Kudos and great work on the video. I'm glad to see you're having fun. Looks like you used petrobond sand and the layered approach with the flask and drag which definitely will produce better results. We were trying to cast with play sand with an open top just for simplicity, and only got it to work with a layer of drywall mud on the foam.
Wow - credit from the King!!! Thanks very much. I appreciate your approach is much different to mine and I'm delighted you took the time to reply to my channel. If you ever fancy a cast-off, a friendly competition between amateur casting enthusiasts, please let me know. It would be great to do something with the team that inspired me to melt my first can.
I'm sure Grant and Nate are too busy to have a cast-off competition with me. But I'd love it. The master (the KIng) takes on his pupil... I'd LOVE to make that happen!!!
I use pretty much the same lost foam casting technique as you and only cast copper and bronze. You clearly have a lot of porosity in your cast, there's a cheap way to combat that, just stick some lump wood charcoal in the crucible and refill periodically. The charcoal has a greater affinity with the gas so isn't a problem. Then just before the pour drop in a pinch of flux, mix, skim and pour. I get perfect, gas free castings every time. Hope that helps
That's great! Really pleased you subscribed. Please look at some of my other stuff and let me know what you think. Probably my favourite it the home made caterpillar (tank) tracks.
You're right to use the word 'study.' It's a very interesting topic. Quite frankly I was amazed at the difference between Aluminium and Cooper. The first pours like thick cream and the second like water. This may have had a lot to do with the temperature and more experiments and self-education will tell me I guess : ) Thanks for the support.
Brill result Geoff! Now i can't wait to get my foundry/furnace up and running. So far i've experimented with an oil fired central heating nozzle (siphon type), i'm just waiting for some needle valves to come from China, as it's quite thirsty at the mo. I've got some LOVELY closeup and SloMo footage of the oil coming out of the tip and on to ignition. Just need to organise it into a vid still! (not enough time in the day), thanks for a great VId and inspiration o/
Nicely done. I'm not sure about the imperfections. Could be temperature. I've never done lost material casting but I wonder if it's from the foam burning off.
You're deduction is a good one. There's a lot of gas created in burning the foam. But there's also gas that's gets absorbed as the metal melts. It's a gassy process : ) I'm fairly confident I could get a better result next time with better temperature and flow control. But time will tell.
That's true. When we did this in school we used a powder like additive when did aluminum. Right after skimming the junk on top we'd add that and try to push it under the surface. I'm not sure how it worked but it was supposed to encourage the gasses to leave the melted metal. I wonder if copper has something like that flux we used in school. There is a lot of science to this and I only scratched the surface. Keep experimenting, keep learning.
Hi VOG from Australia. I'm starting casting al. and don't have much success with the usual wood model, the green sand just falls away every time., doesn't leave a nice cavity like in the video's. I will try your lost foam method and see if I have any success. Love your video's, and the written comments/jokes that pop up occasionally. Hope your still at it. Cheers Shayne. .
It is amazing foam... it's great to cut, shaves, file and sand. I simply googled "extruded foam" and bought some online, but if you have any good model shops nearby, they usually sell it. Model makers are well aware of its excellent qualities : )
Well done - your first copper casting would indeed probably have come out a great deal better with improved temp control, but you did everything else so well that I´m convinced that, given an accurate thermocouple, you´ll get a good finish next time.
Sorry for the long comment in advance brother. You actually peeked my interest in this, I saw the king of randoms videos, and although very simple and to the point, I strongly preferred your in depth explainations and overall better quality of information. So thank you for all of that! (Not to discredit K.o.R., it's just a different audience I suppose) Currently have a larger stockpile (for starting) of aluminum and, as you would say, "coppah" built up. Roughly 25lbs Aluminum and 16lbs copper (11kg and 7kg, respectively) now I got to buy -an ingot mold, -crucible - tongs/handle for crucible and then buy the materials to make the foundry itself. I'm preffering of doing it right the first time, going all out on more quality materials for D.I.Y. project. But my God does everything stack up rather quickly, do you have any advice on how to pinch in some areas without sacrificing too much on the overall quality? (Look at me, whining about the price of quality, ironic in'nit?) I have enough scrap wood and nails to make the caster molds for this, as well as a stable source of veg/motor oil (thank you local restaurant)
Hi Ryan, thanks for your kind comments : ) I meant every word I said - Grant really was the inspiration that got me started in casting. I'd never even thought about it until then. Cheap but quality and good... I'd go with castable refractory - th-cam.com/video/n42t3M1fOyY/w-d-xo.html. It's VERY stable and holds together excellently. I bought the 1700C stuff and it's still crack free. You can also get high temperature and good insulation in one mix - more expensive but better long term. Add a layer of plaster (cheap - I've got a video on it - look out for it) to the outside for excellent and very affordable insulation. It will crack but continue to work. Mine's been through two winters now and is still holding together. One tip, make it bigger than mine. I used a paint tin as my inner mould. I wish I'd have used the veg oil container. It would have given me much more scope for larger crucibles and bigger projects. Hope this helps.
I agree with your breakdown on difference in audience :-) To keep things affordable, yet not compromise on quality, I can suggest two other channels: Alec Steele and TAOW (the art of weapons) taow made a fairly cheap yet wonderful electric foundry and made a great instructional video on how to build it. He's got other amazing videos with clear breakdowns on metal working. Alec Steele has a few videos about his castable refractory foundry build, with all problems he encountered and how he fixed them. I can strongly suggest his other videos too if you don't know him yet. If you get a stable source of veg oil, maybe you can look into a diesel generator to power an electric foundry. If you add heating coils to the fuel pump and fuel line (I'm sure there's videos about this) you can run the generator on 100% oil.
oh, and one of Nate's first videos on TKOR is a quick-and-dirty alternative for the foundry, using only cale wool and a metal trash can, eliminating the need for castable refractory and avoiding all problems with cracks and crumbling.
9:08 if you really dislike the metal working, send your stuff my way for the finishing, because I happen to absolutely love it, handsanding too, absolutely (omg, I really fail at not making this sound ironic... But seriously, I'm not joking, I love sanding and grinding and shining)
I envy you. I get bored so easily. Ask me to build something and I'm all over it. Ask me to spend all day rubbing down a skirting board or something and I'll sob like a spoiled child. : )
I think it's because I approach it in a "mindful" way. Taking the fine steps towards that perfect shape and shine, it's meditative and satisfying too. When watching the surface closely, seeing the structure and sometimes the patterns change, is not boring at all. But then I can watch mosquitos dance in the evening light for an hour until it gets too dark to see them too... XD
Another well explained video fella. I watch similar videos on TH-cam and the final product always seems almost perfect. Now we all know, don't we, that the chances of getting something right on the first attempt is unlikely to say the least mate. Which raises the question..... How many videos did they actually make to get the desired finish. My point is, that us amateurs see perfection and it can be a little off putting when we are thinking of having a go at a similar item, especially when we see our first attempt item. It's good to see items that have imperfections mate, gives others heart to have a go. You have skills for sure mate and it's good to see the good and bad in your videos and an explanation of why it did or didn't go well. Hope this rambling makes sense, sorry for the length haha. Basically, keep up the good work brother, you're good at this!
Hi Softail. I know exactly what you mean. I watched a lost foam casting video many moons ago and I thought - that's easy... bucket of sand, foam shape, hot metal... wow, the things I can make. My first ever attempt was basically a metal and sand cocktail. I've come a fair way since then, but I've still got a long way to go : )
If you had not put any vents with the wire I am sure that everyone would be quick to say that is the reason why the copper boiled over. Next time around put twice as many vents and it will still boil over. Copper is a metal that needs so many things to get right before you can get a good casting. You are finding out what so many others have found out on youtube about copper, it is a very difficult metal to cast.
Glad you found the links. There should be three in total. It was a nice build and pretty easy if you can weld. I'm a novice but managed it anyway. It's slow but easy. I guessed it would take a long time and set up a timer to come on at 3am. I was right, seven hours, but I didn't have to wait long thanks to the overnight tactic : )
I was looking at your channel. You do some great 3D printing stuff. Would you ever be interested in a collab? I'm a 3D printer virgin but have had a few ideas tick over in my mind from time to time. Let me know.
Thanks! Sure that could be interesting. I don't have much experience from collabs but if you have an idea about what we could do I'm most likely up for it!
That's excellent news. Tell you what, please visit www.vegoilguy.co.uk/contact_me.php and send me a message. This will give me your email address. From that I can email you back and we can explore a few options. I've actually got one in mind right now : )
If you can find an inferred temperature gun that reads high enough that would be a backup reading as you bring your metal to the liquid state . Just a though for checking the temperature before you pour.
Michael, what is the magic temperature for pouring copper? Do you an idea? Been frustrated for a while now that I’m pouring either too hot or too cold.
No Arjay. In honesty you're the first to ever ask : ) I tend to make things for my own pleasure or for practical purpose. It's surprising fun... like turning soda cans into the tank tracks for a radio controlled lawn mower - and yes, that's in my videos : )
or say like a kickstarter project, with a one off (so not business - i.e. not 'taxable income') campaign to get (insert something, like workshop full of tools) with some of your creations as 'rewards'... something like that (check your own tax office's rules for Crowdfunding, or donations, or whatever)... or even make like a Patreon account... just some friendly, non legal advice, suggestions.
Thanks for the input. All help gratefully received : ) I'll admit, a Patreon account would be a real bonus. I enjoy experimenting and answering questions, but the costs are significant and slow me down. However, judging by the number of donations I've received to date, I can't really imagine that many folks would want to support my channel. I'd love the help, but I'm sure folks have got other things to spend their money on : )
Nice attempt and tribute. One of my favorite sayings is "it's not a F.A.I.L it's a First Attempt in Learning". Even when you have a process down, changing part of the system is a new learning process. So one thing I notice right away is your pouring into the large riser and not using a tapered sprue. As Olfoundryman Martin would say, you need to use a small tapered sprue, his pouring basin and sprue combination is a huge improvement over pouring down a large hole. video th-cam.com/video/IrS_-NalXt0/w-d-xo.html This will cut down on air entrapment and air mixing of the metal. You might also have too much moisture in your green sand (I assume it's water based green sand and not oil based petrobond) Excess moisture will exacerbate problems caused by the metal being too hot, basically the excess moisture will flash to steam and will look like air entrapment creating more porosity in the cast.
F.A.I.L - brilliant!! I've never heard that one, I wholeheartedly agree with it. If you're not making mistakes, you're not doing anything. Yes Martin is a fabulous source of knowledge and is happy to help anyone. I'd love to see his channel do better. He deserves the recognition for all he does. And thanks for the input. All suggestions are welcomed : )
I use those cheap unbranded thermocouples to melt copper without any measurement problems. I'm nearly 100% certain your problem is that you haven't placed the thermocouple far enough into the chamber (judging from part 1 of your build video th-cam.com/video/XypmI38IKAw/w-d-xo.html). You need to have it roughly an inch inside the chamber of the furnace, otherwise you'll get much cooler readings than what it actually is. This will screw with your readings even for lower temperature applications. You should also make sure the threaded end of the probe doesn't get too hot, as I think that might result in inaccurate readings too. Most kilns I've seen have the thread a couple of inches away from the bricks, not screwed into the brick itself like you've done. There's also the minor possibility that there's electrical interference from being tangled amongst cables in your electronics box. Just order a dirt cheap 200mm probe and that'll probably solve your problems. Enjoying the casting series!
Hi Rabih. That's a could deduction. Plaster of Paris does indeed hold water. But in this case I'd already baked to around 250 Celsius. There might still be water present as I've heard some folks say it should go to 400, but I also know lost wax casters that don't bake that high. Casting is certainly mysterious at times, especially when trying a new metal, as I was here. Thanks for your input : )
Hope you're joking there mate. Don't unsubscribe to KoR. I think he's excellent! My message was sent privately as I thought it would get lost amongst all the other comments. And he must get bothered by small channels like mine all the time, so no worries.
I did indeed misunderstand that bit in your intro. It sounded to me as if they responded ungracefully on your message. Grant was great, but ever since Nate took over the presentation, and a "team" took over the thinking behind the videos, I started liking it less and less. P.e. they started grinding the "hot vs cold" topic, filled videos with rubber band slingshots that don't require any randomness nor genious, ... Grant did inspire me A LOT when he was still doing the videos. And in the first videos with Nate, I could clearly tell that Grant was never far away. But that feeling wore down, unfortunately, because I used to watch my notifications hourly to see if there were new uploads from TKOR. I'll respect Grant forever for the inspiration he gave me, and for introducing me to new options in my own life (I'm gearing up to start filming a story of my own, inspired by various TH-camrs like Grant, yourself, Alec Steele, Matt Karricker (DemolitionRanch/VetRanch/Offtheranch), Outdoors55 and a few others). I have hovered several times over the "unsub" button on TKOR. I still keep the liked videos for future reference, and will thank him in due time when I use ideas that he inspired me for. Today I clicked. Your videos are more educational for me anyways, as I'm moving away from mainly entertaining videos. (Though Matt's channels will stay on my daily watchlist for entertainement, as we all need some time off, don't we) Thank you for your content!
While you're right that it's better to spend time working the foam rather than grinding the metal, you seem to be spending a lot of time making your foam objects before each pour. Might I suggest doing some tests with relatively simple shapes. A solid block of foam, a hollow block, a waxed covered and sanded block. Ideally you want to ram them all up together and gate them with a single pour. Compare the results to see if your efforts are making a difference of if you are just wasting a lot of time for nothing.
Hi Brandon. Thanks for your comments. You're quite right, for testing alone using more simple shapes is the ideal way to go. What I'm trying to convey in my videos is that all manner of complex shapes can theoretically be made from foam and, if you've got your casting technique right (as I clearly haven't with copper yet), then time spent on the foam pattern will dramatically save time on metal finishing. With aluminium, I've got it pretty dialled in. I use wooden templates to quickly reproduce foam patterns and dress these if imperfection exist. Certainly multiple items in the pour at once is also no unheard of for me, but again here I prefer to demonstrate just one to convey the idea more clearly. And lastly, in this case, I wanted to make the copper gear in much the same way Grant Thompson made his. Hope this clarifies my actions for you. Thanks for your thoughtful and constructive feedback : )
I'd love to. I've asked Grant for a friendly cast-off competition, but he's a busy man. But you could always reply to his comment to me (under the description) and encourage him : )
I think these names often hold a story. Mine is easy enough - I began running my car on Veg Oil and became obsessed with getting it for free from restaurants, etc, and finding better ways to clean it. Your name... that sounds a far more interesting story...
I thought so Ron... that trick photography bit where I made it look as though the camera was hopelessly focused... there aren't many that could pull that off ; )
Kudos and great work on the video. I'm glad to see you're having fun. Looks like you used petrobond sand and the layered approach with the flask and drag which definitely will produce better results. We were trying to cast with play sand with an open top just for simplicity, and only got it to work with a layer of drywall mud on the foam.
The King of Random Hey Grant and Nate! I love that you also link to the peoples work!
Wow - credit from the King!!!
Thanks very much. I appreciate your approach is much different to mine and I'm delighted you took the time to reply to my channel. If you ever fancy a cast-off, a friendly competition between amateur casting enthusiasts, please let me know. It would be great to do something with the team that inspired me to melt my first can.
Will you guys be taking the gear from him and destroying it in an elaborate manner?
I'm sure Grant and Nate are too busy to have a cast-off competition with me. But I'd love it. The master (the KIng) takes on his pupil... I'd LOVE to make that happen!!!
YES!!!! A COMPETITION CAST OF KING V VEG FOR THE GOLDEN GEAR
I use pretty much the same lost foam casting technique as you and only cast copper and bronze. You clearly have a lot of porosity in your cast, there's a cheap way to combat that, just stick some lump wood charcoal in the crucible and refill periodically. The charcoal has a greater affinity with the gas so isn't a problem. Then just before the pour drop in a pinch of flux, mix, skim and pour. I get perfect, gas free castings every time. Hope that helps
King of Random sent me this way. I say you did a far better job. I’m subscribing and look forward to you trying more in copper.
That's great! Really pleased you subscribed. Please look at some of my other stuff and let me know what you think. Probably my favourite it the home made caterpillar (tank) tracks.
Great insight on the importance of temperature! I'm studying metal casting myself in hopes of making something bloody epic one day ☺️
You're right to use the word 'study.' It's a very interesting topic.
Quite frankly I was amazed at the difference between Aluminium and Cooper. The first pours like thick cream and the second like water. This may have had a lot to do with the temperature and more experiments and self-education will tell me I guess : )
Thanks for the support.
Brill result Geoff! Now i can't wait to get my foundry/furnace up and running. So far i've experimented with an oil fired central heating nozzle (siphon type), i'm just waiting for some needle valves to come from China, as it's quite thirsty at the mo. I've got some LOVELY closeup and SloMo footage of the oil coming out of the tip and on to ignition. Just need to organise it into a vid still! (not enough time in the day), thanks for a great VId and inspiration o/
No worries. Just do me a favour and don't quit the art. I love those painting videos : )
haha thanks! i'm glad you like them, yeah dont worry i'll keep doing them, in fact got about 2 in the pipeline :) o/
Very nice video and great work with the gear casting. Looking forward for more videos !
Many thanks. Casting is one of my favourite topics.
Fantastic! Thanks for sharing.
Thanks Kimberly. Glad you enjoyed it : )
Nicely done. I'm not sure about the imperfections. Could be temperature. I've never done lost material casting but I wonder if it's from the foam burning off.
You're deduction is a good one. There's a lot of gas created in burning the foam. But there's also gas that's gets absorbed as the metal melts. It's a gassy process : )
I'm fairly confident I could get a better result next time with better temperature and flow control. But time will tell.
That's true. When we did this in school we used a powder like additive when did aluminum. Right after skimming the junk on top we'd add that and try to push it under the surface. I'm not sure how it worked but it was supposed to encourage the gasses to leave the melted metal. I wonder if copper has something like that flux we used in school. There is a lot of science to this and I only scratched the surface. Keep experimenting, keep learning.
Hi VOG from Australia.
I'm starting casting al. and don't have much success with the usual wood model,
the green sand just falls away every time., doesn't leave a nice cavity like in the video's.
I will try your lost foam method and see if I have any success.
Love your video's, and the written comments/jokes that pop up occasionally.
Hope your still at it. Cheers Shayne.
.
Thanks Shayne : )
Try this video. I think it's the clearest I've done on the subject of Lost Foam casting - th-cam.com/video/ES1Xenom-e0/w-d-xo.html
Cool video. Brought here by KoR.
Thanks Khorzho. I really appreciate that. Please look at my other stuff. And let me know what you think : )
King of random sent me, you’ve got a new sub!
That's great Sam. Glad you're on board.
Where do you get that foam?
It is amazing foam... it's great to cut, shaves, file and sand. I simply googled "extruded foam" and bought some online, but if you have any good model shops nearby, they usually sell it. Model makers are well aware of its excellent qualities : )
Can i use green sand for this project? please inform me.
Hi Sahadev. The sand you see me using in this video IS green sand, so yes you can my friend : )
@@vogman thanks bro.
Look forward to the next gear casting with the new thermocouple installed.
Cheers mate
Well done - your first copper casting would indeed probably have come out a great deal better with improved temp control, but you did everything else so well that I´m convinced that, given an accurate thermocouple, you´ll get a good finish next time.
Thanks Del, that's very kind : )
Sorry for the long comment in advance brother.
You actually peeked my interest in this, I saw the king of randoms videos, and although very simple and to the point, I strongly preferred your in depth explainations and overall better quality of information. So thank you for all of that! (Not to discredit K.o.R., it's just a different audience I suppose)
Currently have a larger stockpile (for starting) of aluminum and, as you would say, "coppah" built up. Roughly 25lbs Aluminum and 16lbs copper (11kg and 7kg, respectively) now I got to buy
-an ingot mold,
-crucible
- tongs/handle for crucible
and then buy the materials to make the foundry itself. I'm preffering of doing it right the first time, going all out on more quality materials for D.I.Y. project. But my God does everything stack up rather quickly, do you have any advice on how to pinch in some areas without sacrificing too much on the overall quality? (Look at me, whining about the price of quality, ironic in'nit?) I have enough scrap wood and nails to make the caster molds for this, as well as a stable source of veg/motor oil (thank you local restaurant)
Hi Ryan, thanks for your kind comments : )
I meant every word I said - Grant really was the inspiration that got me started in casting. I'd never even thought about it until then.
Cheap but quality and good... I'd go with castable refractory - th-cam.com/video/n42t3M1fOyY/w-d-xo.html. It's VERY stable and holds together excellently. I bought the 1700C stuff and it's still crack free. You can also get high temperature and good insulation in one mix - more expensive but better long term. Add a layer of plaster (cheap - I've got a video on it - look out for it) to the outside for excellent and very affordable insulation. It will crack but continue to work. Mine's been through two winters now and is still holding together.
One tip, make it bigger than mine. I used a paint tin as my inner mould. I wish I'd have used the veg oil container. It would have given me much more scope for larger crucibles and bigger projects.
Hope this helps.
I agree with your breakdown on difference in audience :-)
To keep things affordable, yet not compromise on quality, I can suggest two other channels: Alec Steele and TAOW (the art of weapons)
taow made a fairly cheap yet wonderful electric foundry and made a great instructional video on how to build it. He's got other amazing videos with clear breakdowns on metal working. Alec Steele has a few videos about his castable refractory foundry build, with all problems he encountered and how he fixed them. I can strongly suggest his other videos too if you don't know him yet.
If you get a stable source of veg oil, maybe you can look into a diesel generator to power an electric foundry. If you add heating coils to the fuel pump and fuel line (I'm sure there's videos about this) you can run the generator on 100% oil.
oh, and one of Nate's first videos on TKOR is a quick-and-dirty alternative for the foundry, using only cale wool and a metal trash can, eliminating the need for castable refractory and avoiding all problems with cracks and crumbling.
9:08 if you really dislike the metal working, send your stuff my way for the finishing, because I happen to absolutely love it, handsanding too, absolutely (omg, I really fail at not making this sound ironic... But seriously, I'm not joking, I love sanding and grinding and shining)
I envy you. I get bored so easily. Ask me to build something and I'm all over it. Ask me to spend all day rubbing down a skirting board or something and I'll sob like a spoiled child. : )
I think it's because I approach it in a "mindful" way. Taking the fine steps towards that perfect shape and shine, it's meditative and satisfying too. When watching the surface closely, seeing the structure and sometimes the patterns change, is not boring at all. But then I can watch mosquitos dance in the evening light for an hour until it gets too dark to see them too... XD
Another well explained video fella. I watch similar videos on TH-cam and the final product always seems almost perfect. Now we all know, don't we, that the chances of getting something right on the first attempt is unlikely to say the least mate. Which raises the question..... How many videos did they actually make to get the desired finish. My point is, that us amateurs see perfection and it can be a little off putting when we are thinking of having a go at a similar item, especially when we see our first attempt item. It's good to see items that have imperfections mate, gives others heart to have a go. You have skills for sure mate and it's good to see the good and bad in your videos and an explanation of why it did or didn't go well. Hope this rambling makes sense, sorry for the length haha. Basically, keep up the good work brother, you're good at this!
Hi Softail. I know exactly what you mean. I watched a lost foam casting video many moons ago and I thought - that's easy... bucket of sand, foam shape, hot metal... wow, the things I can make. My first ever attempt was basically a metal and sand cocktail. I've come a fair way since then, but I've still got a long way to go : )
Congrats VegOilGuy it looks great
Thanks Jordan. It was certainly different : )
If you had not put any vents with the wire I am sure that everyone would be quick to say that is the reason why the copper boiled over. Next time around put twice as many vents and it will still boil over. Copper is a metal that needs so many things to get right before you can get a good casting. You are finding out what so many others have found out on youtube about copper, it is a very difficult metal to cast.
I couldn't agree more : )
Excellent.
Thanks Logan.
Forgot to add, I got started the same why. I wonder how many small foundries are out there due to a grant.
That seems to be such a nice foundry! Do you have any videos about it's build?
My bad, I was a bit too quick there. It showed up in the outro. Great video!
Glad you found the links. There should be three in total. It was a nice build and pretty easy if you can weld. I'm a novice but managed it anyway.
It's slow but easy. I guessed it would take a long time and set up a timer to come on at 3am. I was right, seven hours, but I didn't have to wait long thanks to the overnight tactic : )
I was looking at your channel. You do some great 3D printing stuff. Would you ever be interested in a collab? I'm a 3D printer virgin but have had a few ideas tick over in my mind from time to time. Let me know.
Thanks! Sure that could be interesting. I don't have much experience from collabs but if you have an idea about what we could do I'm most likely up for it!
That's excellent news. Tell you what, please visit www.vegoilguy.co.uk/contact_me.php and send me a message. This will give me your email address. From that I can email you back and we can explore a few options. I've actually got one in mind right now : )
If you can find an inferred temperature gun that reads high enough that would be a backup reading as you bring your metal to the liquid state . Just a though for checking the temperature before you pour.
That's the goal Michael. Just got to save my pennies. But thanks for your feedback. It's always great to get comments.
Michael, what is the magic temperature for pouring copper? Do you an idea? Been frustrated for a while now that I’m pouring either too hot or too cold.
do you sell your creations?
No Arjay. In honesty you're the first to ever ask : )
I tend to make things for my own pleasure or for practical purpose. It's surprising fun... like turning soda cans into the tank tracks for a radio controlled lawn mower - and yes, that's in my videos : )
@@vogman I saw it. maybe you could have a hobby on the side, selling your art works... :)
or say like a kickstarter project, with a one off (so not business - i.e. not 'taxable income') campaign to get (insert something, like workshop full of tools) with some of your creations as 'rewards'... something like that (check your own tax office's rules for Crowdfunding, or donations, or whatever)... or even make like a Patreon account... just some friendly, non legal advice, suggestions.
Thanks for the input. All help gratefully received : )
I'll admit, a Patreon account would be a real bonus. I enjoy experimenting and answering questions, but the costs are significant and slow me down. However, judging by the number of donations I've received to date, I can't really imagine that many folks would want to support my channel. I'd love the help, but I'm sure folks have got other things to spend their money on : )
@@vogman but they might, and if you start getting some bucks rolling in = can do more regular videos... say 1 per week... = grow more and more
Good job for first go
We've all got to learn : )
I think it looks great for your first time
Many thanks
great video keep it up!
Many thanks. Glad you enjoyed it : )
Look good man very good Effort
Thanks James. That was my first time with copper.
Not bad at all for a first try. You can always remelt it to try it again! 👍
Yes my first ever experiment with copper. I remember it well. It terrified me, all that extra heat : )
Nice attempt and tribute. One of my favorite sayings is "it's not a F.A.I.L it's a First Attempt in Learning". Even when you have a process down, changing part of the system is a new learning process.
So one thing I notice right away is your pouring into the large riser and not using a tapered sprue. As Olfoundryman Martin would say, you need to use a small tapered sprue, his pouring basin and sprue combination is a huge improvement over pouring down a large hole. video th-cam.com/video/IrS_-NalXt0/w-d-xo.html
This will cut down on air entrapment and air mixing of the metal.
You might also have too much moisture in your green sand (I assume it's water based green sand and not oil based petrobond) Excess moisture will exacerbate problems caused by the metal being too hot, basically the excess moisture will flash to steam and will look like air entrapment creating more porosity in the cast.
F.A.I.L - brilliant!! I've never heard that one, I wholeheartedly agree with it. If you're not making mistakes, you're not doing anything.
Yes Martin is a fabulous source of knowledge and is happy to help anyone. I'd love to see his channel do better. He deserves the recognition for all he does.
And thanks for the input. All suggestions are welcomed : )
8:09 lol! XD
Nice work
Thanks Andrew.
Can you please please make a casting of a Subaru or a STI logo🙏🏼 I’d love to watch it and I’d even buy the casting🙏🏼
I started after watching the king too...
He's influenced so many of us : D
Still have my plaster garbage can somewhere haha..
Wiiiiiiii! =)
I use those cheap unbranded thermocouples to melt copper without any measurement problems. I'm nearly 100% certain your problem is that you haven't placed the thermocouple far enough into the chamber (judging from part 1 of your build video th-cam.com/video/XypmI38IKAw/w-d-xo.html). You need to have it roughly an inch inside the chamber of the furnace, otherwise you'll get much cooler readings than what it actually is. This will screw with your readings even for lower temperature applications. You should also make sure the threaded end of the probe doesn't get too hot, as I think that might result in inaccurate readings too. Most kilns I've seen have the thread a couple of inches away from the bricks, not screwed into the brick itself like you've done. There's also the minor possibility that there's electrical interference from being tangled amongst cables in your electronics box. Just order a dirt cheap 200mm probe and that'll probably solve your problems. Enjoying the casting series!
My name jeff 8)
The splashing was from the uncured plaster rises
Next time bake the plaster to remouve moistre
Hi Rabih. That's a could deduction. Plaster of Paris does indeed hold water. But in this case I'd already baked to around 250 Celsius. There might still be water present as I've heard some folks say it should go to 400, but I also know lost wax casters that don't bake that high.
Casting is certainly mysterious at times, especially when trying a new metal, as I was here.
Thanks for your input : )
Try to invest it you will have a great surface finish
All suggestions are welcomed : )
your intro already made me thumbs up you 5 times... hahaha!!
went to check and he even removed your contribution from the comments... I went ahead and removed myself from the subs...
Hope you're joking there mate. Don't unsubscribe to KoR. I think he's excellent!
My message was sent privately as I thought it would get lost amongst all the other comments. And he must get bothered by small channels like mine all the time, so no worries.
I did indeed misunderstand that bit in your intro. It sounded to me as if they responded ungracefully on your message.
Grant was great, but ever since Nate took over the presentation, and a "team" took over the thinking behind the videos, I started liking it less and less. P.e. they started grinding the "hot vs cold" topic, filled videos with rubber band slingshots that don't require any randomness nor genious, ... Grant did inspire me A LOT when he was still doing the videos. And in the first videos with Nate, I could clearly tell that Grant was never far away. But that feeling wore down, unfortunately, because I used to watch my notifications hourly to see if there were new uploads from TKOR. I'll respect Grant forever for the inspiration he gave me, and for introducing me to new options in my own life (I'm gearing up to start filming a story of my own, inspired by various TH-camrs like Grant, yourself, Alec Steele, Matt Karricker (DemolitionRanch/VetRanch/Offtheranch), Outdoors55 and a few others).
I have hovered several times over the "unsub" button on TKOR. I still keep the liked videos for future reference, and will thank him in due time when I use ideas that he inspired me for. Today I clicked. Your videos are more educational for me anyways, as I'm moving away from mainly entertaining videos. (Though Matt's channels will stay on my daily watchlist for entertainement, as we all need some time off, don't we)
Thank you for your content!
While you're right that it's better to spend time working the foam rather than grinding the metal, you seem to be spending a lot of time making your foam objects before each pour. Might I suggest doing some tests with relatively simple shapes. A solid block of foam, a hollow block, a waxed covered and sanded block. Ideally you want to ram them all up together and gate them with a single pour. Compare the results to see if your efforts are making a difference of if you are just wasting a lot of time for nothing.
Hi Brandon. Thanks for your comments.
You're quite right, for testing alone using more simple shapes is the ideal way to go.
What I'm trying to convey in my videos is that all manner of complex shapes can theoretically be made from foam and, if you've got your casting technique right (as I clearly haven't with copper yet), then time spent on the foam pattern will dramatically save time on metal finishing.
With aluminium, I've got it pretty dialled in. I use wooden templates to quickly reproduce foam patterns and dress these if imperfection exist. Certainly multiple items in the pour at once is also no unheard of for me, but again here I prefer to demonstrate just one to convey the idea more clearly.
And lastly, in this case, I wanted to make the copper gear in much the same way Grant Thompson made his.
Hope this clarifies my actions for you. Thanks for your thoughtful and constructive feedback : )
8:21 nope, not a new kind of snake. A new kind of pig, though...
Nice to see some traditional brummie casting methods........... Then again Casting is in our blood lol
Yow'm ower-rite ower kid
VegOilGuy arr bostin
Good technique
Thanks Lorenza
Hi iam from presstube
Hi Cordel. Great to have you here : )
U should Collab with grant Thomson if you can
I'd love to. I've asked Grant for a friendly cast-off competition, but he's a busy man. But you could always reply to his comment to me (under the description) and encourage him : )
I’ll try
BTW......nice name you got there
I think these names often hold a story. Mine is easy enough - I began running my car on Veg Oil and became obsessed with getting it for free from restaurants, etc, and finding better ways to clean it. Your name... that sounds a far more interesting story...
No film maker's award? You've been robbed! 😉 👍
I thought so Ron... that trick photography bit where I made it look as though the camera was hopelessly focused... there aren't many that could pull that off ; )
Who else come here because of press tube
I'd like to think quite a few folks have visited my channel because of PressTube's kind words : )
You poured copper too quickly
I'll be honest, I was surprised how quickly in flowed : )