Making a Core
VIDEOS
Part 1:
Part 2:
THE PRESS & THE COPPER FILM
The two rolls of copper film.
The VHRC core is a film type honeycomb core. The copper material (film)
is supplied in a roll and is manufactured in Sweden by Luvata. It must
conform to strict specifications, some of which are tensile strength, yield,
thickness, elongation and hardness. The width of the roll dictates the
thickness of the core being made.
The film is run through a bath of pressing and forming oil before being
entering the press. The press stamps 2 copper strips at a time, one on top
of the other. A series of dimples also are pressed into the film to assist
in the assembly of the core.
CUTTING THE FILM TO LENGTH
Film cut to length. Click for a larger image.
The die-set within the machine, stamps 3 simple corrugations repeatedly
into the copper film as it passes through the dies towards the indexed
guillotine. The film is stamped and moved forward using the "cam action"
of the lower set of dies.
The hand operated indexed guillotine cuts the film to length, to suit
the core being made, with an allowance being made for the lock-seams,
top and bottom. (See height chart)
LOCK-SEAMING THE TUBES
Before lock seaming. Click for a larger image.
After lock seaming. Click for a larger image.
The next step is to lock-seam the stamped strips to form a tube.
Both ends of the strip are lock-seamed in two separate actions.
The lock-seam forms the flat surface on the top and bottom of the core to
which the tanks are soldered.
CORE FINISHING
Stacked core.
After face-dipping.
The tubes, then, have a single strip slipped between them to form the
fin. Once the fin is fitted, the core is stacked on the flat assembly
table to the required width, clamped and face dipped in molten solder
6mm deep.
CORE SHAPING
Non-square radiator. Click for a larger image.
Non-square core. Click for a larger image.
When a honeycomb core has a non-square shape,
the corners must be reduced in steps.
The tubes are made shorter to form the correct shape,
and timber fillers are used to hold the core together
during assembling and dipping. To avoid being immersed in liquid flux
prior to dipping, the timber fillers are narrower than the core depth.
This also ensures they stay out of the molten solder bath.
Timber fillers & cross bracing support the
core for dipping. Click for a larger image.
Once the core is dipped and the frames removed, the tubes are shaped to
match the tapered tank using light hammer blows.