Nice work Perry and with a pouring technique problem for us to ponder over the holiday season. Merry Christmas to you and your family and friends. Stay safe and wear your mask and sanitize your hands regularly.
Thanks Mark. If it weren't so darn cold out there and I weren't under pressure to get a few large gifts made I'd go out there and play trying to get a definitive answer to this. Maybe in the new year... but it will have problems of its own to solve 😄
I had the same issue of gates freezing off when there were more of them than I was used to, and also solved it with a slightly bigger sprue and runner so that the gates' flow would not be so slow once divided off the runner. Worked for me too... Mostly. Nice ornaments! For a job like this, a snap flask would be quite handy.
Oh sure after that buy of a lifetime, throw the snap flask thing in my face 😄😄 How many did you end up with?😄 I'm kinda sticking with venting on this one. Maybe I rammed the sand in the cope harder given there was no give to it like I would normally have with ramming on top of a sand filled drag. I don't know. Kevin Watson had an interesting observation in the comments. He noticed the flash on the second unvented mold and suggested the mold was self-venting because it didn't fit tight together
@@swdweeb 😁 I didn't get any snap flasks, at least not yet. He had one somewhere but couldn't find it, but when he does he said he'll get it to me somehow. I was actually thinking about trying to build one the other day, so I guess I have them on the brain.
@@tobhomott I have abut 10 different flasks I want to build/cast. I can't seem to get any of them done. I slapped these wooden ones together with the idea that they were just temporary. They don't together well and the pins are hard to use.
@@swdweeb getting pins to line up well is always a pain, but I have found attaching the pins to drilled wooden blocks lets you get away with having not quite perfect alignment that may cause binding using metal brackets. I'm still waiting for Martin to finish his flask series so I can see how he gets his pins to slide so well and maybe start using my cast brackets again. The trouble with having many flasks is finding space for them all! My casting shed doesn't seem to be getting any bigger either, so I'm hoping Bill does find that snap flask so I can try it out and also get a good look at all its hardware to maybe try and reproduce one.
ooh nice match plate Perry, fun music and fun rant too. I recon that tapered sprue caused all your problems... why don't you try a tin can with a big funnel in it? ;p
I found a pair of John Wright cast iron Christmas candy molds for $4.99 at a peddlers mall. Cleaned them up and have been casting bronze trinkets to give my customers. Casting in quantity has been an issue until now and your video gives me an idea for future projects. Always enjoy them. Keep them coming...
So far they have been a hit. Cast iron is a bit rough and not much detail but they are well received. Like the Christmas trees you did. They turned out really nice
Do I detect a touch of sarcasm in your voice Mr. Presling? 😄😄 "not enough ranting on yt"?? 😄 As I know you agree, its a learning process and we learn by having problem to solve AND trying to solve it. Take care mate.
Now there's a coincidence. I did essentially the same thing, I published a video just last night! I only planned for 3 trees, so did 5 just to be sure! I did scratch vents and they worked a treat. Merry Christmas to you and Mrs Dweeb.
@@swdweeb it's kind of cryptic. It's the initials of my parents at the top, me and my two sisters next, the year, then the initials of all our children. It worked out well as a 2-3-4-5 character pyramid. Very simplistic, but I've never cast anything that thin or detailed before, so wasn't sure how it would turn out. Quite pleased with the result. I had a random thought... How about casting some bits in brass (like the star), then placing the brass part in a new mould and pouring the rest in aluminium. Polish it up for a bi-colour ornament. I expect there would be issues with the different shrinkage rates of the metals? Thoughts?
@@ollysworkshop HA!! Google translate thought it was Croatian or Romanian. Of course it couldn't translate it either. Again, well done, your molding skills are good. Need to cut straight vertical walls on that basin 😄
I think you're right actually. I think the problem was/is due to trapped air. The mold that wasn't vented also didn't mate well and possibly allowed air to escape without cut vents. Merry Christmas Richard 😄
Hello, Thanks for entertaining us in 2020, I've learnt lots from watching your videos... wishing you and your family a Merry Christmas and Happy New Year... Take care Paul,,
Only thing i can think of is the second one wasnt packed as tight so it vented well but seeing the flash on the one tree looks like there was a larger separation between the cope and drag so it vented itself
That match plate was very impressive! Even after all this time you continue to up your game. Two thumbs up! My first thought was how convenient it would be to make a match plate setup to cast 4 horseshoes at once. The perfect system for a shoeing a horse. (: Have a Merry Christmas and a very happy 2021! Cheers from Juneau Alaska, Greg Chaney
Sorry Greg, You'll happy or saddened to know that I tried to cast a golden horseshoe a couple of weeks ago and had a failure. Now if I can just find the time to try again... 😄 Merry Christmas to you as well
@@swdweeb it's so wonderful that you are trying to make a lucky horseshoe. I understand that you had to meet your Christmas tree ornament deadline. Maybe a lucky horseshoe for St. Patrick's day?
Hey Perry. Nice to see you being still in action. Love your videos! !!!Big heart!!! 6min into the video. I would guess: By having alot exit point dimensions from small to big (the metal line into the molds), the metal slows down that much so that it cools down too fast and is not reaching every mold properly. Dont nail me on it but wasnt there a rule saying when splitting up from the main line the new ones should be only half the size max of the original one? Venting helps to reduce the factor of slowing down the liquid metal by reducing the force of compressed air (wall-like). More small feeders always help. ;) Maybe Im wrong here. Wish you and your family happy holidays, health and a wonderfull christmas. Cya around, hope next year too. ;)
Han don't make me yell at you 😄😄 I know there is a rule on spitting the runner. I've seen plenty of examples of that in the books. Adjusting the size of the gate is the easiest way to control the speed of the metal entering the mold. Thanks, I have every intention of being around next year
Nice work on the little xmas trees Perry. You coulda saved the wifey some work if you woulda printed the 2020 Merry Christmas on the trees hehe. No kidding, they looked great. I made a Christmas tree card bar, they were pretty cool. Stay safe and outta trouble my friend. 🐺🐺🐺🐺🐺
My first thought at the beginning of the video was venting. Also, you stated that the volume increase across you in-gates were 4x your runner. I am curious when you increased the volume of the runner with the wood slats what then was the ratio? Also, I haven't been watching your channel long enough to know how do you take your pour temp? Merry Christmas!!!! I really enjoy your channel. It takes the "backyard" foundry and applies proper industry and calculated technique very well.
Its funny, I didn't mention it in the video but I tried to vent the parts with the original sprue. You can see them in the pictures starting around 2:15. That was what led me to the volume thought. The big difference in the vents at the beginning and the vents at the end was the clear path to the outside of the mold. I mentioned my thermometer/thermocouple in my previous video regarding the tools you'll need to make ingots. ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-fFADzuaCtQs.html I have links to the parts in description of that video.
Really impressed by your match plate, really nicely done and well thought out. Be careful calling your wife Mrs. Dweeb, that might not go over well, lol. Here’s a bit of the hate speech back. Merry Christmas! God bless!
Great video! been thinking about this vent all week, do you think it could be how dense the sand was packed?? a looser pack could let more air through?
Possibly. I might have rammed the cope harder since it was on a board and not on sand (drag). Kevin Watson also had a theory that is plausible. He thought the second mold didnt mate well due to the evidence of flash. That might have let the gas out of that mold and might be why it didnt need the vents
@@swdweeb You have learnt well! It all starts with good pattern tooling and rigging. ALWAYS! Can't wait to see your next video. Merry Christmas Perry! Be blessed!
Merry Christmas. The world is getting way to sensitive to what people say. Say what you want. I don't have the answer to the problem you were having but I can say, if at first you don't succeed........
Came out great! One thing you can try is elevating your pour basin, risers, vents, etc. This will give a little more pressure to the metal in your parts and help fill out the thin sections and problem areas. Also, what composition of aluminum are you pouring?
Here's a photo of the pour basin and riser made up in a can and pipe to elevate them. imgur.com/a/ckUpWRJ Don't mind all the excess sand placed around them to catch any metal that goes where it shouldn't!
@@nserpa9248 Yeah, right. I just watched a video from a guy that talked about how hard it is to hit the "tiny" sprue hole. His sprue was big enough to drive a flippin bus through, had to be an inch and a quarter at least. He poured from at least a foot to a foot and a half above the mold. He teaches high school students how to do this, I wanted to cry
Cold sand. I maybe wrong but I keep my sand in an unheated shop and the 70 degree difference between inside where I pour and the outside shed where the sand is, cannot be compensated by increasing the metal temperature. The cold sand is too much of a heatsink for thin parts like the ones you were making. Also I noticed no radiuses on the gates??? Any who,.......Merry Christmas.
Yeah, I'm not so sure about that. I hate cold sand so I keep it in the house the day before I'm going to mold with it. I used hot water to rehydrate it too. I mean I suppose it's possible but... I've never radiused my gates of the runner. If anything I would think a sharp corner would form a hotspot and keep the metal warmer. I'm going with the idea that it needed venting and ignoring the fact that the second mold poured just fine without venting it. 😄
@@swdweeb I never used to radius the runners or gates until I read the John Campbell book. Radiuses keep the metal flowing at a constant velocity with minimal to no risk of air entrapment or undesirable turbulence , while keeping the metal flowing at the desired temperature. It also eliminates the chance of cavitation/tunnelling of the sand, further reducing the risk of sand contamination in the casting. Anyways that was my 2 cents worth. Ooops we don't have cents here anymore, so I'll make it a nickel which = 2 US cents. Thanks for the videos. They've helped me a great deal.
@@henri1511 Ok, I cant argue with Professor Campbell. Well I could but I'd be wrong. At the speed the metal was flowing through the gates.. around 250cm per second I'm not sure how much cavitation or tunneling I'd have but as I said, can;'t argue with Campbell
Just stumbled across this vid now in Feb. Dont know if you'll see this comment but in small narrow area's like that corner the surface tension of the molten metal can become a possible problem. Aluminium is not a very fluid metal ( compared to cast iron and copper alloys, look at how they flow all watery like, A drop of aluminium just wants to ball up).Basically the hydrostatic pressure driving the metal to flow cannot overcome the surface tension as it is greater at points like this. By increasing the head pressure ( A fluid mechanics term) of the metal ( Fatter and taller risers) could solve this problem. Just my 2 cents I'm not a professional foundryman but have been casting on and off for 10 years.
I'll reply to both your comments with this one. I try to respond to every comment no matter how late 😄 I responded to one last night that was on a video from two and a half years ago. Those are a bit harder as I generally have no idea what the video was about. I've found that aluminum is actually reasonably fluid if I pour it at the right temperature ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-yTd-8l1PEHc.html for example. I was trying to remember if I had my thermocouple at the time I poured these trees. Seems like I got it somewhere in that timeframe. I was told by a good friend that runs a foundry that they typically pour their aluminum around 1325F. Sometimes they go as high as 1350F but not often as he said it creates a large crystalline structure in the aluminum if they get that hit. I'm generally not a huge fan of head pressure... I know I'm standing out in an empty field by myself when I say that. This video might explain why ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-pSgF7B55Fas.html. I'm also not a real engineer, I wrote software for my career, but it would seem to me that pressure is derived by the height of the column of fluid not by the volume of fluid. (Please feel free to correct me if I'm wrong on that count). That said, the height of my sprue ought to provide the pressure. I'm also not sure that a large feeder would be able to force the metal into those corners as I expect the metal would have frozen right about the same time the feeder started to rise. The part and the feeders should stay at the same height until the part cant fill anymore. Then the feeder will begin to rise above the part. Thanks for your thoughts. As always questions/comments like yours cause me to think about what I'm doing and why. If you've been casting for 10 years or so, you've been at this game a lot longer than me. I always being able to learn from guys with more experience than me
@@swdweeb Thanks for the reply! You're certainly correct that the head pressure increases with height not volume (i must of been half asleep when i wrote that). Saying that! In that specific case it might of solved the mold filling issue. Watched the vid you mention in the reply. You cover the topic of head pressure very well. I think with all castings made you have to reach a kind of compromise (how good a surface finish is acceptable, how much porosity is acceptable and so on). If you're chasing near perfect surface finishes and as cast tolerances you're asking too much of sand casting and need to get into investment casting. If you're in contact with Professor Campbell to get your questions answered, well you certainly went right to the Top! I take it you've read his books! he mentions how castings that were all acceptable at automotive inspection criteria, only 25% of them passed aerospace inspection. So it all a relative thing to what you consider acceptable. In my opinion, there is no perfect rules for casting metal that if you follow all of them and all your calculation are correct you can guarantee a perfect casting each and every time! Your vids are great! We all need to keep learning and testing ideas to reduce our scrap rate!
@@christopherrajcoomar2744 Yeah, I've been blessed to have direct conversation with Professor Campbell. It's been great. I learned today that some holes I see in the heart-shaped jewelry box are likely caused by hydrogen coming out of the water in my sand. The sand was way too wet when I cast rev one of the piece and better when rev two came out. But even still it was too wet. Another thing learned and another thing to work on improving. I probably am chasing perfection 😄😄 It's kinda like golf. When I started I was just happy to hit the ball. It doesnt take long to start thinking it'd be nice to get the ball to go in the right direction, then its to get it to go further then its to make par... casting is the same way for me. 😄
