9 Things I Didn't Know Before Building a foundry: Casting 101

Casting fundaments, these are some things I had no knowledge about when I started. There are some things I wish I knew before I started melting metal.

00:00 Its a furnace not a foundry
00:18 Aluminum cans are trash
02:17 Green sand Vs Petrobond
04:58 Sand casting Vs Lost wax casting
07:28 Metal Shrinkage
8:59 Quenching Ingots
09:19 Concrete and Molten Metal
10:58 Brass vs Bronze
12:39 Hydrostatic Pressure
14:21 Don't follow the king of random, No salad Tongs!

[RedDogForge]

great vid that said Zinc funes most certainly WILL kill you.
we lost Paw Paw Wilson the blacksmith due to zinc fever. go ahead and google him and his death.. it WILL kill you and it will also make u wish it had killed you.
be VERY careful with zinc fumes folks.

[Korruptor]

As a person that worked as a mold operator in an aluminum foundry for four years, everything in this was spot on and concise!

[stevrgrs]

Great information! Its so nice to see a non clickbait video that doesn't waste peoples time :D

[jshafer]

Pro tip for welding brass, ditch the tig. It welds beautifully with oxy-aceteylene and a slightly oxidizing flame. The excess oxygen eliminates the zinc fumes entirely, plus it doesn't pop spit or do any thing else weird. This is the process that I use to repair antique radiator tanks.

[scottwillis]

Safety equipment and practices include:
- leather apron (leather is sufficient for this temperature range)
- welding gloves
- leather sleeves / arm guards
- full length pants, long sleeves and clothes of natural fiber (melted plastic, e.g. nylon or polyester, sticks to skin)
- face shield

Assume that molten metal will spill or splash at some point:
- leather boots with thick soles
- leather spats for shoes so molten blobs don't drop in
- clear away any clutter
- concrete can spall (even if it doesn't look moist) because molten metal can flash moisture into steam; best to use a box or tray of dry sand
- never put your head over the furnace; a gasping reflex can pull superheated air into your lungs and cause blistering (doesn't work well for breathing)
- bucket of cool water you can stick a hand or foot in to stop burns from getting worse
- someone around to call 911 if needed; show them how to turn off the furnace
- nobody talks to and distracts you when handling molten metal. If they think that getting you to screw up would be funny, they can come back later.

You'll probably be fine, however spills and splashes happen, crucibles can crack, break or be dropped; metal can leak out of molds (high hydraulic pressure for dense molten metal); you can trip on things. Put a little effort into taking some basic safety precautions.

[mevk]

This video should be "required reading" for anyone melting metal. This channel should be subscibed to by all foundry wannabes.
Always love the way you openly share your ever expanding wealth of knowledge.
Also good to see so many foundry tubers commenting here and sharing their great knowledge as well.

[echts]

Just started researching this craft and I must say, after watching at minimum 10 others this 1 video had so much more information then all those combined. Thanks for sharing and best wishes in your work.

[Maker-G]

This is one of the most informative videos I have come across detailing troubles, dangers and nuances of smelting and casting. Thank you for spending your time and sharing your experience!

[paulkurilecz]

I would like to point out that the aluminum alloy used in beverage cans is a very high-quality alloy. It is 3104 aluminum which has primarily a bit of Manganese in it as the principal alloying element. The alloy is used because of the ability to cold work it in a deep drawing process to produce the can body from a disc of aluminum. It does not need to be very strong but does need to be very ductile. All of the aluminum alloys are formulated to meet the requirements for a specific purpose. 3104 does not make a good casting alloy because it lacks fluidity when molten. This is why most aluminum alloys meant for casting have a high silicon content. Yes, you could add your own silicon to a melt of beverage cans. First refine the aluminum from the cans to get a nice clean ingot with no adulterants, weigh your ingot and add anywhere from 3% to 6% in weight as silicon. And there you go, you have just made a good casting alloy. The little bit of manganese will probably not affect the casting fluidity. hth

Edit: PS: To duplicate the principal aluminum casting alloy, A356, the Silicon content needs to be between 6% and 7.5%.

[peterparsons]

I did a little sand casting years ago as part of some machining study. I wanted to be able to make some parts for antique restoration, so I was looking around for info.
I really like this video, simple, concise information. I watched a couple of others and they’ve help a lot.
Good vid !

[dutchdb]

Fantastic. Thank you. I've been circling the idea of casting for a long time. These are the videos the world needs more of. Why is a tictok star getting millions of views for eating a tide pod, but this video, providing actual skill and information, is not. Just ridiculous.
Please never stop! And thank you.

[michaeltomsa-musatin]

Excellent content. Show us more of this, the tricks of the trade, the casting issues, vent holes etc. I have not begun yet, but I have my furnace and basic gear, just need more education before I fire it up!

[rmacster]

I've been casting for years. Still not a problem by any means. This video should be watched and absorbed by every new foundryman. All of the essentials are covered here concisely and accurately. This is a beautiful video. Thank you sir. Respect.

[peta]

The best video for us who had to learn some facts on our own, break things in the process and spend a bunch of money in repeating attempts. This simply explains it all.
Thank you!

[robertappleby]

A whole video packed with usefull information and tips without all the rambling nonsense filler. You have achieved something very rare on youtube and I appreciate that. I hope your channel gets the attention it deserves and Thank you

[woodgemdave]

You have a fantastic journey going on, thank you so much for sharing, I'm retired Skill Trades, and multi media artist, and I thoroughly enjoy watching things that I never got around to doing. AWESOME 😎

[pfelipeprog]

Man, God bless you. I am in the process of swithching my little factory from my apartment to a little foundry..., I needed this cheat sheet. Instant like, instant subscribed. I do like your style, concise, no chit-chat, pro advise, 15 minutes gone without noticing, 👍.

[justanothermeltingchannel]

So much excellent information. I’ve been working on my own “what I didn’t know” video for beginners, can melters, and ingot stackers, and you hit the great points on the head.

[anubisokc]

I just started dipping my toes into casting and your video is the first I have seen that was USEFUL! Your presentation comes across as friendly and helpful and not condescending. Great work. I will be following you for more info.

[ChristianConservativ]

Very informative! I cast 35 years ago. I have forgotten most of it. If you don't use it you lose it. Thanks again.