How to Choose Gate Locations for Board Game Pieces

1. What gate location changes

A gate connects the runner system to the cavity. Autodesk lists appearance, gate removal, cavity complexity, material and injected volume among the design considerations.^[1] Those items are connected. A gate hidden under a pawn may protect the visible body, but it must still feed the thick base and leave a standing surface that can be trimmed and inspected.

For a board game component, each candidate gate location changes at least six practical outcomes:

• The visible gate witness and the work needed to separate or trim it.
• The distance and direction the melt travels through the cavity.
• The order in which thick and thin features fill and pack.
• The places where divided flow fronts meet again.
• The last areas to fill, where trapped air may need a venting path.
• The orientation of shrinkage and residual stress within the finished part.

A useful gate proposal shows all six. A red dot on a CAD image identifies the entry location, but it does not explain why that point was chosen or which consequence the team accepted.

2. Map protected surfaces before selecting a gate

Software can rank geometrically suitable injection locations, but it does not know which surfaces players see, touch, print on or use for fit. Autodesk warns that a highly ranked location may still cause an undesirable blemish and recommends evaluating analysis results against production limits.^[2]

Create a gate restriction map on the latest part revision. Use direct labels rather than a general note such as "gate on hidden area." A component may have several hidden areas, and one of them may be a standing or assembly surface.

The same map helps the mold designer place ejectors and the parting line. The guide to draft angles for board game pieces explains why release direction and protected dimensions must be fixed before the molding geometry is approved.

3. Trace the whole flow path, not the distance to one point

A short straight-line distance does not guarantee easy filling. The melt follows the available wall sections, turns around cores, divides at holes and can race through thicker regions. Autodesk's gate-location guidance flags thin entry areas because they may freeze before pressure reaches a thicker region, leaving that region underpacked.^[2]

Draw a simple path from each candidate gate to the features that matter most. Mark the thick base, narrow stem, distant tip, hole, recessed symbol and any sudden wall change. Then ask:

• Does the melt enter a section that can support the required flow and packing?
• Will a thin section freeze before pressure reaches a thicker area?
• Does the gate direct a fast stream into open space, where jetting may occur?
• Which feature is likely to fill last?
• Where will flow fronts divide and meet?
• Can air escape ahead of the advancing melt?

Autodesk describes jetting as a high-velocity stream that enters an open area without first spreading against the mold wall. Its remedies include changing gate position so the melt meets a steel surface, or using a gate form that slows and spreads the entry flow.^[4] This is a useful reminder that the gate needs a direction as well as a location.

4. Review gate candidates by component type

Pawns and chess-style pieces

The base often gives a pawn a practical hidden surface, but the contact ring still has to stand flat. A gate near the underside may also provide a direct path into the thickest part of the piece. The DFM review should show how the melt then reaches the narrow stem and top detail, where the gate is trimmed, and whether the remaining witness sits above or below the standing plane.

On custom plastic pawns, proportions and poses vary. A gate that works for a simple rotational pawn may not suit a figure with an offset arm or broad accessory. Treat each molded shape as its own filling problem.

Character miniatures

A miniature often has several distant thin features. Material may divide around legs, equipment and gaps before rejoining elsewhere. A gate hidden under the base can preserve the visible body but create a long path to an elevated hand or weapon. Moving the entry closer can shorten that path while placing a mark in a more visible area.

Compare those consequences before splitting the figure or adding another gate. The small plastic action figure service covers molded shells, joints and assembly parts, so a multi-part construction can be included as a design option when one-piece filling or tooling becomes impractical.

Tokens and flat tiles

A flat token can be edge-gated, center-gated or fed through another arrangement chosen by the mold designer. The decision affects the visible edge, flow symmetry and the location of meeting lines around holes or recessed symbols. If the token must stack, the gate area cannot project into the locating surface.

Kingke's plastic token page lists custom shapes, colors and printed designs. Add the print boundary to the gate restriction map before tooling, since a later change in decoration can turn a previously acceptable entry mark into an artwork defect.

Cubes, dice-like markers and holders

A cube has several visible faces, so there may be no truly hidden side. Rank the faces by game function and viewing frequency, then identify the surface that can accept a controlled witness. Rounded edges and printed symbols reduce the available area further. The tabletop game plastic cubes page shows components with flat faces and rounded edges, both of which must be considered when the gate and printing fixture are planned.

5. Gate type and location have to work as a pair

The position answers where material enters. The gate type affects how it enters and how the runner separates. A small, self-separating entry is attractive for high quantities, but it still needs a safe flow path and an acceptable witness. A wider gate can spread flow into a flat part, but its removal leaves a wider edge to finish.

This table is a screening tool, not a gate specification. The selected resin supplier's processing guidance and the mold builder's analysis should set dimensions and details. INEOS notes for polypropylene that gate location should support a balanced filling pattern and generally direct flow from thick sections toward thin ones.^[5] That advice applies to the material covered by its guide, not automatically to every ABS or specialty resin.

6. Predict weld lines and air traps from the gate

Flow fronts meet when material divides around a hole, insert or obstructing feature. Multiple gates also create meeting zones. Autodesk says these lines can be visible or structurally weaker and recommends keeping them away from areas that need strength or a smooth appearance.^[3]

For game pieces, mark likely meeting lines on:

• Thin arms, weapons, clips and other loaded details.
• Character faces and broad cosmetic panels.
• Printed or painted zones where a line may remain visible.
• Snap features, card slots and parts that flex in use.
• Clear or light-colored components where flow marks may be easier to see.

The same flow map identifies where air is pushed as the cavity fills. A last-to-fill pocket behind a raised symbol or at the tip of a miniature may need a venting route. Moving the gate may improve one area and create a new air trap elsewhere, so gating and venting should be reviewed together.

Kingke's guide to injection molding defects in small game pieces treats short shots, weld lines and burn marks as symptoms that need joint review of geometry, gate location, venting, resin and process settings.

7. Specify the gate witness and removal method

Every gate leaves evidence. The runner breaks, shears or is trimmed away at a defined place. What remains can be a small projection, a recess, a whitening mark or a disturbed patch of texture. Calling it "not visible" is not enough for production approval.

The drawing or sample standard should identify:

• The permitted gate area with a clear boundary.
• Whether the gate separates automatically or needs a secondary cut.
• The direction from which the witness will be inspected.
• Functional surfaces that the witness must not cross or protrude into.
• Whether trimming may expose a color or gloss difference.
• The approved physical sample that represents acceptable removal.

For a standing pawn, use a flat reference surface during approval. For a token, stack it with production counterparts. For a printed cube, check that the gate zone does not interfere with fixture seating or artwork orientation. These tests convert an abstract cosmetic note into a repeatable product check.

8. Multi-cavity and family molds add a balance problem

A gate that suits one cavity does not guarantee that every cavity fills under compatible conditions. Runner length, cavity geometry, gate size and wall sections shape the resistance along each path. In a mold that repeats the same part, compare cavity-to-cavity fill and packing. In a family mold, different components can behave very differently even when they share material and color.

The article on family molds versus separate molds explains the production trade-off. Parts placed in one family tool must share a compatible process window. A thin token, a thick pawn and a detailed miniature may need different entry locations and packing behavior.

For a proposed multi-cavity layout, ask the DFM report to show:

• The runner path and gate assigned to every cavity.
• Whether the layout is naturally balanced or requires tuned restrictions.
• Expected fill order and the last-to-fill zone in each cavity.
• Predicted pressure and packing differences between cavities.
• How cavity identity will be kept during sample inspection.
• Whether one difficult component controls the cycle or compromises the others.

Kingke's precision injection mold design page includes cavity layout, runner design, venting and ejection within the mold-design scope. Those elements should appear as one connected proposal rather than separate screenshots.

9. Gate-location DFM checklist

Kingke's DFM analysis service covers wall thickness, air trapping, parting surfaces, cavity layout, cooling, ejection and mold structure. The gate review should connect those items to the latest product requirements.

Autodesk describes gate-location analysis as a preliminary step and says a full analysis should follow it.^[2] A suitable-location heat map narrows the search. It does not approve the mold by itself.

The buyer does not need to dictate the gate dimensions. The buyer does need to communicate the protected surfaces and approve the visible and functional consequences. The mold designer can then size and refine the gate for the actual resin, part geometry and production plan.

10. Approve the gate on molded parts

Inspect samples before treating the gate proposal as finished. Use labeled parts from every cavity and keep the production resin, color and process revision with the inspection record. A gate witness that looks acceptable on a natural sample may appear different after a color change or surface treatment.

Check the following:

• The gate area is inside the approved location boundary.
• Automatic separation or manual trimming does not tear the part.
• The remaining witness does not affect touch, standing, stacking or fit.
• There is no obvious jetting, blush, short fill or burn near the flow path.
• Predicted weld-line zones meet the appearance and functional standard.
• Every cavity produces an acceptable result under the approved process.
• The decorated sample still meets print or paint placement requirements.

If a defect appears, record its cavity, exact location and direction. Do not enlarge or move the gate from the symptom alone. Review the fill pattern, venting, material and process record first. A change that fixes a short shot can move a weld line or create a more visible witness.

For projects moving from prototype to tooling, Kingke's plastic injection mold service covers custom tool design, mold testing and sample validation for plastic parts. Send the final CAD, component list, resin request, color plan and protected-surface map together.