Patent ID: 8230714

Claim:
A die carrier assembly of a crimping machine, the die carrier assembly comprising: a plurality of die carriers disposed in a circumferential arrangement and adapted for radially inward and outward travel relative to a centerline of the circumferential arrangement, each of the die carriers having oppositely-disposed circumferential extents that define circumferential gaps between adjacent pairs of the die carriers; a plurality of shoes disposed radially inward from the die carriers and adapted for radially inward and outward travel with the die carriers, the shoes traveling radially inward and outward with the die carriers between positions in which the shoes define minimum and maximum openings, respectively, of the die carrier assembly, at least a first shoe of the shoes being disposed radially inward from one of the circumferential gaps between at least a first of the adjacent pairs of the die carriers; wherein the circumferential extents of the first adjacent pair of the die carriers define interdigitated fingers that support the first shoe when the shoes are in the position that defines the maximum opening of the die carrier assembly.