In a recent video YouTuber MyfordBoy duplicates a metal part using a novel process involving 3D printing, a sand mold and casting aluminum. Don’t try this at home, but definitely enjoy the craftsmanship at work.
MyfordBoy is a YouTuber with 141,ooo subscribers. And despite the possible misleading moniker — it is inspired by British lathe maker Myford, not American automobile company Ford –MyfodBoy’s focus is on metal casting and machining.
The latest upload to the channel is very much on theme. In the silent video, MyfordBoy goes through a process of duplicating a metal part for a 3D printer. He explains that this will be the extruder body to replace a printed part.
To begin, MyfordBoy prints a plastic design with a 0.2mm layer height on a Creality CR-10 printer using PLA. This part is used to create plaster cast mold. The plaster was left to dry for over 24 hours before being put in the oven to burn out the PLA. To do this, the temperature had to be slowly raised to 650 °C (or 1202 °F).
From Plaster Casting to Melting Aluminum
After the PLA was successfully burned out, MyfordBoy put the plaster cast into a flask and filled this with greensand. The two-part sand box was then ready for the melted aluminum to be added.
Finally, MyfordBoy plunged the resulting metal filled plaster cast into water and the mold, being soluble, broke down leaving the aluminum part behind.
Definitely don’t try this at home unless you know what you’re doing. MyfordBoy ends up with an impressive aluminum part which looks great. He adds in the comments: “The part came out pretty much the size planned. I printed the pattern at 102%. If it were really critical and the part came out under or oversize it’s just a matter of printing another pattern adjusting the size as required.”
In the spirit of the channel and encouraging novices to get their hands dirty making stuff, MyfordBoy also runs a blog, detailing casting tips and the plans for Stirling cycle engines, among other things.
Source: Makezine
Website: LINK
