Page 9 - Moldex3d training Manual

To save on tooling cost, the gate number should be reduced as much as possible, however, too few gates
will increase the pressure required to fill the part, meaning a larger machine will be needed.
On average, the Flow Length Ratio should be kept under 100, but the optimal gate number for different
material types can be found below:

2.1.3 How to determine where to place gates
2.1.3.1 Hesitation & Leading
The cross-sectional area plastic flows through greatly affects the ability of the material to flow. Plastic will
always tend to flow in areas of higher cross-sectional area, meaning that a variation of thickness in the
part will cause a flow imbalance.

Hesitation occurs when material struggles to fill out a certain region of the part. This will occur most often
in thin features. It is important to keep in mind that hesitation can cause short shots in extreme scenarios
because the feature is not able to fill out after being by-passed by the major melt front.

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