Investment Casting 101

1. Investment Casting 101 The process of investment casting requires a mould or die that is made from a master pattern. While the process does have its disadvantages, it is particularly useful for casting complex parts that require very precise dimensions. The benefits of investment casting include a smoother finish, less surface finishing, and a shorter production timeline. There are two main types of investment casting: traditional and CNC. Here's an overview of the differences between the two. Which one is right for your part? Aluminum, iron alloys, and copper are some of the metals commonly used in investment casting. Among these metals, aluminum is the most common and can be found in almost any industrial application. Its properties make it lightweight, conductive, durable, and reflective, making aluminum a great choice for casting parts. Its properties also make it a great choice for construction and packaging applications. However, it also has a large number of applications in the automotive, aerospace, and defense industries. Although the process is well-established, it is still difficult to produce premium-quality components. The process can be used to create castings that are fully dense, meaning that they are completely devoid of impurities or porosity. The microstructure of these castings is also fine and modified eutectic. By contrast, a conventional casting is porous, allowing impurities to penetrate the surface. In the case of ceramic molds, the mold is relatively small and the dimensional problems do not cause much concern. Compared to conventional forging, investment casting requires minimal tooling, which means that you can cut the cost of the tooling. It also produces highly precise parts that are suited for low-volume production. Because the cost of pattern tooling is much lower with investment casting, you can cut the time it takes to develop your parts. Aside from these advantages, investment casting can also reduce the cost of the machining process. So, invest in the right equipment and process. To make investment casting products, the first step is to create a wax model. This wax model is then attached to a sprue. It is possible to fix hundreds of wax model molds in a single process. The wax model shrinks further when it is kept, which is known as dewaxing. The process of dewaxing uses two methods - flash fire and steam autoclave. Steam autoclaves are preferred because they heat the wax model uniformly, and the heat does not put undue stress on the material. The process of investment casting can produce parts that are near-net-shaped or net-shaped. In addition to these benefits, investment casting allows manufacturers to work with nearly any metal. Some common products made from investment casting include plane parts, kitchenware, gearbox cases, and cylinder heads. They can even make components for machining machines and pipes. These are just some of the examples of the many industries that use investment casting. It's not difficult to imagine what types of products you can create using it.