METAL CASTING FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS:
WHAT METAL TYPES CAN YOU CAST?
Bronze, Sterling silver, and gold. We cast bronze on a regular basis. Other metal types may take longer to cast due to needing to bring the casting machine temp down to switch out crucibles so that there is no cross contamination in casting.
CAN I PROVIDE MY OWN METAL?
We prefer to use our own to insure purity.
HOW MUCH IS IT TO CAST BRONZE?
See CASTING MENU for full details.
HOW MUCH IS IT TO CAST PRECIOUS METALS?
See CASTING MENU for full details.
METAL CONVERSIONS:
Wax weight times :
Bronze times 8.7.
Sterling times 10.5.
18K Gold is times 16.
HOW MANY PIECES CAN I FIT IN A CAN?
The amount of pieces that can fit into each can is so specific to the item you are looking to cast. Each can must have at least a .5” gap from the border of the can to your wax to insure a solid investment mold around your wax. Failure to have this gap results in either having to use a larger can and more cost or the risk that the investment may collapse in casting resulting in a failed cast.
See CASTING MENU for downloadable forms.
EXTRA SPRUE CHARGES:
If you bring us a full cans worth of items treed up and ready to cast that is awesome, no extra costs and quicker turn around times. If you bring us a full cans worth of wax that needs to be treed there is a $5 per minute charge to sprue these up. It can also add a week or two to when we will actually be able to cast your pieces.
HOW IS MY PIECE FINISHED?
After casting, pieces are sandblasted and cut off sprue. We use a fine grain in our sandblaster simply to remove any investment out of nooks and crannies. All spruebars are trimmed as close as possible and raw pieces are returned to customers.
If you are interested in a patina we ONLY OFFER liver of sulfur (cold) finish. This is a standard dark finish with polished raised areas for a two-tone effect. Finishing fees start at $20 per piece, depending complexity.
WHAT ARE NORMAL PRODUCTION TIMES?
Bronze castings happen 1-2 times a week. Depending on when your wax is brought to us we might be able to get it into the next cast if it’s spruedand ready to go OR is a simple sprue. If we’ve already invested for the next cast, your pieces will go into the following casting. If your piece is more complicated to sprue up, it make take a week for us to insure the proper time is given to treat your piece with care to provide the best casting possible. Most all castings of provided waxes are cast within 2-3 weeks as a standard. Finishing times may add 2-3 weeks pending complexity and quantity. Other metal castings are scheduled in as needed and can range from 1-4 weeks for casting. Peak season of September-November production times can be longer.
DO YOU DO ANY METAL CHASING?
We do not.
CAN YOU MAKE A MOLD?
It is dependent on the piece size, complexity, metal type and quantity. If it’s too complicated or too thick it may not work in our production style molds and might work better in a simple dump mold (we do not make dump molds). If you are interested in any pieces cast in silver alloy (our lead free pewter) having a production mold is the only way we can cast this metal type. If you are only wanting a small amount of pieces it may be more cost effective to have a dump mold made, waxes poured and provided to us to cast as needed. Our production molds are high caliber rubber with a good shelf life. Pending the piece, the set-up for one of our molds can range from $200-600. If we cannot make a mold of your piece, or it’s cost prohibitive for you for us to, we can refer you to local dump mold makers. We require a metal master for our mold making process.
DO YOU POUR WAX IN DUMP MOLDS?
We do not. There are local wax folks we can connect you with.
CAN YOU USE INJECTION MOLDS?
Yes, pending they fit in our machine. Wax pouring charges and additional spruecharges apply. $20/ per hour to inject, clean, and spruewaxes. Great for small jewelry pieces to optimize how many pieces are cast into one flat casting fee.
DO YOU MAKE DUMP MOLDS?
We only make our 12" rubber production molds. Not applicable for most items outside of belt buckles.
WHAT IF I’M NOT IN LOVELAND TO USE THESE OTHER COMPANIES?
No problem. We are all in a small area of town together and work together on a regular basis. We can help get your pieces from point A, B to C for you. We normally have you pay each partner, as they are their own company. If things need to be shipped, WHC can ship finished pieces back to you. Standard rates apply.
WHAT IF I WANT A FANCY PATINA?
We can connect you with a local finishing shop.
DO YOUR OFFER PLATING?
We have the ability to gold or silver plate small items. ADDS 6-8 WEEKS TO PRODUCTION TIMES.
