Sand casting unobtainium parts at home.
- Thread starter 56 Fregate
- Start date
My acid etching guy did a cracker of a job, he used a bit of vinyl contact and neat hydrochloric on the kitchen sink last night and to my surprise no rust occurred to said sink. Onward..
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Knurling for the home hack, to get them matching you need precise diameters. I haven't counted them but to my eyes they look close enough.. Onward.
If you use a really fine knurling tool the individual "knurls" are too small for people to count...................
Surely it depends entirely on why you require knurling in the first place? I'm quite sure that almost everyone (except 59F) wouldn't mind if the knurls weren't exactly the same on both sides of the car!
Of course it is possible to get sharper peaks on a knurl than those shown but when trying to match up missing components for a vintage vehicle it is important to make them look like they have had some wear-use from past life. It is not a practical idea to use fine knurls anyway because once the knurl has had the three coat chrome system the definition can be somewhat buried under all the chrome. Fortunately though, the 3 coat chrome system will fill the gas bubbles that I am still getting in my castings..
Of course it is possible to get sharper peaks on a knurl than those shown but when trying to match up missing components for a vintage vehicle it is important to make them look like they have had some wear-use from past life. It is not a practical idea to use fine knurls anyway because once the knurl has had the three coat chrome system the definition can be somewhat buried under all the chrome. Fortunately though, the 3 coat chrome system will fill the gas bubbles that I am still getting in my castings..
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My dad worked in the refractory industry for many years and he became an expert in degassing molten metals used in casting processes. Sadly I didn't inherit any of his expertise, but I know that there was chemistry involved.......magic mixes chucked into the crucible at the right temperaure!
I must say that my castings are getting better and better with the failure rate coming from 100% down to about 50% now. I have been using a flux (epsom salt) and a degassing agent ( sodium bi-carbonate) to refine my metal. Getting the hang of runners, feeders, sprue and riser combinations and I am on a real roll. The greensand gets better every time it's used and I have had some success with sodium silicate sand cores. I reckon in another month I should be able to cast just about anything in aluminium.
Let us know when you start on gold ingots...........
Ooooh Grasshopper! Gold ingots are well within my reach now, send your excess Rolexs, gold fillings and heirlooms and we will get started. I'll take real good care of the loot and I can always be contactable from my PO box in Bolivia.
Wow... you are getting ridiculously good at this...Of course it is possible to get sharper peaks on a knurl than those shown but when trying to match up missing components for a vintage vehicle it is important to make them look like they have had some wear-use from past life. It is not a practical idea to use fine knurls anyway because once the knurl has had the three coat chrome system the definition can be somewhat buried under all the chrome. Fortunately though, the 3 coat chrome system will fill the gas bubbles that I am still getting in my castings..
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Admire your passion and perseverance...
I ve zoomed into the pics... impressive.
Keep at it...
Cheers
Dino
...it's all part of the trap to lure Kims fortune from his grasp. Pretty soon I'll be sailing on port Philip bay in a 40ft yacht wearing Hawaiian shirts with a can of Duff in hand.
I wish you a lot of luck with my fortune, buddy! I've got an old Timex and a Swatch you could melt down......
Hmm, I reckon I might get set up for electroplating for this piece.
Retro Art? Art Deco? Nice anyway!
So I said to myself, “okay Lost foam casting let’s see wot you got”! I have to learn this process because I have a rather ambitious project coming up that will require the skill of a surgeon and the cunning of a rat to do what is required. Since I don’t have PHD above my door nor the features of a rat I offer this foam item to the casting gods as a sacrifice worth taking. I’ll have a lash sometime this week weather permitting.
That looks like a wigwam for a gooses bridle........
It has occurred to me that it looks like a rat sized surfboard
Note to self: time to do the dusting.
Note to self: time to do the dusting.