System for making braces for dies

An apparatus for producing a brace for a cavity die from a strip of material, the apparatus comprising:

• a) a bed for supporting the strip of material, the bed including a plurality of flanges along a first side of the bed and which define a reference edge;
• b) a material feeder for moving the strip of material in a first direction generally parallel to the reference edge;
• c) a cutting tool movable in a second direction generally perpendicular to the reference edge across the strip of material;
• d) a control system for coordinating the movement of the material feeder and cutting tool to make a desired cut in the strip of material;
• e) a piston assembly mounted to a second side of the bed opposite the first side of the bed, the piston assembly adapted to push the strip of material generally in the second direction from a hopper located along the second side of the bed onto the bed;
• and
• f) at least one guide mechanism mounted to the second side of the bed and located adjacent the piston assembly between the hopper and the flanges, the at least one guide mechanism movable between a retracted position and a contact position,
• wherein in the retracted position the at least one guide mechanism is lowered substantially beneath the bed allowing the piston assembly to push the strip of material generally in the second direction from the hopper onto the bed, and
• wherein in the contact position the at least one guide mechanism bears against the strip of material on the bed to bias the strip of material against the flanges of the bed.