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Casting Safety

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ddmckee54:
Dick:

Last year I purchased a non-working version of this foundry at a very reduced price.  I figured that I could fix it and still be ahead in the game.  They had miss-wired the +5V and Common wires to the solid state relay.  Once that mistake was corrected I had a working foundry.

I got mine as a future project to cast parts for my WAY too many other hobbies.  I plan on casting mostly aluminum or one of zinc/aluminum alloys.  If I've done the math right, 3Kg of gold translates to about 0.42Kg of aluminum, or about 0.92Lbs for us non-metrified folk.

What's this translate to in usable casting size?  Got any pictures of the largest casting you've made with your 3Kg Chinese foundry?

You mentioned 100 melts, was that using this crucible or total melts for this foundry?

Don

Dick Morris:
Don,

I have two of them. The first was 110 v and kept tripping the GFCI. Tuauto was were very responsive about making things right. First trying to trouble shoot via email and then sending me a new one and letting me keep the first one (at my request, the second was 220v.) I found that the common side of the AC touched the case. I fixed it and had two. The element in the 220v one failed after a couple of melts and they were again very responsive and sent me a new ceramic inner liner that had a new element. I also replaced the element in the spare liner with a new one using Kanthal wire so I now have a spare liner with element.

Mine both have mechanical relays.

I think the biggest items I have cast were the steamboat cylinders pictured in another post a couple of days ago. Two pounds for the casting and a couple of ounces more for the sprue button and there was still some left in the pot. They are about six inches long.

100 melts between the two furnaces may actually mischaracterize the number. I recharge the crucible three or four times while it is hot and have probably poured about 100 molds. I think I have only done one melt in aluminum in them. I think I average maybe 10 casting sessions a crucible gets thin to the point that it's time for a new one. I've only had two that cracked. This one and one about a year ago that dropped bronze all over my casting table, which is when I started using a fence to protect me from splashes.

ddmckee54:

--- Quote from: Dick Morris on August 04, 2023, 11:26:31 AM ---which is when I started using a fence to protect me from splashes.

--- End quote ---

Probably a good idea, it could keep you out of the running for a Darwin Award.

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