Perfect! Thanks!! It might be a little while before i get all the supplies.
So you DO need an oven ;)
no, what i meant by that was i put the cured plaster in my home over for a half hour to dry out all the moisture, NOT TO MELT THE ABS…abs will not burn out in a home oven, it needs very high temperatures for a very long time…to do this you need a furnace and a vent system because the fumes are unbearable… this method can be done in your home, normal lost abs casting cannot…thats why this method is a breakthrough imo, that and the results seem to be far superior to the burned out trials i have seen online
At last, a use for my vacuum chamber :) I'm thinking some kind of vibrator or ultrasonic chamber might speed up the acetone dissolving step, as would elevating the temperature slightly (without boiling off the acetone...).
no, what i meant by that was i put the cured plaster in my home over for a half hour to dry out all the moisture, NOT TO MELT THE ABS...abs will not burn out in a home oven, it needs very high temperatures for a very long time..to do this you need a furnace and a vent system because the fumes are unbearable... this method can be done in your home, normal lost abs casting cannot...thats why this method is a breakthrough imo, that and the results seem to be far superior to the burned out trials i have seen online
I know, I was joking. I understand this can basically be done with household items if your household is lucky enough to have a 3D printer. Or even better an M200 :)
Thank you for sharing.
I will keep your Zinc method in mind for more resistant parts but...
Pewter in a printed Z-ABS mould should work perfectly since the temp for pewter is the smallest possible and Z-ABS holds pretty good at high temps. I will have to try this method ASAP. I am even more confident since you mentioned that Zinc (even higher temp) in a Z-ABS mould worked for you.
And if the above method fails, I could print a PTFE or PEEK mould to satisfy my newly found casting desire.
Just ordered a melting furnace. I know its kind of extreme but I want to be able to do aluminum too. I plan on making a longer spool holder first. Might just melt down some pennies.
Just ordered a melting furnace. I know its kind of extreme but I want to be able to do aluminum too. I plan on making a longer spool holder first. Might just melt down some pennies.
Cool, which one did you get?
Cool, which one did you get?
One just like this. http://www.ebay.com/itm/Gold-Silver-Scrap-Recovery-Refining-Melting-Furnace-for-Casting-Bars-ITEM-82-/171646535695?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item27f6ee480f
Here's a little science lesson about Plaster of Paris. Casting plaster in general, of course is gypsum. Gypsum (calcium sulfate) is a mineral that, as found in nature is bonded to about 17% water on the molecular level as a crystal. To manufacture the "Plaster of Paris" the gypsum, as dug out of the ground, is heated to high temps (~1700 deg F) to drive this water from the gypsum. The process is called "calcining". When you add water BACK to the Plaster of Paris new water/gypsum crystals form the create the hardened plaster casting. In order to provide plaster that is liquid enough to use for casting purposes much more then the 17% of water has to be added to the Plaster of Paris...as much as 35%. That excess water needs to be dried out to leave a "dry" casting. However, the ~17% bound to the crystal still remains.
This calcining process will actually begin to occur at 212 deg F (100 C)... the boiling point of water. (WAY below the melting temperature of the metal) This boiling water/steam WILL interfere with your soft, hot metal and the calcined plaster WILL crumble...at least on the surface to disrupt the finish to some extent. The larger the casting the more this will happen. This is probably where most casting attempts fail. Those that know don't try to cast hot metal in gypsum.
I mention all of this so that an understanding of probable problems with high temp metals will be had. A solution to this is to first coat your ABS master part in several layers of a ceramic "Slip" then allowed to dry before submerging it into the Plaster of Paris. In fact several layers of slip should be all you need...no plaster required. (Basically slip is really thin/watery clay). This will provide at least some sort of protective layer between the hot metal and water bound to the gypsum. Normally the dried "Slip" coating would be supported in sand rather then plaster.
I understand that "need more options" has had some success using the Plaster of Paris but might have better luck using "slip" instead.
After @bobgerman's post, I decided to do some searching for alternate mold solutions. The traditional silica slip method is time-consuming, expensive, and plain out overkill for the home hobbyist. Plenty research later, I think I have found a cheap, quick, and highly effective plaster alternative that'll work all the way up to aluminum temperatures: drywall mud. I'll post the article, but basically it's just standard watered-down drywall mud, and it has absolutely amazing results.
I'm pretty excited about giving this a try; all I need now are the materials and tools. Anybody have suggestions for the cheapest place to find those?
Any news on this? Has anybody tried to cast some prints?
Any news on this? Has anybody tried to cast some prints?
The OP did post up a cast he did, but it looks like there has been little progress since. I definitely have plans to pursue this, but grad student stipends limit hobbies...