MOLD CHARGE DELIVERY
An apparatus for placing a mold charge into a cavity (12) includes a pair of hubs (16, 18) mounted for rotation around parallel axes, a link (24) connected between the hubs at positions off-center relative to the parallel axes and a blade (26) connected to the link. Rotation of the hubs causes the blade to travel in an elliptical path relative to an extrusion orifice (28) to cut mold charges from the orifice and place the mold charges into cavities passing beneath the blade. The apparatus preferably includes a drive (14) that simultaneously rotates both of the hubs to drive the blade relative to the extrusion orifice and cavities. The blade preferably includes an arm (96) that extends into a cavity to place a mold charge into the bottom of the cavity for consistent and accurate placement of the mold charges from one cavity to the next.