Metal Casting Zone Info Blog

Archive for July, 2011

All Kinds of Reasons to Collect Vintage Car Models

Many vintage car collectors enjoy the classic nostalgic and artistic feeling associated with vintage car, not to mention the triumph achievement of being able to restore and maintain a vintage car into show worthy masterpiece. Though as much as we wanted to, the majority of us can’t be splashing money over a whole entourage of vintage cars, as well as do a full time job restoring every one of them to their full glory. In fact some of the legendary vintage cars can be hard to come by since they are not in production so long ago, not to mention that if it does, it probably fetch a “legendary” price tag as well. So what is the next best option?

Aside from a few actual vintage cars that you cherish, spending countless hours and effort to build it back to pristine condition. Vintage car models, whether die cast or plastic fabricated, can be a great extension of your passion as well. Vintage car models can be easily purchased from online websites, mail order catalogues or ebay for those auction junkies that are addicted the adrenalin rush of bidding. And if you could not find the model you covert, you would even order it custom made, simply by performing a search on Google could yield a list of customizers out there, although it would be good to do some further research on the net to check their quality of work from their past customers. Some of the most famous die cast series of vintage models the Yesteryear series by Matchbox & Lesney which is a rendition of classic vehicles from the steam and early automotive eras

And since vintage car models are definitely cheaper to come by, you could easily build up an impressive collection with a low budget. Vintage car models are easy to showcase and does not take up a lot of space, thus would be an ideal solution for apartment dwellers. Collections of vintage car models makes an impressive adornment to grace your living hall, and can serve as an excellent conversation piece when entertaining visiting guest.  It is also easy to admire and examine your vintage car models in comfort right at your own home.

Vintage car models are also hussle free and easy to upkeep, they would only require a can of spray polish and a polishing cloth to keep it nice and tidy. Though gentle handling might be required as many small delicate parts are involved.

Radiators ? Why Cast Iron?

While there are any number of people out there who will follow the trends no matter what they dictate, keeping up with The Joneses is not necessarily for everyone. Some people prefer time-worn style over fleeting fashion, and will want to model their houses according to their own unique tastes, not the current flavour of the month in different interior design magazines.

For those who want a more timeless look to their house, focussing on classic design rather than artistic expression, when it comes to bathrooms there is more to creating the perfect look than simply finding a Victorian style tub. One of the focal points to any truly unique bathroom will be the radiator.

Cast iron bathroom radiators are much more ornate and attractive than your normal run of the mill radiators, giving you much more scope to find a design that is just right for you.

However the benefits of these beautiful bathroom radiators don’t just end with their looks. While they will be much more stylish than most other types of radiator, they are also actually much more economical and efficient. They will heat bathrooms evenly and thoroughly which certain other styles will not be able to do. They are also surprisingly low cost and also cheap to run. Cast iron’s density means that it is much more efficient at storing heat than other types of radiator and will continue to radiate heat for a long time after the heating has been switched off.

Their use will also help to reduce condensation while gently warming the room rather than aggressively filling it with heat. For those who want to combine classic looks with a practical way to provide heat, there really isn’t any better option. And when the latest trend is yesterday’s news your bathroom will still look as stylish as ever.

I setup the Tripod a few weeks ago as Hank and I were melting strips of Aluminum for the projects – This is one of them at 3X Faster speed and the same one at normal speed to show you how long it takes.. – Enjoy!

This will be a multi part video on foundry pattern making. A wooden pattern is used to make an impression in the sand mold. A silica sand core is inserted to produce the cylinder bore in the casting. A wooden pattern of the cylinder is turned on the Clausing lathe.

Foundry Casting of the Michael Myers “Halloween” Tattoo Machine, by 3-D Machines.

www.foundry101.com
Lost & Foundry pouring bronze medallions for the centenial trail in Spokane, Wa.

Phosphorus copper shot added to increase fluidity.

Learn more at www.foundry101.com

Sand casting is easy and fun, we have been teaching metal casting & sand casting to kids and adults for almost 10 years now. Check us out!

Making a greensand mold and pouring molten aluminum.

A quick tour with sample castings. Shake-out, breaking apart the mold.

Note: Gating system seperated from casting because the mold was still quite hot. Normally we wait about 5 minutes.

Learn metal casting free online at foundry101.com. Get affordable foundry supplies from Lost & Foundry. Complete kits starting at $370.

The problems with iron foundries in China

The iron foundries are also known as iron casting workshops, which manufacture iron and steel castings. Many overseas buyers and purchasers always try to find the suitable iron foundries in China, so they can buy good iron castings from them. However, they do not know there are many problems with those foundries.

As my years experiences in Dandong Ruiding Foundry, I sort the iron foundries in China to four types. The first type: Large foundries. These foundries own over three automatic molding lines, and can produce over 10000 tons iron castings per year. The second type: Middle foundries. These foundries own one or two automatic molding lines, and other casting processes, such as resin sand, manual green sand etc. The annual production is from 3000 tons to 10000 tons. The third type: Small foundries. These foundries do not have automatic molding lines, but have some molding machines or just manual green sand casting process. The fourth type: specific foundries. These foundries just produce one or two specific products.

What are the problems with these foundries?

As for the large foundries, since they have many auto molding lines, so their production efficiency is very high, and the casting quality is very good. The problems are they can not make large castings, or heavy castings because of the size limitation of the sand boxes. In addition, they can not make some castings with special dimensional or structures requirements. Moreover, they are not willing to accept small orders. Therefore, most of these foundries will only produce the automobile parts.

As for the middle foundries, since they have automatic molding lines, and have other casting processes. They can meet many different demand. The problems are their technical abilities are limited, and their production costs are high. Why? These foundries were developed from traditional casting workshops, so they just start to use automatic molding line, therefore, their old engineers can not reach the new technical level. In one word, their old engineers did not know how to use the automatic molding lines. They are staying in the studying stage. At the same time, these foundries have to feed many engineers and administrative staff since they have many different workshops, and each workshop has different production processes. So, they production costs are higher than small foundries. According to the opinion of Mr. Galen Wang from Dandong Foundry, these foundries will develop into large foundries or small foundries in the future. The middle foundries are not a long-time stable stage.

As for the small foundries, since they just have manual casting process, so they can do it very well. They can control their production and administrative costs very low, and their prices are very competitive. The problems with small foundries are their production efficiency is limited. Since all castings are made by hand. They have no ability to complete large orders. Moreover, their quality is not stable. Therefore, they can just accept small orders, and produce the iron castings with low requirements.

As for the specific foundries, they only produce one or two types of castings. Such as some foundries only produce ductile iron pipes. Some just produce various pipe fittings. Some just produce very large castings, and some just produce stove parts. These foundries own the related equipments and rich experiences for their products, so they can make them very well. Their problems are they can not make other types of castings. Their engineers and workers are not willing to make other products because of higher defective rate and lower output.

All in all, I believe these problems are not the exclusive in China. All foundries in the world will face the same problems. I wrote this article to advise the buyers and purchasers how to choose the suitable foundries in China. There are many good foundries in China, who are maximizing their strengths, and trying to avoiding their problems.

This article was originally written by Mr. Galen Wang from Dandong Ruiding Founding Co. Ltd.

Why Concrete Bollards the Best

Bollards are a necessity in contemporary security upgrade. These are short vertical posts erected on landscape to boost perimeter protection. They are most preferred means of creating an anti-ram perimeter guard. This is because they do not obstruct vision. It is for this reason that they are most useful in directing road traffic. Their functions go beyond offering security. These bollards are useful for aesthetic purposes.

There are many kinds of bollards. These could either be movable or permanently fixed on the ground. In ancient times, cannons acted as street bollards. These where fast replaced by use of shaped iron castings after their supply ran out. Today, manufacturers use different materials to make these rigid posts. Posts made of steel are common. Other manufacturers use steel posts and fill them up with concrete. Concrete bollards are a preferred choice because they can incorporate more functions.

In their security function, bollards direct motorists, cyclists and pedestrians on the road. They tell these road users where thy can and cannot access. Other functions that are available on bollards are useful to road users. These erections could include security cameras that monitor a given locality. They could also include lighting and even seating provisions. Advanced ones have bike-parking provisions.

Bollards are most common in urban areas. This is because such localities typically have more traffic. These erections help maintain order in the urban centers. They are widely employed outside supermarkets, restaurants and shops. This helps guard against smash-and-grab robberies. Burglars typically drive cars and bollards deny them that essential parking space. Bollards are also common around stadiums and government buildings. In such surroundings, they help protect theft of cash and inventory.

Concrete bollards are taking centre stage in today’s safety. This is because they manufacturers can mould them to suit artistic purposes. Such aesthetic styles have more customers since they incorporate a variety of architectural designs. This could either depict modern or traditional works of art. In such bollards, the post top is an outstanding feature. For lovers of traditional designs, the post top includes decorative finials. Contemporary versions are much simpler in design. They feature a slanted top to discourage passersby from leaving litter. Others feature simple rounded tops.

Usually, the decorative bollards blend traditional and contemporary styles. This helps create harmony and balance on a particular landscape. Traditional designs focus on simplicity. The posts normally have straight sides with one or more see-through hole near the top. The design may include bands, flutes and other embellishment. Contemporary bollard designs border around being flat and broad. This encourages seating.

Bollard manufacturers normally have on their websites videos of bollard crash tests. This enables potential buyers know the resilience of their purchase. The posts are available in three basic mounting types. They could be removable, operable or fixed. Different sites require suitable bollards. This is dependable on the soil type in a given location. The general rule is that shallow mounting is advisable in broader bollards. This is essential, as it will shield against impact loading.