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Lost Foam

dk54321@...
 

Question for those who cast with lost foam, would you recommend that people new to casting start with lost foam, or work with wood patterns first?
Ethan Allred
 

I'd say start with lost foam, simply because you're more likely to get something decent with minimal trouble, and you don't need to worry about all of the problems associated with getting a split pattern mold done right. Once you have a few good castings under you belt it's less likely you'll feel like wanting to quit when you run into troubles learning how to mold patterns correctly.

(Note: though I use "you" it's more directed at the new person if you meant this as something to tell someone else)
Bill in OKC too
 

How complex are the objects you want to cast, and how many copies do you need? Both of those questions, answered, can help you figure out what YOU need, and when. If you need fairly simple parts without undercuts, and you may need several of them, make the pattern piece out of wood. If you need pretty fancy parts, lots of undercuts, and only one of them, foam is good for that. You need to make the patterns larger, for machining and shrinkage allowances, regardless of what you use for the pattern. 

HTH!

Bill in OKC

William R. Meyers, MSgt, USAF(Ret.)


A human being should be able to change a diaper, plan an invasion,
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On Thursday, May 13, 2021, 12:45:25 PM CDT, dk54321 via groups.io <dk54321@...> wrote:


Question for those who cast with lost foam, would you recommend that people new to casting start with lost foam, or work with wood patterns first?

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