DiResta: CNC Mold for Leather Compact Case

I have been thinking of molding leather for some time. The idea came to me to utilize the CNC to create a mold for a leather and bronze compact case. The cutting path was made from a simple vector.

It occurred to me to use the blue foam to make the inside “plug” with the pressure of the Harbor Freight Press. It is possible to make a positive and negative at the same time, but here I made only the negative half.

For the frames I milled up 11-gauge bronze I had in the shop. The hinges are soldered on with electrical solder; they are not the strongest, but I have used it before and it works. Lastly, I used cyanoacrylate glue to attach the leather to the bronze. The groove will provide more surface area for the glue and also conceal the leather’s edge.

Thank you and enjoy!

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