"AD Design, Your Comments?"
Roger- I worked with far more progressive than compound dies so I default to a prog die out of familiarity. I can almost visualize the compound design but can't quite get all of it in my head because all of the perf's and slot punches seem a bit crowded in there for one hit. Since I didn't want to lead the OP down a path I wasn't all that confident with I defaulted to what I'm more familiar with. However, if you have the experience to state that this is compound die territory then I'll take my expensive/fussy prog die design notions and go sit in the back row to take notes and, hopefully, learn something.
I appreciate your posting your thoughts and experience and do agree that "Knowledge is passed on from one to another. We aren't born with all knowledge." but I was hoping to test the motivation of the OP. I don't know about you but I run into a staggering number of people on internet boards and in life that believe that they're entitled to answers just because they ask. They often don't seek the answers they just seek someone to give them the answers or do the work for them. In the Dark Ages before the internet a newb had to be pretty much spoon fed until they bought a MHB and did some reading, I did back in 1979. It's a different age and information is now at the fingertips of anybody with an internet connection. I expect more effort now because it's available, I still do research on things I don't know (compound die design should be on my list...).
I had a 4th year engineering intern approach me and asked "Where are all the standards for machine tool design?" I plopped my slightly ragged copy of MHB on the desk and pointed to it. She asked "No really, where are they written down?" I told her that's really where they're written down if you selectively look through it. Dejected, she never asked for further guidance on the matter although I would have helped her find it.
Another 4th year engineering intern was asked to come up with a modular approach to welding fixtures for the large tow trucks we made. Several of us gathered for the presentation she made. After identifying how long it took using the current design methods and the number of different fixtures required for each model her Power Point brought us to a standard fixture plate. She proudly announced that she had done a lot of research on the subject.... She was applauded by the 2 engineers in the room. I quietly asked her (to avoid embarrassing her) if she considered how large/expensive that plate would have to be to accommodate a 15 foot frame for welding purposes. Somehow that concept never came to be but that didn't stop her from feeling proud of her solution presentation. The encouragement from the 2 engineers that hadn't made anything with their hands more complicated than a birdhouse only fueled her perception of self worth.
My point? That they need help, badly. Applause for bad ideas is like handing out participation trophies. It denies them the experience from making bad decisions. It's almost like the old joke of where does one get experience? One gains experience from making bad decisions. I also feel that simply handing out answers only serves to reinforce the misguided notion that you don't need to learn anything, you only have to locate someone that knows more than you do. I was hoping the OP would have tried to find the best flavor of AL, guess-timated the tonnage required, and whatever else could be found through research. I even asked for a screen shot of a CAD concept to determine if ANY effort was being made. Somebody in a jam on the job is a different dynamic, they need solutions there isn't time to research. This is a school project for somebody that's going to potentially become an engineer. That's what a school project is partly for, to learn how to find solutions to problems. My questions and lack of any real design help was to reveal whether the OP was genuinely in need of guidance or just another lazy millennial soon to become another useless/arrogant engineer.
My apologies for the long rambling, maybe that's why the interns don't ask me too many questions...
