CASTING
casting

Carn Metals Manufacture Pewter and whitemetal casting alloys standard grade and lead free solders
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GENERAL CASTING TIPS

You're probably reading this because you're having problems...many people do and it has often been said that casting into rubber moulds is a black art. This is not true.

In casting there are many variables, the secret of good casting is getting these variables under control.

Widely different results - it must be the weather!

If your cast fails in a consistent way then you are very close to success. When widely differing results occur then there is something very wrong with your overall system. It is too fragile to cope with the interaction of the variables involved chaos ensues and hence the end result can be very different for each cast.

Getting things under control

Start with the metal, don't mix a bit of this and a bit of that use a single composition suitable for the type of work.

If possible use electronically controlled melting pot (these are more accurate than thermostat types which can have large ranges of temperature between the cut in and cut off of the heating elements)

Select a temperature guided by your manufacturers recommendations use the lower range for bulky and easily filled items and higher ones for the thinner more difficult ones. Adjust the temperature up or down only after careful consideration of the results achieved. You will get better results and be able to cast at lower temperatures if you vent the mould to allow quicker easier filling.

Always try to pour in a similar way, when you remove metal from the pot it is losing heat the longer the time before pouring the more heat lost therefore a big source of problems and variable results.

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