How to Cut Foam
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- čas přidán 16. 01. 2018
- This video may be a little longer, but you will learn everything that has went into the process of making our foam cases what they are today. Now, every knife comes with a foam insert, which the brothers Grimsmo design and mill themselves, and a hard plastic case.
John also came up with 2 general tricks that will help anyone with cutting foam!
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Datron Tool's foam cutting end mill: www.datron.com/tools/foam-cutting-tools.php
Foam Fit Tools: www.FoamFitTools.com/
Music from: www.EpidemicSound.com - Věda a technologie
Hi. I work at a flight case company in Holland where I cut a lot of foam for huge flight cases to tiny presenting boxes like yours. So I thought you might like some tips. How we do it. Instead of putting the foam directly onto the suction grid we put a thin sheat of 3 millimeter mdf wood that allows the suction to go tru and then set the dept of the router to just hit the mdf so you cut al the way tru the foam. So then you get an instand smooth edge. I do like you're idea of the table router to round of the edges. Nice! We use a very fine bandsaw that you can put on a 45 degree angle. But I think you're doing it well! When the foam comes of the cnc it's always a little bit rough, that normal. So we hit it gently with a heat gun so it melts all the burs away and gives it a general smooth finish. Another thing, my personal taste, I think it looks a lot better If the egg box foam in the lid has smaller bumps. Here in Holland you can get them in all sorts of depths en thicknesses. Good luck!
Genius, so many great ideas/improvements in the processes
I spent 40 years in the machine tool industry John and you did a great job with that foam insert. I had several ideas pop up during the video only to see you use them later in your presentation, so "great minds", eh?
All in all, nicely done and it was fun watching the problem solving process again.
Man the attention to detail you guys put into this is phenomenal. Your passion really shows. You guys will be very successful
Love the iterative design process for your cases. They look awesome!
If you are this thoughtful about your foam packaging, I can't imagine how AMAZING your knives must be!
I enjoy your full explanations of your thought process and then watch as you put it into action. Well done.
A trick for getting rid of the fuzzy edge is to use a heat gun. The tiny fuzz shrinks from the heat faster than the solid foam will burn. So if you do it quick enough you get a clean product.
Holy crap! Such attention to detail. Great tips and great vid! Well done!
Attention to detail even on the small things mean a lot to the customer. Great job!
I have been CNCing foam for years. I assure you that trimming the outer edge of the hole first is what we have been doing for years. With foam working from the inside out almost always works better. We have used a curved razor as well as routers to make radius edges.
All in all very good job with a nice learning curve.
amazing on how much time and work that even go into just the case you obviously are a perfectionist and it shows in the quality of your knives .... don't own one yet but have handled a Norseman and fell in love! Keep up the great work John and team.
You guys are too much, the attention to detail is amazing. Good job! Now I want one of your knives.
As an Entrepreneur myself, I really appreciate your attention to detail and dedication to improving the quality of your packaging. To be honest, I had never heard of your company before today when this video showed up in my suggested videos. I'm definitely going to be looking into your products, as I am also a knife enthusiast! Keep up the great work and never stop striving to put out high quality stuff!
Awesome Jordan, thanks for watching!
Now that's a ton of useful information right there! Thanks for sharing your experiences and solutions.. :-)
I love that you guys make EV-ERY-THING! Truly special
love the development stages and thank you for all the tips!
I just spent 16 minutes watching foam cutting. And it was awesome.
SO funny! Here I am looking up DIY foam cutting for fishing project and this video pops up from my grail maker. I don't have the tools Grimsmo has but hey, Im watched the whole thing any way. Good to see you guys! Beautiful work all the way around. Your attention to detials in every aspect demonstrate the pinacle of craftsmanship.
Just a thought, John. I totally thought at the beginning conventional milling would do the trick and was pleased ro see that's what you discovered. Another idea, why don't you machine a brand for your logo to heat stamp into the corner? Would save you tons of time on the mill.
Thank you for sharing your process of solving your problem and enjoy the commitment to your quality standard.
Thanks for watching and enjoying Doug!
From experience, if you go over eva foam lightly with a heat gun it helps clean up some of the fuzz around edges. Not sure if it'd work with that foam but might be worth a shot on a scrap piece.
#CosPlaySecrets :D
Yea Ive done this! Hit it quickly with the tip of a bic
This type of foam works great for tool boxes. Making spots for every tool
What kind of foam is that on the bottom?
@@scottdunlap4109 I'm not sure of the name. You can find it on Amazon just search tool organizer foam sheets.
Hot damn, these foam inserts are awesome. Lot’s of useful tips for anyone wanting to cut foam on the CNC.
Thank you for sharing this content. Five stars.
Thanks, very nice work, its interesting how you guys tweek the finer details like on the woodworking table router and manual milling techniques instead of cnc climb milling.
Thanks for this John. Time to do the toolbox drawers. Myself that is
I had an idea for the back radius: A screen for the vacuum plate to put the foam inserts back on it upside down and milling the big radius on the CNC. Picture a lasercut plastic/acrylic/wood/thin aluminium "waste" lattice from your parts. With the screen you locate the inserts to the plate and cover up the exposed bits at the same time. This way you can even mill a small pocked if you need more space for things in the bottom.
You guys have come so far. Some day, I will buy a Grimsmo.
The sticker looks great!
Very, Very informative video. Thanks guys.
Love your attention to detail. I always look forward to your videos!!
Great to hear! Lots more in the pipeline.
" How to Cut Foam "
Step 1: get foam
Step 2: get a $5,000 milling machine
Me: LOL
Don't forget the CNC software and the time to design the layouts.
Only $5K ?
CNC is really just a fancy motion system for a trim router with an end mill.
Haha lmao exactly
@@judicar no it's not.
is a very dinamic and realistic video ... is amazing!
Thanks for all the videos John!
You're welcome!
Very nice John! I really enjoy the process.
Excellent job!
love the new videos thanks for sharing
You guys are awesome!
Hey man, beautiful work! I signed up for your Norseman Makers Choice! Good stuff!
I'm starting to carve cross link polyethylene foam, everything he's said has been correct so far. Great results so far!
Thank you so much for sharing knowledge all the best wishes boss
I remember when you used to ship your knives wrapped in newspaper. You've come a long way since then.
Love how you share the knowledge
Thanks Andres, I've always found it really fun and rewarding to share what I'm working on.
Wow, everyone bashing about milling the foam yet nobody seems to care about the enthusiasm this guy talks about his work and the product... I smiled through the whole video thinking how happy I would be to work like him, being inventive about methods and then enjoying the result. You sir, made me want to buy a desktop CNC machine and make custom multi-layered foam for toolmen. Although I could probably accomplish that with my trusty Dremel, just need that Datron bit. I also understand that if you already have a milling machine, why the heck spend money on custom tools just to cut instead of milling when it's already available and doesn't need you to be there, working alone? I work in a small metal workshop and we many times have to go with what we have, not buying custom tools for one job. I liked this video a lot. Just ordered some samples from ShadowFoam by the way, being in Europe.
Love the cases found video on a recommended. To put the labels on the cases to help you keep them straight you need to make a jig that will help you with the alignment and to keep them from going on wonky. Hope this helps u looking forward to seeing some of your other different videos 👌👍🤗
Glad the videos are back! Great job Erin!
:-)
In re: "Make chips" - I don't know the details of your plastic foam, but in some cases you can make soft materials like this more brittle by keeping them in the freezer until you need to machine them, or by some kind of forced air or wet process at the bit to keep them from melting by tooling friction.
I just saw this video. Awesome. I highly suggest you watch (albeit totally different subject) the following channels about working with foam. Kamui Cosplay and PunishedProps. I highly suggest trying the heatgun method for heat sealing and deburring the foam... I always though about laser cutting the layers and glueing them later. So thanks for sharing. Cheers.
I just stumbled on you guys cause of this video alone. I now want one of your knives
Maybe you should make a aluminum/ Plastic template that fits inside the foam cutouts, on which the router bearing could ride. I think it would make Berry's job a little bit easier and more consistent.
Regards from germany
Great idea. I would try a frame enclosing the upper half of the foam combined with an undersized bearing to end up with proper final dimensions.
Exactly my thoughts.
Ooooor make a die from steel die rule and use a clicker press.
Sweet! Nice job guys, the new foam looks great! I was partial to the blue but that's just me, the green is better than the red.
Great video! Awesome product it appears.
I'm wanting to cut a clean line on a media similar to Dynamat (i.e. foil covered foam insulation with adhesive backing then stuck to a wax paper backing)
I tried using a razor, which shreds the foam and tears the foil.
Then, I tried scissors which does work better, but is time consuming leaves tiny little tears along the wax paper backing as well as the foil.
Does anyone have any suggestions on what the best process would be for this type of material?
Thanks in advance!
Thank you for sharing.
Cool video, greetings from Finland
Wow! This stuff is super innovative! I might even try some of these foam carving tricks just for fun using my inexpensive flex shaft drills! As crisp as your cases are, I expected either some sort of stamp cutter or a method for temporarily hardening the foam while cutting. XD
I love your attention to detail even on the foam inserts.
Vacuum works great , I was wondering how you held it down.
Like how you share your secrets.
Hey John, My thoughts on the foam Radius. Machine a positive die/male. this way the foam could be turned over and the die used as a template/pattern routing system. With a custom router Bit (lets say lakeshore), bearing on the bottom to follow the template, foam upside down on the template. This could face the edge and round over the radius. Please get your man a pair push block.
Nice work John
Good video and good job! For the thin and small foam cutting,milling machine is suitable.
Also good at engraving on the foam.
Great video, closest yet to getting perfect sides on foam
I use a 20w fibre laser to mark foam like that, and it comes out really well. Just melts the surface, very clean high resolution mark in only a few seconds (along with some nasty smoke.) I use plastizote LD45 or thereabouts for the foam, routed and then laser marked to put the logos on. its so fast, we even engrave customers names on their foam as we send stuff out. Takes seconds.
At our makerspace we really love using a laser cutter on foam like this - but we wouldn't be able to do the dual layer like that without manually gluing it after the fact. (cut stencil then glue to solid base) Laser foam is awesome. Looks like you tweaked this to perfection too :D
Thanks for sharing your videos. I'm sure you have given lots of people the courage to become an entrepreneur since you fill in a lot of the mystery of all the steps it takes to run a small business. Since you have the equipment to make a mold, have you thought about just creating the exact piece through injection molding? Of course you would have to learn how to mix the chemicals to make the foam, but it would give you a nice smooth surface finish, and it would give you even more control over the process.
I've always found presentation to be very important it can go the extra mile adding that extra "pizzaz" really cool video THANKS!!!
Really cool to see how much time and attention you put into even smallest of details 😀
You bet! Everything matters.
I'm impressed with your process problem-solving skill. I wouldn't have considered changing tool paths to correct the edge cutting issue. Since the material in use is just foam, I THINK it might be much less costly to cut using custom dies for each layer, before bonding them as a final sandwich/assembly. Instead of wearing out an expensive CNC router that requires several minutes per unit... a custom cutting die would simply press down and through the foam in 2 seconds. A medium durometer rummer base surface would preserve the cutting edges forever (virtually). I don't want to sound critical. Your business and presentation/marketing skills are exceptional. Thanks for posting.
Great work on the foam John. I have a suggestion that may have cleaner and safer results when routing the radius. Machine a jig that fits over the foam, just the upper half and put a smaller bearing on the bit and presto, clean, precise and no accidental radiuses on fingertips.
393stroker, Great idea!
Very much enjoyed your video
Brilliant. Now can we have a tutorial on how to knit fog? I saw one on how to weave yoghurt recently, it was brilliant.
I just found your channel and was very excited to see you put nano oil in the case. It's a great product. I bought some years ago and the stuff lasts forever. Christian StClaire is a super nice guy. One note though, while I was able to find it you should probably put a link to the Grimsmo Knives page in the description along with all the other links you listed. Anyhow keep up the good work.
Nice containers!!
Hey John, you might want to look into a straight flute endmill instead of spirals. I use to cut plastics and wood with spiral endmills but they leave rough burred edges. With a straight flute, you should get clean pristine edges on foam all day!
Should be able to use wood router bits in your mill. Quarter inch radius corner rounding bit with no bearing, run it like an endmill. Only trick might be fixturing and holding the foam after you finish the top and flip it upside down. Might be able to make a fixture plate that will sit on your vacuum plate and direct the vacuum to the right places to hold the individual pads once the router bit cuts them up.
l wilton I concur, just stop, flip, change tools and bam, perfect every time.
25+ doing custom interiors,,and still using a DA with 60grit 3in flex wheel,,,Router use was a super means of removal,,love it,,nice to see you putting should detail into the cases,,Bear
At the beginning I was saying "No CNC, no CNC", and then "Crap!". Apparently everyone but me has a CNC machine, lathe, and a 3D printer.
Damnit Jerry I thought there was a hair on my monitor! :D
Atleast get the 3d printer...they are as little as $130 for a decent one.
Yeah as the other dude said, 3D printers are not prohibitively expensive. The software to design (such as Fusion 360 non-commercial license) and slice your files is free, many free models online also. Material is fairly cheap
Very cool, thanks for taking the time to record and post. I love the FoamFit tool organizers! Hey John, is that Autodesk Fusion that you are using?
Hi John,
You can cut all the way through the product if you use a 5/32 piece of hard board with a flat closed cell (Adhesive backed) foam on it. You then can suck that down to the vacuum table and cut shallow pockets that follow the general shape of the part with just a little offset. These smaller pockets would essentially combine to form the shape of a part which you then create the array from. This forms a seamless, flat, gasket surface that will not leak. Ports are added to the jig to allow vacuum pressure to build in each pocket section. Then, you just suck down the template and your raw material at the same time.
Here is the ultimate trick that makes this work. Since you now have a thickness to the foam that resides on the top of the template (bottom of the case foam), you can now cut all the way through the case foam without releasing the part as long as you only cut into the template foam but not through it. We used this method all the time and it is awesome.
it would look similar to the jig set up in the link provided, but your cutter would not go all the way through the foam in the cut path below the part.
This company sells the sheet goods.
allstaradhesives.com/cart/category/cover_sheets
Those injection moulded snap cases look awesome, a real pet hate of mine is the cheap all in one blow moulded cases that fold over a piece of plastic as the hinge.. I hate them with a passion they always split and break .. I like real sturdy hinges! Foam work is looking crisp! .. I cnced veg tan tooling leather for the first time a couple of months back.. works great!
Where do you get your knife cases? Great work man!
might be time to pick up a cnc router. much better suited for foam cutting imo. The ability to have a dust shoe on cnc routers is amazing for cleanup.
I have the exact same foam in my toolbox. Its cut specifically for my set of craftsman ratchets and sockets
Have you considered to cast the foam parts? Smooth-On has lots of different types of foam, that would fit your needs. This way you could cast the foam parts in ONE go. If your mould is big enough for 6 pads, you could make 6 pads in less than 5 minutes. Nice video btw. Thanks.
You *might* be able to remove the router table step all together with a back corner rounding end mill. Use the thumb indent for entry/exit location and then just go for it full engagement. Lots of reasons this might be a total disaster and would definitely not work in materials that aren't foam but who knows, might save time and give you control over that last step. Really cool video btw.
John, adaptive clearing is ALWAYS the answer.
Hey.. Thanks so much for the info.. I now realize I can save lots of $$ making my own foam product inserts.. Also I want to buy one of your knives...
You can use the big cnc to make a mdf support, fit the foam in the support so it stays firm, then use the table router with the roundover bearing indexed on the mdf.
To remove the long strings wrapping around the tool, you could retract and reverse the spindle between each pocket. Works great when drilling materials that make stringy chip. For your logo, could you make hot brand instead of engraving?
Nice Video😀
at 4:28 that knifes wood inlay looks sick. I just made my first custom grimsmo. I'm so fucking excited to get it
I decided finally to buy my own foam cutting company to make room for my cheap tools storage PVC briefcase. Thanks!
Great video John! Have you been able to source the foam anywhere in Canada? Also I'm looking for a Canadian suppler of quality cases (similar but larger than yours) for one of my products. Any suggestions?
Why you don't use a hot wire cnc. That makes fantastic cuts
The round over router bit has a bearing that needs a hard surface to follow. Make a insert that mates to the foam cut out but offers a smooth hard outline surface for the bearing to profile.
Sounds like Eric deserves a raise
You guys are pioneers. Been following you guys since the old shop. Where exactly do you get the foam and cases?
Dang John... You & Erick are missed. I get it though, you really are making things happen. Proud of what y'all have achieved.
Thanks bro! We've been here all along, just hidden in the shop working away hahaha
support/press the foam with a wood plate when routing/rounding edges. this way it will stay rigid and flat for consistent finish. plate can have a handle if handy.
Hi guys nice job, that's what we call QUALITY and continuous improvement. Peoples are not always thinking and considering the hard works and the value behind the scene. One thing to ask, did you ever tried to do another pass with a rooter cutter on the computer assisted cutter to have the same nice finish than the bottom of the pad by using the rooter table?
Very nice video, again, good work!
I loved the look of your logo on the top foam. Heres a thought. A little dab of adhesive on the tips of the egg carton foam and the foam put in wavy side facing the case top. This will glue it so it wont fall out. Your logo on the flat side so you can see it or on a thin piece of denser foam adhesived to the flat side of the wavy foam. All this should give you a springy top foam that will hold everything snug when the case is shut and still have that super bad ass look of your logo on the top foam. Just a thought. Hope it makes your product better.
Love to see you chase perfection! Do you need to run that endmill as fast as your machine can go, RPM wise?
Yup we run it at the max of 12,000rpm, it would probably be happier even higher!