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After
more than a year had passed, an offhand referral from Canica
Design Inc. led us to a firm that was working with a new material
and process-a stainless steel powder with a polymer resin
binder that could be injection-molded under high pressure.
The concentration of metal powder could be varied to change
the specific gravity of the injected material, presuming one
could get the proper material flow in the mold. The substance,
as initially presented, was ideal for our spine, but we still
had to ensure that neither blade nor spine would warp during
the injection or cooling process. The addition of a glass
fiber to the mix gave us the stiffness and stability we were
looking for. We then began to refine the spine design, generating
a physical model in ABS plastic on a three-dimensional printer.
(Note: the brown material in the photograph is soluble and
acts as "scaffolding" for the model being printed,
supporting the first layers while structural strength develops.)
Blade
Assuming the designer gets the ergonomics right, it's
the blade that makes the saw. Choice of material, tooth
configuration and sharpening are all key. Since sharpening
can be both costly and complex, we went straight to a
top-end Japanese manufacturer and worked with its employees
to select the blade material and thickness, tooth pattern
and set for our saw. |
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