Cold Casting stress

They will be marginally more fragile than the binder you use--say, epoxy resin. The tiny metal particles will likely act as weaknesses in the cast, but not by a particularly noticeable degree.

If you hit epoxy resin casts with a hammer they will likely crack into a few pieces. More or less depending what variety you are working with.

If you want maximum durability, cast your metals the traditional way; melting them down before the pour. Any binder you use to cold cast is going to be greatly weaker than a solid piece made from the same metals.

>>1235381
Thanks for the info.
I'm just a poorfag who needs something small done so I can't justify buying all the bells and whistles needed for traditional casting.

>>1235447
outsource it.

make your mould, cast in wax, send out to an investment casting foundry to cast in steel, brass, bronze, silver or the likes.

shouldnt cost too much even for a one-off.

>>1235456
How much are we talking here? I've never had anything made before and I've always assumed that that shit costs a billion because minimum orders are like 90001 pieces

>>1235879
what size?
what material?
what country?

in my work I've had one-off bronzecastings the size of your fingernail, for £2, I've had silver rings and objects the same size cast for £20, Sword pommels in bronze for about £40, and I've had high-grade medium carbon steel (0.6%) hilt components for HEMA martial arts cast by a company who also make Williams formula one suspension components, where it comes to £500 for a batch of 10 sets.


cost will entirely depend on scale and scope of what you're looking for, and what material.

basic casting 101:
make a master sculpt of your object. that can be wax, or it can be any other materials you work in. for wax, I'd reccommend "Ferris File-a-Wax" used by jewellers
if its not wax, use a RTV silicone urethane to make a mould. You can find many videos on youtube of how to make that.
from a mould, that's then filled with a hot wax. that can also be poured and the inner poured out, to form a hollow shell - a process often used for bronze sculpture.
open the mould once its cold, and you can clean up any mould lines, and little bubbles etc.
send it off, be it as one off, or one of 100 you're making, and it returns a week or so later in your material of choice. simple.

>>1235971
Not him but how accurate are metal casts to the original?

>>1236001

shrinkage happens, usually about 2-5%, depending on material. Consult your foundry for exact rates.
its perfectly possible to sculpt a master fractionally oversize to compensate