Custom Molded Rubber Parts
For over three decades, Seal Dynamics has been providing customers with unique custom molded parts to exact specifications using a variety of techniques like injection molding, compression molding and transfer molding. We can supply a wide variety of rubber-molded parts such as bellows, grommets, seals, pads, boots, bumpers, rubber extrusions, and bushings.
The process creating custom molded rubber parts can utilize several different techniques and
molding methods including injection, compression, and transfer.
- During Injection Molding, the rubber is worked and warmed and then inserted into a mold at controlled temperatures, speeds, and pressure. Injection molding typically produces the most consistent results by automating all aspects of how the rubber gets into the mold and therefore is used when high precision tolerances are required and you are seeking high volume production.
- Advantages of Injection Molding
- Fast production cycles because the rubber is warmed before going into the mold
- Provides for maximum product consistency
- Allows the most control of flash
- Disadvantages of Injection Molding
- Expensive molds
- Usually has left over scrap material in each cycle
- Not suited for all compounds or application
- Compression Molding is one of the oldest and simplest ways to make rubber products and in some applications, compression molding is still the method. Compression molding pushes uncured rubber into a cavity in the mold. Heat and pressure is then applied over time to cure the
rubber into the shape of the cavity. The mold is then opened and the part extracted. Compression rubber molding is typically used when commercial tolerances are acceptable and you require low production volume with lower tooling costs.
- Advantages of Compression Molding
- Lower cost molds
- Often better for large parts
- Generates very little scrap so best used on expensive compounds when possible
- Disadvantages of Compression Molding
- Difficult to control the production cycle and quality
- Not suited for some types of parts
- Transfer Molding utilizes a "piston and cylinder" type of a device constructed into the mold to force the rubber into the mold cavity through small openings. Transfer molding is typically used when precision tolerances and flash control are required and you require moderate and higher volume production runs.
- Advantages of Transfer Molding
- Production cycle times are shorter
- Typically best for rubber-to-metal bonding
- Provides more product consistency than compression molding
- Disadvantages of Transfer Molding
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