What equipment would be needed to make your own rubber shoe soles?
Is this something you could do in your garage?
>>901042
You would need a mold and some way to force melted rubber into it.
>>901042
https://www.google.com/?gws_rd=ssl#safe=off&q=rubber+for+molds
Injection molding machine and appropriate molds. Then you buy plastic pellets I believe.
>>901042
mebbe try get some casting silicone or casting urethane
>>901042
Not with typical garage stuff, no.
We used to make engineered bushings in house when I worked at GM. The techs would mix up rubber pucks, and test durometer (hand mixing is variable, so needed to confirm after mix, and the final durometer mattered for ultimate use.) Then they melted the pucks down into machined steel molds into a machine the size of a small car stood on end. It required heat (~350F) and pressure... IIRC the box kept the hot mold shoved together under significant pressure while it cooled.
It wasn't complicated, and seemed like fun. But not a garage project.
>>901042
I always wanted to stry making sandals out of old tires, leather strapping, and something for padding to see how comfortable I could make them.
I have a tire with a sidewall leak, maybe I'll try it when I put the winter tires on.
>>901042
>>901215
The big thing was an autoclave(basically a pressurised oven), they would impregnate the rubber with sulphur atoms under pressure and elevated temperatures, its called vulcanisation and 350f is where it happens.
Having the part in the mould is to provide it with shape and controlling the density (amount of rubber to volume of mould). Controlling the density and degree of vulcanisation has a significant effect on the end material properties, and where/what it can be used for.
The hard part is sourcing the raw materials, building an autoclave, controlling the temperature, pressure, amount of sulphur and removing all of the thermal energy while keeping all of your fingers and toes in the process.
TL;DR you need a solid understanding of what actually happens and is needed before you can even think of doing this at home.(For >>901042)
A ton of Chinese kids and a sweaty garage
Bump..
With a shop press and the appropriate dies, you could maybe produce rubber soles. Remember what others have said about the need for heat. If you can't make a properly-vented oven for the purpose, your options will be limited.
Just spit-balling here, but what about urethane or polyurethane doped with solvent? The idea is that the solvent will evaporate as the plastic cures, leaving it with a spongy consistency. Maybe it would work with plain old Home Depot PU caulk and some acetone (or whatever the right solvent is for PU).
>>901251
Are you me?
i collect old memory foam mattresses for the pad. tire, carved wood to support my fallen arch, memory foam, silk rope
>>902777
>silk rope
>old tires
>google silk rope
>98% of the results are either "bondage," "erotic," or "japanese."
What a terrifying life you must lead.
