Abstract

A ram driven tube cutting apparatus of the double cut type in which sections of tubing are successively severed from a continuous length thereof by a notching cut followed by a severing cut, includes improved mechanism for clamping the tubing during the cutting process. A pair of opposed, complemental die jaws are mounted on slides controlled by spaced cam followers carried by the slides. A reciprocating wedge cam engages and forces the cam followers apart to move the slides thereby closing the jaws on the tubing. One of the cam followers comprises a roller mounted on an eccentric shaft which may be selectively rotated to adjust the clearance between the die jaws. The other cam follower is spring loaded toward the cam within a slide mounting provided in its slide and automatically shifts to an overload position to avoid damage to the mechanism when foreign objects become lodged between the die jaws. Each of the die jaws consists of a pair of die jaw portions having spaced, opposed forces defining a slot through which a severing blade may pass. The die jaw portions are removably mounted on the slides by bolts anchored with trap nuts slidably confined within a T-shaped passageway in the slides to permit adjustment of the spacing between opposed faces of the die jaw portions.