done this in awhile there may be better methods. Such as laser cutting.

 

[DKGrimm]

There are commercially available gasket punch sets ranging in size from 1/8 to 1-1/4 size or 1mm to 10 mm varying in costs from 25 to 75 dollars. Felpro also sells a variety of gasket materials to choose from. However be careful as one of the products I have has reinforced wires embedded in it. Its an old school skill making these. Using the right material and laying out the gasket is the tricky part. I have used cad to do the layout of the gasket and then transferred the print to the material. But I have also not done this in awhile there may be better methods. Such as laser cutting.

Good comments. Thanks.

Don

 

[Richard Hed]

For that price, I would make cutting dies. they are not too hard to do if you use a lathe.

 

[Gordon]

Making the holes is only part of the problem. Irregular profiles both interior and exterior are more of a problem.