Lots of work to do

First things first.  When I purchased the Morgan Press, it was covered in a bunch of sticky grime-- probably from all of the oil added to the compressed air?  Anyway, without a compressor to run the beast, nor any molds to make a part, cleaning, preventative maintenance, and general learning are the way to go.

It's missing the plexiglass that protects the operator from splattering plastic, and at this point I have no idea if it will even work, but I can't wait to dive in.

The Morgan has two heaters, one for the barrel, and one for the nozzle.  You can see the two Watlow 808 PID controllers mounted on the left side of the machine.  They seemed real jumpy and difficult to keep dialed-in.  Just slightly touching the adjustment knob could throw the set point off by up to 20 degrees.  Not good.

Oh, and for anyone trying to transport one of these-- if you can do it upright, that's probably best.  I threw it in the back of my SUV on its side and caused some damage.  The first thing that was messed up was the Ram Power Return knob on right side of the base.  That got bent when loading it into the car.  And the weight of the machine basically sat on that knob for several hundred miles down the highway.  Not good, but it did bend back okay.  The other problem was the orange metal gate over the Material Loading Chute.  That got bent as well.  It wasn't hard to bend back, but I didn't realize at the time how important it was to get that bent back so everything is really snug.  The gate is responsible for engaging the Ram Actuator Interlock Valve.  If the gate is bent out of shape, it won't engage the interlock, and you won't be able to actuate the ram to inject plastic.

If I were to move it again, I'd take off the Material Loading Chute gate (only about 5 screws to take off the upper shroud, and then a plate above the gate that hols it in place).  I'd also unscrew the Ram Power Return knob, and take care to not bend the shaft on that valve.

Getting Started in Injection Molding

Several years ago my brother bought me a 3D printer kit.  It was a Printrbot Plus, and I've been amazed at what I can design and print with it.  Specifically, I've found it an indispensable tool in making the world more accessible to my daughter, who is challenged with cerebral palsy.  I've made headrest mounts, computer mounts, and even some arm orthoses that are better suited to her than what we could get elsewhere.  But what has driven me into injection molding are the adapted switches that I designed for her to control the world around her.  They've been wildly successful for her, and I've been printing extras and donating extras to a local organization where there is high demand for them to help other special kids.  But 3D printing has its limits, and 4 hours of printing (when everything goes right) for a single switch is just not sustainable for any more than a few pieces.  Injection molding was clearly the path forward for me.

After scouring online resources trying to figure out what machine would work best for my application, I settled on a Morgan Press.  It's has a 20-ton clamping force, and depending on the model supports a shot size of 2, 4 or 5 oz.  The price of a new Morgan Press is approx. $20k, way more than I was willing to spend.  But, they come up from time to time on eBay, usually for somwhere from $2k-$8k.  After nearly a year of watching and losing on auctions, I found one a couple hundred miles from where I live.  The price was excellent, and I couldn't pass it up.  A few days later, I was taking the day off of work and driving to California to pick it up.  (A lot cheaper than shipping freight!)

Thus my journey into injection molding begins...