Metal Casting Zone Info Blog

Mr. Spin asked:


Have you wondered why Do-It-Yourself customers at Home Depot are allowed to do gas piping in their own home?

I have seen people bewildered on what to buy and what to do.
For example:

A guy was buying pipe and fittings, to fix a natural gas problem in his house. I know this, because he was discussing this pipe-job with his partner.

The first thing I noticed was 45 degree elbows, galvanized nipples, and Teflon® tape. All of which are illegal in most places in my area.

I kept to myself. I didn’t want to be rude and butt into somebody’s conversation.

Teflon® Tape can clog an oriface, thus a malfunctioning boiler furnace or hot water tank.

45 degree elbows do not “give” or twist, if under any type of strain. A 90 degree will.

Galvanized metal will react to gas and deterioate, mainly inside of the pie, causing failure of the pipe, but mainly causing internal malfunctioning of the equipment.

Some places forbid cast iron fittings. They usually require malible iron.

Metal Casting Zone

lidzmail asked:


Just a standard set of old, cast-iron, exterior steps leading from a rear elevated door to the ground – there are a few small areas, maybe 6″ in diameter where the steps have rusted through. What’s the best way to safely and soundly patch or repair these areas?

Metal Casting Basics

tank asked:


my gran has a 110 year old sewing table (singer)which has 2 cast metal legs and one snapped during a move(it was really heavy) can it be re attached

Back Yard Metal Casting

nentuk asked:


I live in a brick bungalo in Chicago and all bungalows have 2-3 openings on the basement floor that lead to the sewer. They are covered by a slotted grate, usually cast iron. I’m trying to find out what that grate is called and where I can buy replacement.

Back Yard Metal Casting

KristinaMaria asked:


Can cast metal such as an exhaust manifold be repaired by welding? Thanks.

Iron Metal Casting

jennibug asked:


1988 sable. i removed the steering column, but managed to lose the screw that holds the little nylon tube that has a wire inside that connects the column shifter to the indicator in the instrument gauges ( shows PNDDL). the screw should be a machine screw because it goes into the aluminum casting. it also should be metric since most of the other fasteners are metric. ford does not have the screw. the closest i have found is a metric (M4) machine screw, but it will not go in very far without binding.

is there a method to determine what the thread type and even if it is a machine screw or a sheet metal screw? i went to the hardware store & just kept going in and out with various SAE, metric, and sheet metal screws ( they were very nice about it), but never found one that would fit~

jennifer
i might not have made it clear. the ford parts counter could not even find the screw in their diagrams. it might come with the nylon tube, but that part is obsolete without replacement.

Casting Furnace

Jimmy asked:


I have a few tiny nicks around the drain flange that are forming rust. Do I need to completely sand those down to metal or just get them dry and paint them with my porc-a-fix paint?

Metal Casting Forum

rtc_frtc asked:


After major water damage, which included two rooms and a closet, coming from a long-existing leak in shower pan, we removed everything down to the studs. What’s left is the cement foundation with what looks like a cast iron pipe drain coming from cement foundation.
Hubby lost his job so we are going to have to do most of the work ourselves. Researched mortar, sloped shower pans and feel confident we can do it.
Our concern is what to attach to the existing cast iron pipe to give us a two-part drain?
I’m good at PVC/cutting/gluing/attaching and my husband is good at copper solder. We are just not sure what to add to the old hunk of metal pipe/drain coming out of the cement.
Any help to get us started will be greatly appreciated!
Did I mention how tired I am of showering outside or in the garage this past 5 weeks? *smile*
I do have photos of the damage/shower area/drain coming up from the cement foundation but I don’t know how to attach the photos to my post.

Metal Casting DIY

daddys girl asked:


I have an old cast aluminum item that was stored in a damp location. It has a white oxidation and dark discoloration beneath the rough oxidation. What would be best to clean and polish this item to bring back it’s original sheen?

DIY Metal Casting

Aaron asked:


1991 Lincoln Town Car. How do i replace the plastic slide linkage that connects the ignition switch to the ignition cylinder? It is broke inside the metal casting from trying to turn the key back, to the position to remove the key.

Bronze Metal Casting