Focus processes: fine blanking and thinning deep drawing
Fine blanking vs conventional blanking: which should I specify?
Answer
When is fine blanking used instead? When the sheared edge itself carries the function and a conventional cut's fracture zone is unacceptable. Fine blanking uses a counterforce and an impingement ring to produce a near-full sheared edge, and it is a different machine and tool concept rather than a tighter clearance. Send The Drawing And We Will Review The Edge Requirements
Sources
- Blanking vs Piercing vs Notching: What Is The DifferenceWhen is fine blanking used instead? When the sheared edge itself carries the function and a conventional cut's fracture zone is unacceptable. Fine blanking uses a counterforce and an impingement ring to produce a near-full sheared edge, and it is a different machine and tool concept rather than a ti...
- Blanking vs Piercing vs Notching: What Is The DifferenceA: When the sheared edge itself carries the function and a conventional cut's fracture zone is unacceptable. Fine blanking uses a counterforce and an impingement ring to produce a near-full sheared edge, and it is a different machine and tool concept rather than a tighter clearance....
- Custom Metal Shims & Shim Washers Made to Drawing | BalfordShort answer: A shim should be fine blanked when the cut edge is functional rather than cosmetic: it carries load, sets a preload or has to hold a stack height, and a torn blanking edge would change the assembly. Fine blanking supports the material through the cut, so a suitable part gets a high pro...
- Fine Blanking Operations in Precision Stamping | BalfordThe process virtually eliminates edge deformation, so geometry stays true. We hold flatness and perpendicularity to within 0.03mm, and in some cases down to 0.01mm. The sheared surface is smooth and can extend over 90% of the material thickness, which improves both the look and the function of the p...
- Precision Metal Stamping Services | Custom Stamped PartsCan Balford hold IT7 to IT9 accuracy? + We can hit IT7 to IT9 on suitable precision-stamped features, but it is not a blanket tolerance for every part. Material, geometry, feature type, distance from datums, tooling and measurement method all come into play. Capability is drawing-specific — we confi...
- Custom Metal Shims & Shim Washers Made to Drawing | BalfordDouble-disc grinding. Applied when the thickness is the controlled dimension. Both faces are ground at once, which holds thickness and parallelism far better than blanking from coil. Balford has this carried out by a qualified subcontractor, and the subcontractor is named on request and bound by the...
What an engineer still needs from you
- material and material condition (grade, temper)
- material thickness, plus the key diameter, height and wall thickness
- tolerances, burr direction and the visual acceptance standard
- annual volume - it decides whether tooling is single-hit, progressive or transfer
- surface finish, and any secondary machining, annealing or plating
Need a DFM feasibility assessment for your project?
Send the engineering drawing (STEP or PDF) with the material grade, thickness and annual volume. Balford engineers then check it against the process window - draw ratio, wall thickness, tolerances, blank and tooling route - and come back with what is feasible and what is not. An answer on this page cannot replace that review.
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This page is an engineering answer, not a quotation and not a dimensional acceptance. It is generated from Balford's published material and held to the verified company fact sheet.