To begin, I am scraping some aluminum into ingots.
This way, there will be less dross and the aluminum will more consistent from batch to batch.
This is the corian matchplate I machined in part one.
A match plate consists of the top and bottom of the part as well as the runners combined onto a plate.
When this plate is removed, the sand faces that were touching the plate come together to form the parting line of the part
In this case, my own custom dominoes.
This is a special snap flask I made in part 1
and it is intended to be used to create multiple molds of this matchplate using the same flask.
I didn’t use it this way on this cast.
It does make the shake out easier though.
Here, I am applying some talc.
Corian doesn’t need much as it already has a pretty slippery surface.
The black stripe on the flask is there to help me mate the flask correctly.
These are vent holes to help the aluminum fill the dominoes
and allow for an easy escape for trapped gasses.
I will do the cast using just propane.
Later, I will show me switching to diesel for scraping aluminum while the dominoes cool.
When I am using propane, I feel like the furnace is working for me...
When I use diesel, I feel like I am working for the furnace - as consecutive melts go much faster.
You’ll see what I mean…
It was below freezing when I was doing this cast.
Here, I am putting some heat into the sand right before I pour
to help the aluminum flow into the mold.
I had already de gassed at this point and so now I am just removing the dross.
Now we will switch to scrapping mode...
The first cast was only half of the dominoes,
so now I will need to switch out the plate on the match plate and ram up another mold.
It looks exactly the same as the other mold so I’ll spare you the ram up.
This is double zero through double 2...
This is 2, 3 through double six.
Now I will cut off the sprues and runners.
A bit of candle wax seems to help keep the blade free of aluminum.
In part 3. I will clean these up, polish them and make a box!
