Die Cutting Materials: What Each Press Type Handles Best
Leather, foam, rubber, textiles, gaskets, cardboard — different materials have different cutting requirements. This guide matches material type to the right press configuration.
Leather
Leather is the most common material cut on clicker presses in Australia. It ranges from 1mm skiver leather for linings through to 5–6mm thick saddlery and harness leather.
Leather cutting benefits from a swing arm press because the operator can position the die to avoid blemishes, work around the natural shape of the hide, and optimise material yield. A beam press is less suited to leather because it doesn't allow the same level of placement control.
Die sharpness is critical for leather — a dull die tears rather than cuts cleanly. Vegetable-tanned leather is harder and requires more force than chrome-tanned. Wet leather cuts more easily than dry.
Foam
Foam die cutting is one of the highest-volume applications for clicker presses in Australia. Applications include furniture cushioning, automotive seating, packaging inserts, sports padding, and medical equipment.
Foam compresses significantly before cutting, which means the actual cutting force is higher than the material's shear strength alone suggests. Thick foam (50mm+) requires substantial tonnage — see the tonnage calculation guide for worked examples.
Foam is typically cut in large sheets or rolls, making beam presses the standard choice. The beam press can cut the full material width in a single pass, maximising throughput.
Rubber and Elastomers
Rubber gaskets, seals, and components are a major application for die cutting presses in Australian industrial manufacturing. Materials include natural rubber, neoprene, EPDM, silicone, and nitrile.
Rubber is more demanding to cut cleanly than leather or foam. The material stretches under the die before cutting, which can cause dimensional inaccuracy if the die is not sharp and the press is not set up correctly. Harder rubbers (Shore A 70+) require significantly more force than softer grades.
Textiles and Technical Fabrics
Woven fabrics, non-wovens, and technical textiles are cut on beam presses for high-volume applications in apparel, automotive, and industrial filtration.
Textiles are typically cut in multiple layers simultaneously to maximise throughput. The required tonnage scales with the number of layers. Die sharpness is critical — a dull die pushes fibres rather than cutting them, causing fraying and dimensional variation.
Quick Reference: Material vs. Press Type
| Material | Recommended Press | Typical Tonnage | Australian Applications |
|---|---|---|---|
| Leather (goods) | Swing arm | 5–20t | Bags, belts, wallets, saddles |
| Leather (footwear) | Swing arm / beam | 10–25t | Shoe uppers, insoles |
| EVA/polyurethane foam | Beam press | 10–100t | Furniture, automotive, packaging |
| Natural rubber | Swing arm / beam | 15–30t | Gaskets, seals, industrial |
| Neoprene/EPDM | Swing arm / beam | 15–30t | Marine, industrial seals |
| Woven textiles | Beam press | 10–25t | Apparel, filtration, industrial |
| Non-woven fabrics | Beam press | 5–15t | Automotive, medical, filtration |
| Cardboard/fibreboard | Swing arm / beam | 10–20t | Packaging, displays |
| Cork sheet | Swing arm | 5–15t | Flooring, gaskets, craft |