![]() ![]() The wax is gravity cast, feeding from the bottom of the mould, and the mould generously vented by my patented technique which guarantees the mould filling. The originals were modeled in Super Sculpey and used to make silicone rubber moulds, at home, with the aid of a vacume pump/chamber to degas the silicone before pouring around the models. These are photos of a chess set I modelled and had cast by friend in the business. The original "investment" or mould materials were easily made mixtures of brick dust, plaster of paris and various organic materials. This technique is perfect for the hobbyist who enjoys carving, modelling, antique restoration etc and all aspects, including casting, are "doable" in the home workshop. Difficult pieces have the wax cast in sillicon rubber moulds which are cut open and reused. Many of these components have the waxes cast in splitable hard moulds and thus use the technique for its dimentional accuracy, in lieu of diecasting, for the higher temp metals. Split moulds, as used in sandcasting, would require many individual pieces, like a chinese puzzle, to reproduce the average sculpted form, and undercuts would be ruled out.Īs already stated, industry uses the technique for its unique advantages. It is still the only economical way to cast objects in high melting point metals, whose form or need for intricate detail rule out less complex casting methods. ![]() The lost wax casting technique has been used by sculptors, jewelers, silversmiths etc for thousands of years, in many different cultures. That was a jig saw puzzel, kinda like a Rubbics cube. ![]() Only one side open on the whole box and a big flange for the cover. THAT whas one complicated mold to get the wax. I saw a computer box with real tight finning on it for a F18 that blew my mind at a customers one day. Machining consist of cleaning up surfaces and adding features that wasn,t worth to cast. Thats the basic's, lots more to get it right. Keep the ceramic hot, bring up to temp of pour, molten metal don't chill in a hot vessel, picks up every detail. Some of these parts are BIG, might way 100lbs. Ceramic slurry to cover it and the runners, several dips and melt the wax out, wire burried in the slurry for support if needed. The wax molds are built out of aluminun, lotsa 3D work and are jig saw puzzels to pull apart after pouring the wax, imagine a stainlees steel pump body to pump a corrosive liquid. Castings done that way are incredible, a hole needs to be tapped 1\4-20, cast the hole in it, no need to drill with a number 7 drill. Most of there customers do it themselves. One of my good customers does nothing but investment castings and has a machine shop to machine parts to completion. ![]()
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