I've only done this process a handful of times, and by no means am an expert. I've never tried polyurethane foam, but I've heard it does not dissolve as quickly as polystyrene (may need some trial & error). I haven't done any big parts. Highly recommend a pressure-head tool though especially for a large part (a link is in the description). There is a brief time when the foam melts before filling out the mold where a reservoir of metal is essential for a continuous pour. Best of Luck!!!
Thanks for this! Pink foam is rigid cellular polystyrene. I'm seeing expanded polystyrene (EPS) as the norm. The original lost foam method does use a refractory plaster coating. It's applied by dipping the foam in a plaster or spaying it on. Gypsum mud seems to be ok for aluminum. Alternate processes use a thicker plaster and then a burn out / firing like lost wax. In the original process the plaster coated foam is supported by dry non-compacted sand. The plaster yields a much better finish.
I like the setup. Is the casting bucket and furnace homemade? Typically in these setups they are homemade but they're real nice looking and are working pretty nicely as well.
Have you tried this method with cast iron? If cast iron won't work with foam how about PLA plastic? that has been 3d printed? Great video tutorial by the way.
I known it’s 7 years later, but for anyone reading this, you don’t cast oil holes you drill them. As far as water jackets, you don’t use the sand method on the foam use the slurry method. Where the foam is dipped in a slurry that can flow in the voids of the foam you made for the water passages. Watch a video specifically about engine casting from lost foam.
I hand crafted a prototype sculpture out of wax. I do not want to destroy the prototype. I was thinking about making a reusable mold around the prototype, then pouring some kind of liquid foam into the mold. That way I can destroy the liquid foam sculptures many times during the lost foam sandcasting process, to make many copies of my original wax sculpture, as I can pour many liquid foam sculptures. Question... does anyone know of a suitable liquid foam I can use? By liquid foam I mean a foam you can pour into a mold, and the foam hardens. Thanks.
I would take your process and modify it closer to the lost wax process. Coat your foam with a plaster. Let it set. Then cook out the foam while curing the plaster. This will prevent the gas blow back from the burning foam. Great video.
Sorry about the unfriendly comments, but there are some good points. Casting is always tricky. I work in gold, and aluminum doesn't have the same mass. Using a can or something to act as a reservoir of hot metal is good perhaps, and you mention this. But the comment regarding a plaster coating of the foam seems to be a brilliant solution. Oh, and screw that guy who busted on your biceps, You're beautiful. (Yeah, I'm a dude! :-P )
get joint compound and make a very thin viscosity soup. dip your foam into the soup almost like dipping candles. build up a shell. DRY COMPLETELY. the foam inside will create the shape, the hard shell will prevent blowouts of the sand as the foam melts and before the metal will fill the void.
Ha! I have the exact same metal melter! It sure works exceptionally well! I owned a $65K 3D printer that produced plaster parts. Not a very good investment. As a hobby caster....it seems the three important things are: sand, sand, sand. Using Match Plate system like our father's is not a bad way to go either...especially with the ability to perfect match plates. Cut half the model in foam or wood or plastic and simply pull it from the mold. That is .... unless you are after the under cuts. I'd go with a much bigger sprue. Still...it was a nice effort!
By the way. There's no normal on casting methods. Whatever works, works. The key seems to be tweaking it to work the best for your part or process constraints.
my question is, you have a cnc mill...why didn't you just mill the product out of aluminum to begin with instead of wasting time doing it the way he just did it?
Cnc mill would take longer than casting, due to limited feed, and cut rates. Believe it or not, casting is the fastest way to produce complex metal shapes. Machining is a very slow process, and is expensive, but both have their place.
No need for a milling machine- you can 3D print a mold in plastic, cover it in plaster, burn off the plastic and pour your part. This is even an interim step in the manufacturing process, as 3D metal printing eliminates the need for any casting at all. 3D metal printers are rapidly coming down in price and within a short time they will be within the reach of small shops and home hobbyists. This will make CNC mills and lathes as obsolete as shapers.
Stop wearing boots I've you should ever get some molten on foot, you will be in trouble! Best tip one have me. I started wearing tennis shoes and guess what? One day had a spill and I was able to kick shoes off before pain!!!!
a better method is to coat the outside of the foam with a "shell" of plaster of paris, just brush it on. give it a couple of layers then melt out the foam with a blow torch, takes a little longer ,but you have a much higher chance of getting a usable casting. Really this video is wrong on so many levels.
So much misinformation. Stop using green sand with lost foam. Stop pounding sand. Lost foam, make the foam part. Coat it in plaster of paris. Embed foam part into fine dry sand. Add riser and tube to form a pressure head. Pour molten metal. Pull out perfect and clean item
I've only done this process a handful of times, and by no means am an expert. I've never tried polyurethane foam, but I've heard it does not dissolve as quickly as polystyrene (may need some trial & error). I haven't done any big parts. Highly recommend a pressure-head tool though especially for a large part (a link is in the description). There is a brief time when the foam melts before filling out the mold where a reservoir of metal is essential for a continuous pour. Best of Luck!!!
Thanks for this! Pink foam is rigid cellular polystyrene. I'm seeing expanded polystyrene (EPS) as the norm. The original lost foam method does use a refractory plaster coating. It's applied by dipping the foam in a plaster or spaying it on. Gypsum mud seems to be ok for aluminum.
Alternate processes use a thicker plaster and then a burn out / firing like lost wax.
In the original process the plaster coated foam is supported by dry non-compacted sand. The plaster yields a much better finish.
Your video told me just what I wanted to know, which was how detailed a piece can be made with lost foam casting.
Very neat, it's nice to see the process in action, I've only seen bits and pieces elsewhere.
Nice video. Very clear illustration about lost-foam casting.
Hallo, with what did you mix the sand,
only with water or there is something else ?
its 90% sand 3% water and 7% clay or resin
Do you even mill, bro?
thanks for the information. His video did show me that a level of detail greater than what I expected can be achieved, so it was informative.
Thank you. Can this be used for ferrous metals ?
Are you advertising your biceps or mold casting? ^^
I like the setup. Is the casting bucket and furnace homemade? Typically in these setups they are homemade but they're real nice looking and are working pretty nicely as well.
Loved it. I got here looking for Full moulding (Cavity less casting). It's the same right ?
Have you tried this method with cast iron? If cast iron won't work with foam how about PLA plastic? that has been 3d printed? Great video tutorial by the way.
What kind of sand do you use? Just ordinary sand?
great work ... can u tell me what is the best method of molding the holes of oil and water for the engine blocks?
I known it’s 7 years later, but for anyone reading this, you don’t cast oil holes you drill them. As far as water jackets, you don’t use the sand method on the foam use the slurry method. Where the foam is dipped in a slurry that can flow in the voids of the foam you made for the water passages.
Watch a video specifically about engine casting from lost foam.
Dear Brian. The same process works with Polyurethane foam? do you have another videos with large samples ? thanks in advance.
I hand crafted a prototype sculpture out of wax. I do not want to destroy the prototype. I was thinking about making a reusable mold around the prototype, then pouring some kind of liquid foam into the mold. That way I can destroy the liquid foam sculptures many times during the lost foam sandcasting process, to make many copies of my original wax sculpture, as I can pour many liquid foam sculptures. Question... does anyone know of a suitable liquid foam I can use? By liquid foam I mean a foam you can pour into a mold, and the foam hardens. Thanks.
if you have a wax prototype, then lost wax casting is a great method. It requires a bit more effort than this, though.
Do I understand that simple damp sand was used and not green sand?
I would take your process and modify it closer to the lost wax process. Coat your foam with a plaster. Let it set. Then cook out the foam while curing the plaster. This will prevent the gas blow back from the burning foam. Great video.
Sorry about the unfriendly comments, but there are some good points. Casting is always tricky. I work in gold, and aluminum doesn't have the same mass. Using a can or something to act as a reservoir of hot metal is good perhaps, and you mention this. But the comment regarding a plaster coating of the foam seems to be a brilliant solution. Oh, and screw that guy who busted on your biceps, You're beautiful. (Yeah, I'm a dude! :-P )
get joint compound and make a very thin viscosity soup.
dip your foam into the soup almost like dipping candles. build up a shell.
DRY COMPLETELY. the foam inside will create the shape, the hard shell will prevent blowouts of the sand as the foam melts and before the metal will fill the void.
got a link to a 3D printer that uses cast iron or aluminum ?
I'm sure non of these castings came right ,
Sweet. This looks like a good way to make a receiver for a .22 Rifle.
Ha! I have the exact same metal melter! It sure works exceptionally well!
I owned a $65K 3D printer that produced plaster parts.
Not a very good investment.
As a hobby caster....it seems the three important things are: sand, sand, sand.
Using Match Plate system like our father's is not a bad way to go either...especially with the ability to perfect match plates.
Cut half the model in foam or wood or plastic and simply pull it from the mold.
That is .... unless you are after the under cuts.
I'd go with a much bigger sprue.
Still...it was a nice effort!
By the way. There's no normal on casting methods. Whatever works, works. The key seems to be tweaking it to work the best for your part or process constraints.
my question is, you have a cnc mill...why didn't you just mill the product out of aluminum to begin with instead of wasting time doing it the way he just did it?
Cnc mill would take longer than casting, due to limited feed, and cut rates. Believe it or not, casting is the fastest way to produce complex metal shapes. Machining is a very slow process, and is expensive, but both have their place.
true
type of sand?
What about bronze?
Nice protection kit, did you buy it in Toys "R" Us?
No need for a milling machine- you can 3D print a mold in plastic, cover it in plaster, burn off the plastic and pour your part. This is even an interim step in the manufacturing process, as 3D metal printing eliminates the need for any casting at all. 3D metal printers are rapidly coming down in price and within a short time they will be within the reach of small shops and home hobbyists. This will make CNC mills and lathes as obsolete as shapers.
no it wont
@@tonyhill8300 1895
Blacksmith with foresight- " " Those velocipedes are gonna run us out of business"
Blacksmith with limited foresight "No it won't"
@@oldschool1993 still plenty of blacksmiths about and still a good call for them
@@tonyhill8300 Yeah right- about 0.01% of what there were in 1895.
Check out the Arts and Crafts stores for ready made foam items. One of my friend made a skull from a foam halloween skull.
foam casting chamical ditels plz
Rare video of this process
You should watch VOG channel on UA-cam
Nice video
Thanks
Why not just cast a solid block and machine it if you have such expensive equipment?
I'm assuming this was for the purpose of demonstration.
I think it would be way too strong
Noorquacker Ind. Right! That's how race engines are made, if i'm not mistaken. Not quite sure why machining a solid block is stronger.
***** Where was this?
Seems like this was for a class project. Seems highly rehearsed and he looks very uncomfortable.
what a shame to use a milling machine for such an object.....sigh
100 x more useful than 3d printing
Stop wearing boots
I've you should ever get some molten on foot, you will be in trouble!
Best tip one have me.
I started wearing tennis shoes and guess what?
One day had a spill and I was able to kick shoes off before pain!!!!
NO buy welders boots , they have a quick release pin so you can get them off real quick
still foam is naturally porous where wax is not.
bad resulte
Those fumes from lost foam casting have GOT to be horribly toxic.
😮😮😮😮
a better method is to coat the outside of the foam with a "shell" of plaster of paris, just brush it on. give it a couple of layers then melt out the foam with a blow torch, takes a little longer ,but you have a much higher chance of getting a usable casting. Really this video is wrong on so many levels.
goes to should expensive machinery vs common sense the common sense works
just use a 3d printer
This is a tad cheaper.
He almost looks lije faze censor
Very bad casting product
So much misinformation. Stop using green sand with lost foam. Stop pounding sand. Lost foam, make the foam part. Coat it in plaster of paris. Embed foam part into fine dry sand. Add riser and tube to form a pressure head. Pour molten metal. Pull out perfect and clean item
Exactly! Process in the video is called "full mold".
@@mxupersonal6017 or shell moulding