Precision Molded and Die-Cut Masking for Aerospace Components
This is a unique custom designed molded and die cut masking system; in fact, it's similar to the custom mask found here - and was for the same customer. The red part is a custom high temperature silicone molded mask; the orange donuts are custom die cut from silicone sheeting.
The part is an aircraft die cast piece, and had some important surfaces requiring no coating. The customer contacted Viadon and we designed a custom masking solution for them which increased productivity and masked the part effectively.
First, the red piece. Though it looks like a table, that's really the "upside down" orientation. The "bottom of the table-top" - so to speak - covered one side of the metal part, which had a central round section protruding from it, as can be discerned from the bulge on the "table-top".
But the customer also needed to mask the four holes around the corners of the part. So rather than putting the part down and inserting four separate pull plugs, Viadon designed integrated pull plugs right into that "table top" (which gives it that look of a table).
But these are no ordinary SPP silicone pull plugs. These are custom engineered masking plugs integrated into one piece for fast, precise masking.
On the opposite side of the metal piece were four areas where washers had to be placed in final assembly. There could not be any coating on these surfaces. But unlike the blue molded part with integrated one-piece die cut mask, for this second part the customer asked for individual die cuts on each corner. They felt for this part it would work better for both the coating process (powder coating) and allow them to have a lower cost option for the washer-masked sections, allowing a lower cost for replacement after coating built up on them.
But to keep these orange silicone die cuts in place, the "pull plug" sections of the red molded piece were made with a radius-tapered section. This was designed precisely so that they would not only pull all the way through the orange die cuts, but then "snap back" and create downward pressure ON the orange mask, holding it firmly in place.
This design worked so well, one of our competitors used it in THEIR ads! See below.
Have a complex part that needs custom masking? Contact our engineers for a design consultation.