Recreating knobs

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BluegrassDan

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I ordered 25 NOS bakelite knobs from Russia. Haven't seen anything exactly like them in terms of dimensions and shape. Any ideas as where to get these replicated? Davies-Molding? Anywhere else in the US?

What type of price should I expect to pay?

 

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Bakelite is really expensive to start up,  only really useable for parts where you can expect to produce a never-ending continous flow. Something with molds and oxidation and such.

Jakob E.
 
Just as a side comment, I see the OP has already solved his problem by buying more:

I *have*  made bakelite parts, still own the dies.
Not used them for ages (think 20 years) but can answer doubts based on own experience:

1) to begin with, no special "rust" problem implied, even if bare steel with no special treatment, like any machine tool or die you just coat them in thick machine grease and they will last a Century.
Just degrease them for use and regrease them afterwards.

2) they *can* still  be pressed, but market importance has shrunk considerably so it´s gharder to find who will make that for you.
I remember using people who press rubber parts, since process is quite similar, you press and cook a dry crumbly material into a solid one.
Process lost favor because it´s sllloooowwww, it might take anything between 5 and 15 minutes per batch, while injected plastic parts are spit out like machine gun bullets, but if you need thermostable high temperature parts , or rubber parts, (which are vulcanized under pressure and tempoerature in a similar proicess)  there´s no other way, so ....

3)
Any ideas as where to get these replicated? Davies-Molding? Anywhere else in the US?

What type of price should I expect to pay?
A lot of money and there is a minimum quantity batch, you do need *dies*  after all.
Only justified if btgere is a ready Market for quite a few hundred or maybe a couple thousand of them, suppose everyubody is restoring old Pultecs or similar vintage stuff, or somebody sells a very popular kit, all needin g some kind of old unavailable Bakelite knobs.

That said, Bakelite pressing dies are relatively simple, they maybe made out of cheap steel, for a couple hundred batch maybe even CNC carved in a solid block of good quality Aluminum, you need no cooling tubes or channels, at most a nhole drilled for a Thermostat, they are clamped to hot press plates for operation.

Not NASA Technology but 1900 to 1960 type :) 

Real Bakelite dust can be hard to find, but there is a much better modern version (related to Melamine) .

 
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