DIY Vacuum Casting Set up / Build.
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 16 ก.พ. 2022
- Here I built a Vacuum casting set up that works for both perforated and solid flasks.
Cost:
Pump: $160
Flask: $134
High Temp silicone sheet: $15
Gasket maker: $5
Aluminum pipe and plate: $53
(steel would have been Much cheaper $.75/lb vs $3.50/lb but it was all they had.
Total: $367
Flasks vary a lot in cost depending on the size. pumps also vary in price. and of course steel would be cheaper too.
link to pump:
www.ebay.com/itm/391975284445...
link to flasks
www.riogrande.com/product/neu... - บันเทิง
For the air temp on the vacuum pump, you could always bend some copper tube into a coil and stick it into a bucket of water to act as a heat exchanger to cool the air before it goes through the pump.
You should probably draw him a picture. He doesn't seem to bright.
@@kayakMike1000what? 😂
The dim calling others "not bright" never gets old
I had that same exact idea!
I like that you show your mistakes and how you fixed them. Very cool.
After burning up a couple of expensive silicon pads I tried a piece of cardboard (about 1/16" or 3/32" thick, solid, not corrugated) that I soak just before pouring. Cost is essentially nothing and unbelievably, I get 15-20 pours with a single piece of cardboard. All I have to do is soak it again before each pour.
I use standard air compressor quick disconnect fittings for my vacuum lines. It make it easier to break everything down for storage and to move the vacuum pump between the tables for vacuuming investment and vacuum assisted casting. I don't use perforated flasks.
All my fittings are 1/8" pipe thread. My setup is smaller, the maximum flask I use is 5" diameter, but 1/8" or 3/16" fittings should be big enough for a set up your size.
I use a canister to catch the metal in case the bottom of a flask cracks and pisses molten bronze down the vacuum line and into the vacuum pump. I also use a filter - just metal shell gasoline filter for a car about 2" diameter by 3" long. I'm still mad at myself for not doing that earlier - I trashed a really nice vacuum pump when the bronze made it through about 4' of hose and into my pump.
The proof of the pudding is in the eating. Your castings look good!
Sounds like you know what your doing. I’ll have to try that cardboard trick!
“When you don’t have the right tools, it takes lots of tools.” That is so relatable dude
I love how you commit so much care and effort to your builds. Keep up the good work - baked with love and care, perfect stuff!
Thanks for showing your journey, warts and all, where you discover that things don't necessarily work as you might expect them. But you persevere and get there in the end, which is encouraging to us other mere mortals.
Bro I’m personally proud of your trial and error. That face of failure is so soothing Bcus it’s not always success the first time. I actually operate in success the first try and fail after initial attempt. Weird I know
Great video! Thanks for sharing your work.
I always learn something when I watch your videos!
Instead of taping entire container I've seen other people wrap the perforated container in heavy paper. The paper looked like a very thin flexible cardboard. The other vloger taped the paper wrap together, using a whole lot less tape and easier to remove.
Great video and thank you for sharing this! Helps for others trying to do the same.
Great job mate im definitely making my own vac chamber now, thanks so much
great stuff, exactly the kind of info i am looking for right now
Amazing work man. Loved the video and your chanel in general
Great info here. I've always wanted to do similar stuff but didn't know where to start.
The most authentic video...* dream experience *
That was great, thanks for sharing!
Been considering something similar so it was very helpful to see what worked and what didn't 😀👍
It works well. The things I would add. Don’t use aluminum. I had a blow out and the bronze melted the aluminum. Use steel.
And don’t have the hose go directly to the vacuum pump. Have a place for metal to drop into just in case the pump sucks some metal up from a blow out.
Thanks for sharing!
I haven't done any casting yet, just built 2 flasks last night for sand casting, and sieved the sand, and I thought I was messy, but you def take the biscuit on that, but I do like your vids, and models, keep it up your definitely not one of the boring guys on y tube makes for interesting watching funny as :)
Awesome! This is something I've been planning on making. Using wet silicone is an interesting solution! Nice job as always!
I’ve tried carbon sheets to make a gasket but I couldn’t get it to seal. I’ve tried ceramic but I couldn’t get that to seal. I know there must be a way but I didn’t have luck with it. And the rubber sheets always burned up. the wet silicone seems to be working well so far though.
@@lundgrenbronzestudios the silicone sheet its resting on has to be a perfectly flat surface. I guess if you just put wet high temp silicone down, and squished the graphite ring in place on top of that, and let it cure before trying, it'd be easier?
@@lundgrenbronzestudios Hey use whatever works!
Hi. Thank you for your informative shares. I am also about to establish a foundry. I bought a vacuum pump. It says 3x10(-1)=0.3 Pa. Is the power of this pump sufficient?
Heh got there in the end! Very cool!
What you can to make to silicone rubber gasket last longer spread high temperature grease on it 😉 when I saw what you did just putting the flask on dry it made me 🥲
"when you don't have the right tools you use lots of tools" - new bumper sticker
Make sure surface of the plate and pipe are clean, use a flapper disc on a grinder . Will weld alot easier on all types of metal .
Nice idea my friend. The commercial vacuums are highway robbery for what they are!
I'm going to build one out of .125 plate. Perhaps I'll do a video on it??
Anyhow, thanks for the inspiration! 👍👊
Yes do a video. It’s good to have different minds showing how they do things.
Awesome man, a few hundred for a diy build is way nicer than $700 for a brand new machine
Hello Sir I have been learning from you and your skills thanks for the work you do for us. I was wondering if it would be possible to make a pressure chamber attachment that can push molten further into the small crevasses of a mould to achieve better quality result ?
In theory yes but in reality no. Once you pour the metal solidifies so fast you just wouldn’t have time. But another method people use is centrifugal casting. They have a machine that flings the flask in a circle and that forces the metal into the spaces.
Drill Press Pro Tip: Most drill presses have bases that also allows work to be clamped to it - just swing away the regular work table. Of course, floor models give a much larger range. Also, set of cheap hole saws works well for drilling larger holes.
Not sure on welding aluminum, but have seen videos that really sand/clean the aluminum first because the surface oxidizes almost instantly then forms a welding barrier, then they use maybe a zinc alloy welding media. Like most everything, piece of cake once you learn the secrets.
🤦🏻♂️ I didn’t even think about swinging the drill press table out of the way! Good to know!
@@lundgrenbronzestudios 😂
thankyou so much man
Awesome!
Thank you, I've been looking for a tutorial like this for a long time, but maybe you need a vacuum lung between the crucible and the pump to avoid temperature problems, right?
I built a second one and modified some things. But so far the temperature hasn’t been an issue.
Could just use a longer vacuum hose and submerge some it in a bucket of ice water to keep the air temp down and hopefully keep any metal out of the pump incase of a blowout
Interesting video. I have a similar home built vac casting tank myself though in steel with a plate on top. I have also found that the pre made silicone gaskets melt at flask temperatures of around 600C when casting silver. Graphite gaskets on top of the silicone one help to protect it. I found the graphite can delaminate though the whole 'sandwich' still seals under vacuum with a push down. Interested to see if you come up with a way to stop your tongs trapping between the flask & vac tank - I have the same issue. Thanks for taking the time to make these videos, keep me coming - I am now on a similar journey with bronze so they are super helpful!
My tong are actually strong enough and the right size to pick up the flask above the flange so once I started doing that the tongs didn’t get stuck anymore.
I’ve tried a graphite sheet. It was like cardboard almost. I made a vacuum table but I had trouble getting a seal with that as well.
Your momma didn't raise a quitter....or you're just not a quitter.....either way props for gettin it done.
Hahaha I love you've made the exact same mistakes I did with the first uses of this concept haha xD From wrecking the tape, to leaving chunks under the lip and forgetting to make sure the vacuum is as high as it'll go before pouring :)
You don't have to use the fancy silicone, you can use any old cheap nasty silicon caulking for £1 to do it. You may need to experiement with how long you let it set before you put the flask down on it though (use for holeless flasks on top).
For the proper flasks, that nice pretty gasket that you stuck on with the glue and kinda got fucked on the first shot, that was mostly cos of the plaster gettign stuck ono it and making the seal bad. Normally, you only get so many uses before the heat kills it (they are consumables). However, if you buy a sheet of graphite that's big enough (and 2-3mm), you can cut a ring the same size, and put that on top of the silicone bit so it rests between the ring of the flask and the silicone, and you'll get a hell of a lot more uses, and not need to reapply silicone all the time :)
Hope these tips help a bit too! As always, thanks for sharing dude, it was ace xD
I had a graphite sheet that I tried to use on a vacuum table I made but I had a hard time getting that to seal too. It was almost like a graphite cardboard and I’m not sure if that was the right stuff. But so far the wet silicone has been my best bet.
But I’m really liking using it so far.
wet Silicone is a good way to go haha My first iteration of a mini casting table used it on the edges to quite a good effect. Used that for a good while before making the bigger baby for proper flasks. I only bothered using the cheapest silicone caulk for that way though, as it worked fine with it, and cleaning it up everytime wasn't too bad. I find a wire wheeled brush on your drill will strip the dried remnants off in no time :D
@@lundgrenbronzestudios If you're having good success with the wet method, and finding it easier/cheaper than other ways, don't fret about things like the graphite seal, it's not important. I've moved onto using throwaway premade 4" o-rings that I get for about £2 a shot, so I'm not fussed that I only get a handful of uses each time. It costs me more for a silicone sheet that I can only get 1 or 2 seals from if I cut my own.
what size crucible did you use to pour metal
Thanks for this good video, if I have a constant mold(instead of a plaster mold), can I do this method?
Is the pressure difference between the 2 parts the main reason for this high accuracy?
The vacuum is meant to take advantage of the plaster's porosity. If you want to use a peemanent mold you'll need a way to vent the air out, and the added accuracy will be from the prevention of trapped air.
FYI update. The design works very well but do not use aluminum like I did. Use steel pipe!
I just had a blowout in my flask and the molten bronze melted right though the aluminum. You can see what happened here:
th-cam.com/users/shortsbgMf2Uo2CUU?feature=share
Should pin this comment to the top so it doesn't get lost.
Hey I got the same company's pump. I got the smaller 3cfm model (with that same shitty engrish manual) but I only need it to vacuum a chamber the size of a large Tupperware
Hey FYI. I found out just now why those pumps have the warning about upper temperature limit. I was even using my vacuum chamber as an intermediary where the gasses could cool before getting to the pump...... Well as I'm pouring my brass there's a really loud pop plunk and thud as the cap from the oil reservoir blew off and bounced hard off the ceiling.
I turned off the pump but the thing I was using to apply vacuum to the flask during casting was in flames and I decided to fire extinguisher it just to be sure. In the future i think I'll add ice (or maybe dry ice) to the vacuum chamber to help cool the gasses
Ice seems radical, large temperature differences are probably no bueno. I'd think maybe partially filling that chamber with water and covering hoses with wet towels would increase thermal mass and prevent temperature run off.
EDIT: apologies, I was thinking of a video where the uploader had an intermediary flask to act as a trap and I understood that as the "vacuum chamber". Obviously no water should go where the mold is.
Great work. Did/Do you need a cover for the vacuum gauge, just in case of a splash?
No. If I splash that much and ruin the gage I’ll just buy a new one but I would probably melt the vacuum tube too if I splashed that much.
Your are good...
I like your steps to success. I want to build one of these too but I don’t know where to get the cylinder with holes on the side. Can you point me in the right direction?
Also, since you pour into an open hole, you must be drawing air through it. Ever think of putting a thin disk of aluminum to cover and seal the hole? The molten metal should melt the aluminum disk so it pours directly into a vacuum.
Thanks,
Paul
I got mine from Rio Grande jewelry supply.
That unfolding blade is terryfing. A good case for always wearing SAFETY GLASSES !
@lundgrenbronzestudios
Aluminum is silly. Get a ball on your tungsten, clean the everloving heck out of the area you're welding, and use alternating current. Once you do that, you'll have some of the nicest beads you've ever made!
Hello mister i’m from Indonesian
Why is it that when I pour metal ,the metal just rises to the top?
Like boiling water
Awesome video! I’m tempted to try this myself. What thickness was the metal you used?
Well the aluminum pipe I got was about 1/4 inch but the thickness of the pipe doesn’t need to be nearly that thick. Any pipe that you find as long as it doesn’t viable flex in your hand is going to be strong enough to hold the vacuum and the the flask.
Do you know by any chance how wide the flask including the flange is? I want to build a vacuum chamber where the flask fits inside for getting the bubbles out of the investment while pouring.
The OD including the flange is 7 1/4”.
@@lundgrenbronzestudios Thank You :)
This should definitely improve your casting results.
Pardon the stupid question, but what exactly does the vacuum do for you? All the sprues and the pouring spout are on the top, completely open. And I can't quite imagine that the investment is permeable enough to pull a vacuum through it fast enough while the metal cools. I would have expected, that the top of the mold has to be entirely surrounded by the vacuum...
But it is permeable enough. It’s amazing how well it works.
Hey dude, I what’s your burnout schedule on such a large flask?
Really struggling with cracking on mine.
Currently using investment powered manufactures recommended cycle and I do have a proper programmable kiln to do it in so poor/ rough tools are not my issue in this scenario 💁🏻♂️
I don’t follow an exact burn out schedule. But I try to follow the schedule for ultra vest. I don’t have an automatic kiln and my kiln has two coils. So I run it on low low. Wait a few hours. Then low med, wait several hours until I remember it again and then Med Med. and hold there for 4-5 hours. I think slow heating is important for not cracking it. Because when I crank it up faster than I should I seen to get more cracking.
@@lundgrenbronzestudios
Thanks Man 👍🏻 I’ll try holding longer at the lower temperatures.
Appreciate your videos as this is quite a niche.
Some of the stuff you have made is great!
Appreciate you taking the time to reply to my message.
Will let you know how I get on!
I’m making more functional parts than decorative but only just venturing into casting so it’s all new… if I can get mine looking anything like as good as yours then I’ll be over the moon! ☺️
I have a question, does the plaster have to have a hole where the metal enters and another hole below so that it sucks?
No. It not actually plaster. It’s like plaster but it’s called investment. It very pours so air flows through it. But still holds the metal. If there was a hole on both side all the metal would just run out.
Nice Work, Wish I had a local source to get investment powder, maybe then I would get into a bit of this, but at $150 a bag shipped, just a bit outta budget.
Yeah. Shipping is expensive and getting worse.
I know a few casters who drive once every now and then to their nearest stockist, maybe a state away at worst, and they pick up 10+ sacks at a time to last them a good while. $150 a bag shipped is crazy, which state you in dude, i'll see if I can spot you one that's near/cheaper.
@@noviceartisan I'm in Texas, It's $140 from PMC, but that's not still good lol.
Rio Grande jewelry supply is in New Mexico.
@@Thewulf56 Rio Grande is nearish for collecting, but pepetools does it fairly cheap shipped too
How is the vacuum holding up against the high temp. that's my biggest concern
The vacuum has been holding up fine. But I had a blow out on one of my flasks. The molten bronze melted through the aluminum so if you build one be sure to use steel pipe. Not aluminum.
❤
Instead of aluminum, can the tube and floor be made of iron?
Yes. That would actually be much better. I just had access to aluminum but steel would be much better because if your mold breaks and you have a spill of molten bronze it will melt through the aluminum. That actually ended up happening to this one and I had to replace it with steel.
Yes. That would actually be much better. I just had access to aluminum but steel would be much better because if your mold breaks and you have a spill of molten bronze it will melt through the aluminum. That actually ended up happening to this one and I had to replace it with steel.
Do you describe your investment material in another video or have a recipe? I want to do a pourable investment but don't have a burnout kiln for the regular plaster recipe.
I don’t have a recipe. I buy it from Ransom and Randolph. It’s not cheap but it is a great product. A burn out kiln is a must, for this kind of casting. Unfortunately it takes some capital to tool up for this craft. But it’s worth it if it’s something you really want to do.
@@lundgrenbronzestudios I am using Mold Mix 6, which works pretty well but can't do complicated shapes and the detail you are getting from the vacuum setup is really impressive. I might try it out if I get the kiln situation figured out. Thanks for the videos!
👍
Should have removed the oxide coating higher amp setting used pulse not continues
Shouldn’t have used aluminum to begin with. I had to re do it in steel because it melted after a flask broke.
The reason the silicone sheet doesn't work is the the top of the pipe and the plate aren't flat,if you machined them itd work
Now I just use a little silicone calk each time. Works really well.
Wait! How does vacuum affect anything in this process if it is not reaching molten metal?
The investment is porous so it draws air through the mold. The vacuum is literally sucking the metal into it the tiny places.
@@lundgrenbronzestudios So .. silicone mold is pourous? Is this really the case?!
@@reinislusis3569 No. investment is porous. I didn’t say silicone, I said investment. This set up is for bronze casting.
@@lundgrenbronzestudios But there is silicone shell between vacuum and investment and investment is at all times at atmospheric pressure. I don't understand this process.
@@reinislusis3569 the silicone is a seal to prevent air from going around the flask. This insures the air goes through the investment and not around it.
Ready made vaccum casting machine available in india, with automatic oprated.
Pretty janky dude. Kinda surprised you didnt burn your foot off.
You’re janky.
Castaldo super high strength поможет тебе в качестве герметичной прокладки, и с горячей опокой она тоже дружит. В отличии от твоего силикона, только одна грязь и пользы ноль 👎🏼
lol... you just couldn't take a trick.
Hai speso 30$ solo per la colla... 🤦