crazy question: where to find a flatpack lead-forming die

[Alex Eisenhut]

Does anyone recognize this type of tool and what company would have made them back in the day?
I'm looking for keywords so I can buy one. Maybe the Smithsonian has one ...in the basement...

[jmelson]

Lead forming tool, but I suspect you will have a VERY hard time finding one.  But, they are not that complicated, you should be able to have a machine shop create the dies needed, and then mount them to a small arbor press.  We had our shop make up some custom tooling, and they mounted it in a little arbor press that stands about 4" tall.

Jon

[Alex Eisenhut]

Thanks, do you also happen to know what KE stands for? There's another picture with precisely an arbor press and the only text I can make out is KE which looks like a manufacturer's logo. A company I suspect that is as dead as flatpacks.

BTW, do you know what logic family TI called "925" back in the 1960s? Many TI flatpacks have 925 printed on them in the pics I have.

[Alex Eisenhut]

The tool I see in my book has two actions, it forms the leads and cuts off the excess. It doesn't look like something I can just improvise I think.

[Alex Eisenhut]

argh, that "KE" was gnawing away at my brain stem, that's why
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Keuffel_and_Esser
Don't think they also made lead forming tools...