Die flaws on EK1 C.F Zimmerman

[Euronymous]

Hello

I noticed some die flaws on the frame. Please compare the 2nd and the 3rd cross on 5tefan page:

http://www.ek1-dna.de/-l-52--carl-fr...---pinback.php

Both have the 1st frame. But the 2nd cross shown has die flaws on the rims just before 3 o'Clock. The rims at this point are nearly invisible compared to the 3rd cross. How can you explain this flaws ?

[Euronymous]

up !

[Douglas 5]

Not sure what flaws you are referring to ?

Douglas

[Euronymous]

Please read this old thread, you will understand what I am referring to:

http://forum.wehrmacht-awards.com/fo...d.php?t=236367

There is a lost of details on the beading at some points.

[Euronymous]

Die flaws = post war ?

[Euronymous]

CF Zimmermann used 2 dies for the frame and each of them has die flaws. Whereas Klein & Quenzer only used one die for the frame until the end of the war and no visible flaws. How can you explain that ?

[Euronymous]

up !

[Douglas 5]

CF Zimmermann and K&Q made a lot of crosses - . Both makers certainly used more than just 1 or 2 working dies . As per Deschler a master/design die would let one make about 5 working/production die copies to be used
... these without touch ups would produce almost identical looking frames . So some production dies could have die flaw developing during their use and later used production dies did not have any flaws at all .
This is why some later made cross have no flaws and earlier made ones do .

Douglas

[Euronymous]

Douglas, you want to mean that they used probably several copies of the same working die ?

[Douglas 5]

Using an actual working/production die(new or used) - the positive half with raised features - to make another copy - would have destroyed that die .
These hardened dies are only used to " form " a relatively very thin piece of much softer metal . Pounding a hardened die into steel - hot or cold - is like driving your car into a brick wall .
The wall may have some breaks and chips in it but your car is a write off . The production of a working die is done in the opposite sequence .
The positive top die half is made first - by pressing multiple times heated medal into a negative die 'mold' or the design master . The new top die is then used to produce it's other bottom die half .
One design master die /mold can make about 5 production/working dies .

Douglas