In another thread (http://forums.thehomefoundry.org/in...-and-fixturing-version.2421/page-2#post-48717) I have been posting some about a match plate I've been making for an angle plate. Today I drew that match plate with the patterns for the sprue and riser attached along with the primary pattern on one side and on the other side the other half the pattern was attached as was the runner pattern. The match plate and flasks use very shallow alignment pins. I find long guide pins to often be in the way as I mold at my bench and I usually avoid them. So, I did not include any long guide pins in this match plate. Instead I attached a guide board on the "backsplash" of my molding bench that provides level lines and a guide board along which I can slide a corner of the plate while keeping the rear edge of the plate in contact with the board and at the same time using level lines on the board to help me do a good level draw. This is harder to describe than it is to actually perform. Drawing the plate using this guide system worked very well. To pop the plate loose initially, I used a small trowel and wedged up on the short end of the plate about 1/4" while tapping on the plate with a small soft-faced hammer. To keep that amount of lift, I inserted a wedge and then repeated this on the other short end of the plate. At that point the plate was loosened from the sand and I simply drew the plate while keeping it level and the right hand corner sliding in the corner of the guide board. I got a nice clean draw. Here is the guide board with drawn lines attached to the backsplash of my molding bench. You can see the short alignment pins of the cope half of mold. This is the cope side of the plate. The sprue is about 3.5" tall and the riser about 3. FWIW. Denis
What I do when I run a flask that has really long guide pins, those that come above the top of the cope...when I ram the drag I put bottom boards under the works to keep the pins off the machine.