Three-Plate Mold

A three-plate mold usually refers to molds that have a top gate. So, a simple two-plate mold with a top gate becomes referred to as a three-plate mold. The name three-plate is derived from the plate openings. There are two openings between the three plates: one to remove the runner and the other to remove the parts. Some novices get confused between the three plates and the stripper plate molds. This is because both of them use a stripping action. The three plate stripping action is only used to remove the runner while the stripper plate is used to eject the part. A drawing of the stripper plate is shown in the next section. A three-plate mold can be used for stripper plate or pin injection.