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Sand
Casting
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Some Examples of Bronze Sand Castings |
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| A railing made up to a customers specification. The stanchions (posts) are gunmetal, the rail phosphor bronze. The posts were fastened to their base by bolts threaded up into the underside. |  |
| We supplied all the pieces for this deck in Massachusetts, i.e. the custom stanchions - made to US building regs - plus all the wires and associated fittings as a package. |  |
A collection of castings
comprising the parts for a porthole for a
houseboat conversion. We have done
custom portlights for a variety of
situations ranging from frigates to bathrooms to art
galleries.
more details of this project |
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| An example of a piece where we combine fabrication and casting. For ease of manufacture, the lower legs are cast separately from the upper part, and then welded together. |  |
Multiple cast panels joined together to
form the surface of a door
more details of this project |
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| Some detailed work, the upper photo showing cast arm ends, the lower picture some of the table legs. These have been cast hollow to save weight. |  |
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Method
Casting of artefacts such as arrowheads was originally done by pouring metal into open moulds, a process not unlike making ice cubes in trays. While the techniques may have advanced some, the idea remains the same, ie to pour molten metal into a shaped hole. In its simplest form it goes as follows:
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start with a pattern (a) which is the same shape
as the required article, allowing for the
shrinkage of the metal as it cools and the amount
of material to be removed in the process of
finishing it. A
frame – the mould box – is filled with sand
(b). The pattern is then put into the sand which
is then compacted (c). Then the pattern is
extracted from the sand, leaving the shaped hole
into which the metal is to be poured (d). To
form the other half of the mould, sand is
compacted into another mould box, and channels to
allow the metal to enter, and the air to exit, are
formed, referred to as runners and risers
respectively (e). The
mould is then closed and molten metal poured into
the hole. This is the exciting bit (f). Once everything cools down, the mould is knocked apart revealing the metal article with the runners still attached (g). These are trimmed (“fettled”) and the item is then ready for the next process (h).
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The photos above show the mould being closed, and then the metal being poured during a casting demonstration at a maritime festival. |
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Index :: Examples :: Bronze Types :: History :: Sand Casting :: Patternwork :: Fabrication :: Lost Wax :: Other Things |
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