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Casting

With nearly 30 years of excellence in the industry, you know you can count on us to find the solutions to all your casting needs. Our foundry personnel are experienced and dedicated to their craft, as we believe constant upgrading of skills and knowledge are essential.

We use only the finest Aluminum and Zinc alloys in our process. We can produce castings anywhere from a few ounces in size right up to one hundred pounds or more. Whether you require your parts in small, medium, or large runs, we do it all at the most economic rates in the industry. Should you require just raw castings or a completely finished parts, you can count on us to provide your company with what you need when you need it, all at the highest quality standards.


At Custom Castings we offer variations to our process. Along with the standard permanent mold process we also offer the Tilt-Pour Process which is conducive to certain castings.
The Permanent Mold Process
Step 3: The mold's runners are removed and the casting is sanded and/or machined to the customer's specifications.
Step 1: The molten aluminum is poured into a permanent mold. Step 2: Once solidified, the mold is opened and the casting removed.

Specs

Factors Affecting Selection of Casting Process for Aluminum Alloys


Factor Sand Casting Permanent Mold Casting Die Casting
Cost Of Equipment Moderate Moderate Highest
Casting Rate Lowest rate. 11 kg/hr (25 lb/hr) common; higher rates possible. 4.5 kg/hr (10 lb/hr) common; 45kg/hr (100 lb/hr) possible.
Maximum Casting Size Largest of any casting method. Limited by size of machine. Limited by size of machine.
Internal Shape Suited for complex shapes where coring required. Cavities formed by metal cores with draft or sandcores for complex shapes with undercuts. Cavities formed by metal cores with draft.
Minimum Wall Thickness 3.0-5.0 mm(.188-.200 in.) required; 4.0mm (.250 in) normal. 4.0-7.0 mm (.188-.200 in.) required; 6.35 mm (.250 in.) normal. 1.0-2.5mm (.100-.040 in.) depends on casting size.
Type Of Cores Complex baked sand cores can be used. Metal cores, including collapsible; semipermanent mold casting uses expendable cores. Steel cores; must be simple and straight so they can be pulled.
Tolerance Obtainable Poorest; best linear tolerance is 300 mm/m (300 mils/in.). Best linear tolerance is 10 mm/m (10 mils/in.). Best Linear tolerance is 4 mm/m (4 mils/in.).
Surface Finish 6.5-12.5 um (250-500 uin.). 4.0-10 um (150-400 uim.). 1.5 um (50 uin.); best finish of the three casting processes.
Gas Porosity Lowest porosity possible with good technique. Best pressure techniques; low porosity possible with good technique. Porosity may be present.
Cooling Rate .1-5 C/sec (.2-.9 F/sec). .3-1.0 C/sec (.5-1.8 F/sec). 50-500 C/sec (90-900 F/sec).
Grain Size Dendrite-Arm Spacing Strength Coarse .05 -.5mm (.002-.02 in.). Lowest. Fine .03 -.07 mm (.001 - .003 in.). Excellent. Very Fine .005-.015mm (.0002-.0006 in.). Highest, usually used in the as-cast condition.
Fatigue Properties Good. Good. Excellent.
Wear Resistance Good. Good. Excellent.
Overall Quality Depends on foundry technique. Highest quality. Tolerance and repeatability very good.

Comparison Of Typical Casting Alloy Properties

Alloy Ultimate Tensile Strength (KSI) Yield Strength
(Set 0.2%)(KSI)
 		Elongation
(% in 2 in.)
 		Compressive Yield Strength
(Set 0.2%)(KSI)
319 - 19 2.5 19
356 26 18 5 -
A 356-T6 41 30 12 -
Z A-12 47 38 1.5 37
Alloy Shear Strength (KSI) Brinell Hardness (500 Kg. load on 10 mm. Ball) Corrosion Resistance Machinability
319 24 85 Good Good
356 - - Very Good Fair
A 356-T6 - 80 Very Good Good
Z A-12 - 90 Good Very Good