Skirted die

Claim 1

A DIE FOR STAMPING A BLANK OF PLASTIC MATERIAL INTO A PIN-DIE SHAPED ARTICLE, SAID DIE HAVING IN COMBINATION: (A) A PAIR OF MATING DIE HALVES EACH HAVING A CAVITY BOUNDED BY A PERIPHERAL LAND, SAID LANDS BEING ADAPTED TO SUBSTANTIALLY CONTACT ONE ANOTHER IN USE, EACH OF SAID DIE HALVES HAVING CO-PLANAR OF THE LAND THEREOF A LONGITUDINAL DIMENSION AND A LATERAL DIMENSION WHICH IS NORMAL TO SAID LONGITUDINAL DIMENSION, (B) SAID LANDS EACH HAVING A PAIR OF SIDE PORTIONS SUBSTANTIALLY PARALLEL TO THE SAID LONGITUDINAL DIMENSION AND A PAIR OF END PORTION SUBSTANTIALLY PARALLEL TO THE SAID LATERAL DIMENSION, SAID SIDE PORTIONS OF EACH LAND BEING OPPOSITELY DISPOSED TO ONE ANOTHER AND SEPARATED BY THE LATERAL DIMENSION OF SAID CAVITY, EACH OF THE SAID END PORTIONS INTERVENING CORRESPONDING ENDS OF SAID SIDE PORTIONS WHEREBY SAID SIDE AND END PORTIONS ALTERNATE ON SAID LAND, AND (C) MEANS TO BLOCK EXTRUSION OF SURPLUS PLASTIC MATERIAL OUTWARDLY OVER THE SIDE PORTIONS OF SAID LANDS AND TO SIMULTANEOUSLY DIRECT THE EXTRUSION OF SUBSTANTIALLY ALL OF SAID SURPLUS MATERIAL IN DIRECTIONS GENERALLY ALIGNED WITH SAID LONGITUDINAL DIMENSION DURING STAMPING, SAID MEANS COMPRISING A PAIR OF OPPOSED SKIRTS EACH OF WHICH HAS A LENGTH WHICH IS APPROXIMATELY THE SAME AS THAT OF A SAID SIDE PORTION, EACH SKIRT BEING MAINTAINED IN ENGAGEMENT WITH SUBSTANTIALLY THE ENTIRETY OF THE OUTER EDGE OF A SIDE PORTION OF THE LAND OF ONE OF THE DIE HALVES, SAID OPPOSED SKIRTS EXTENDING BEYOND THE LAND OF ONE DIE HALF IN THE DIRECTION OF THE OTHER DIE HALF AND BEING ADAPTED TO TELESCOPE OVER THE OUTER EDGES OF THE SIDE PORTIONS OF THE LAND OF THE OTHER DIE HALF IN CLOSE SLIDING CONTACT THEREWITH, SAID SKIRTS BEING SEPARATED FROM EACH OTHER AT THEIR ENDS BY THE FULL LENGTH OF EACH OF SAID END PORTIONS OF SAID ONE DIE HALF WHEREBY OPPOSITELY DISPOSED UNBLOCKED AREAS INTERVENE THE MATING END PORTIONS OF SAID DIE HALVES DURING THE PERIOD OF FINAL DEFORMATION OF SAID PLASTIC MATERIAL.