Talk:Punching

Misconception?

The article contains this sentance, "A misconception about punching is that the shape does the cutting, when in fact the shape presses the material into a die that cuts the metal."

Isn't that like saying that only one blade on a pair of scissors does the cutting? Surely it takes two. Am I wrong?

Response: It would be better to think of the process as using a cookie cutter. When cutting with a cookie cutter, the sharp bottom edge of the cutter makes the cut, not the pan the cookie dough is on. The pan does provide an opposing force to the pressing force of the cookie cutter. So now imagine we flipped the cookie cutter over and placed it on the table. Then we press the cookie dough over the cutter with the force of a hand. The hand does not do the cutting, it just provides the force needed to cut thru the dough. This is pretty much the same process in punching. This is also why sharpness of the punch is not as critically important than the die.