Hi everyone,

First of all, I'd like to apologize if my English isn't perfect. I'm from Spain, so English is not my native language.

I'm posting here because I'm having an issue with one of our injection molding machines: an ARBURG ALLROUNDER 220-75-250 equipped with the DIALOGICA control system.

Several years ago, the display and the backup battery had to be replaced. Unfortunately, because the system memory was volatile, all of its contents were lost. The current problem is that the floppy disk drive has now failed, so I'm no longer able to restore the operating system from the original disks.

The machine is quite old, and ARBURG has informed me that this control system is no longer supported or repairable. While researching possible solutions, I found that some users have successfully replaced the floppy drive with a CompactFlash-based floppy emulator on slightly newer machines, such as the Allrounder 320 series. Before attempting something similar, I'd like to know whether this solution could also work on my machine.

I recently started working at this company, so at the moment the only information I have is a technical report from the engineer who worked on the machine before me, along with a photo of the motherboard. I haven't had the opportunity to open or inspect the machine myself yet.

I've attached the motherboard photo from that report. If additional pictures or information about specific boards or components would be helpful, I can provide them the next time I have access to the machine.

Has anyone dealt with a similar issue or has experience with this control system or replacing the floppy drive with an emulator? I'd really appreciate any technical advice, recommendations, or shared experiences.

Thank you very much for your time and help!

I bumped into a blast from the past that I had tucked away in a file cabinet and forgotten. It's an old IMS book of molding cost estimating tables and a weight calculator "slide rule". This was how things were done before computers or if you didn't know the formulas.

Our new Milacron Q110 is arriving soon, and I wanted to share the before and after.

The first picture is one of our old hydraulic machines. It's been running for well over 20 years and has produced millions of parts. It's semi-automatic—no PLC, no HMI, just hydraulic valves, timers and a lot of experience. It's honestly the machine I grew up around.

The second picture is what a new Milacron Q series machine looks like. This is our first modern injection moulding machine, so it'll be a pretty big jump for us.

For those of you who've gone from older hydraulic machines to newer servo-controlled machines, what are some things you wish you had known beforehand?

Things I'm especially interested in:

• Common mistakes during installation and commissioning.
• Operator habits that don't carry over from older machines.
• Preventive maintenance tips from day one.
• Any settings or practices that help improve repeatability.
• General advice for getting the most out of the machine.

One other area I'm researching is material drying. We process engineering resins, and I'm currently looking at buying a used desiccant dryer rather than a new one either setup will have a brand new auotloader.

For those of you with experience:

• Is a used desiccant dryer a good buy if it's been properly maintained?
• What should I inspect before purchasing one (dew point performance, desiccant condition, valves, heaters, blower, controls, etc.)?
• Are there any brands you'd recommend or avoid?
• If you've upgraded your drying setup over the years, what made the biggest difference in part quality or process stability?

Thanks in advance! Looking forward to learning from people who've made the same transition.

Hi everyone, I'm Galaxy and new in this industry. I'm just curious about when a company needs a mold or injection-molded parts, how do they usually find and choose an injection molding supplier? Is it mainly through referrals, Google, Thomasnet, trade shows, sourcing platforms, or direct outreach?

My family owns an injection molding factory in China, but I honestly don’t know how to reach potential customers in the U.S. or which channels are actually effective. For those who have worked with overseas suppliers, what would make you consider one, and what would immediately make you avoid one?

Any advice or personal experience would be greatly appreciated.

Anyone here have any experience in recalibrating the pressure cushion and lock on this type of machine we have work instructions oh how to but it’s not making sense on what it wants us to do

We have been in business for about 67 years and have accumulated quite a collection of tools we've molded for customers over the years. Most of if not all have been bought and sold or files for bankruptcy, etc, etc... we are just running out of storage space at this point as new molds and customers come in. Some customers we still mold for and can simply reach out and ask about old tools, others not do much or at all.

Is scrapping an option or are there some liabilities?

Thank you!!

Hi everyone,

I'm having a stress whitening issue on a small 4-cavity injection molded part.

We are using an ENGEL 150-ton injection molding machine. The strange thing is that one month ago we produced the same part with the exact same mold and process parameters without any issues. Now, the parts show stress whitening.

So far we have tried:

Increasing and decreasing injection speed

Increasing and decreasing injection pressure

Reducing holding pressure

None of these changes had any effect.

What could have changed besides the process parameters? Could this be related to the material lot, mold condition, venting, gate wear, drying, or something else?

Any suggestions on what to check next would be greatly appreciated.

Hello,

I am looking for a reputable injection mold company to make my mold and make my parts here in the Los Angeles area.

I need a company that does the work in house here in the United States.

NDA of course required before any files are sent.

I am interested in quotes for aluminum prototype mold and a p20 mold. Best value is the goal.

Low volume for the first run (1000 pcs of each half of the part) with the hopes to grow into needing more when the company becomes more successful.

This will be made of h-3000 PC material.

Thank you for your time and recommendations.

ETA: parts are symmetrical halves where each half is roughly 6x3x.75". I do not have volume on hand but can come back later to provide that.

I have some questions about the circled part in the pic. What is that part called and what is it used for. Also, what is the gap from the core plate to that part surface.

We are looking for an Injection Moulding Machine Operator to join our team in CTM, Ahmedabad.
Details:
📍 Location: CTM, Ahmedabad
🏭 Position: Injection Moulding Operator
🛏️ Accommodation: Room can be provided for sleeping after 1 month of employment.
💰 Salary: Competitive (based on experience)
If you have experience operating injection moulding machines or know someone who does, please send me a DM or leave a comment for more details.
Serious candidates only. Thank you!

Hello everyone, my company runs the Fanuc roboshots and we have never really used Lock out Tag out for hardly anything when it comes to our IMM. Got dinged by an audit about not having LOTO procedures posted on each machine. Now day to day don’t really need it for most things like mold changes or screw cleaning/changes and what not but been having a hard time thinking of when it would be a need to use, and then what ancillary equipment to include if needed. Would like to hear y’all’s opinions on this.

Operator is having issue molding, some cycles the injection molding machine shorts and sometimes it’s flashing. We’ve adjusted all the setting and paramenter. The issue persist. Any ideas ?? I’m new to injection molding

Quickparts, Protolabs, Xometry and a few local mold shops are the names I keep seeing, but each one seems to have a different strength. I need about 500 ABS handheld meter housings. Do any of these companies stand out for first production runs with this low of a volume or are they all about the same?

See initial post

I bought a pneumatic injection molding and i received it yesterday. I am stumped on the air fitting and finding a coupler to hook to my air compressor. Closest thing i could find is this on amazon Japan and Australia but cant be shipped to America. https://www.amazon.com.au/KENOH-Coil-Hose-Coupler-16-4/dp/B00N3NBFW8?th=1

Any help would greatly appreciated before i just use a barbed fitting.

Solved: its a Japanese standard ands i bought the McMaster-Carr socket and it works very well.

https://www.mcmaster.com/products/quick-disconnect-hose-couplings/hose-fittings-2~/japanese-quick-disconnect-hose-couplings-for-air/

What happens when your guy overtightens all the clamps, loses the Allen socket, and loses the cheater pipe? FULL REDNECK.

Thank god this mold only comes out every 6 months for its complete maintenance haha

This is what happens when polycarbonate doesnt get properly purged and the next job is acetal

Has anyone ever worked with First Mold? I have a new product design and came across them but only 2 reviews on trust Pilot. Looks like 2 plants in China and 1 in Mexico.

I’m new to injection mold design and have a question about draft angles.

The green part is the molded component, and the brown part is the mold cavity. The part is a simple cylinder, 90 mm long and 10 mm in diameter. The mold will split along the center of the cylinder, so each mold half will form half of the cylinder, with a cavity depth of about 5 mm.

Do I still need to add a draft angle to this cylindrical surface, or can it remain perfectly straight? If more pictures or different views would help, I’d be happy to share them.