Patent ID: 7117598

Claim:
A method of manufacturing a gear comprising: providing a die assembly having an upper die, a lower die and a mandrel, one of the upper die and the lower die defining a plurality of gear teeth, the upper and lower dies forming a closed die that defines a die cavity, the mandrel having a plurality of splines formed thereon, the mandrel being received into the die cavity; providing an insert portion formed of a solid substantially void-free metal, the insert portion having a hollow body and a flange, the hollow body having opposite axial end faces and an interior surface into which a plurality of mating splines are formed, the flange extending circumferentially about the hollow body between the opposite axial end faces of the hollow body; positioning the insert portion onto the mandrel such that at least a portion of the mating splines of the insert portion matingly engage the splines formed on the mandrel; positioning a preform portion within the die cavity such that the perform portion extends circumferentially about at least a portion of the insert portion, the perform portion being formed of a solid substantially void-free metal; and pressing the preform portion between the upper and lower dies in a pressing direction to form a gear in single stroke such that a plurality of gear teeth are formed on the preform portion, the perform portion deforming in at least one axial direction, a radially inward direction and a radially outward direction during the single stroke such that the preform portion is deformed about the opposite axial sides of the flange so that the flange is embedded into the preform portion and the perform portion is fixedly engaged to the insert portion.