The Milwaukee Makerspace Casting area is set up to cast Aluminum and Bronze for small-scale projects.
Training is required for safe operation and use of the equipment.

Bret Daniel - Area Champion
David M. Arnold - Co-Champion
Geoffrey Vitiello

To be trained on furnace operation or to learn how to make a mold for casting, stop by the Norwich site on Wednesday nights from 5-7PM to learn more. Updates and changes will be posted to the members-only google group.

• Proper PPE (Personal Protective Equipment) MUST be donned to participate in pouring operations
• Do not get hurt
• Do not burn the building down
• Clean up after use
• If any tool is not working STOP and seek assistance
• Make awesome stuff

Note: For post-casting Aluminum metal work, please provide your own consumables (Sanding Disks, grinding wheels, etc.) or consult with the metal shop champion for direction.

Approved Users List

• Crucible Furnace
• Crucible - Used as a “pot” to melt the metal in the furnace * See list of Crucibles available for use.

• Tongs - Used to handle the crucible in and out of the furnace * See list of Tongs available for use.

• Shank - used for pouring the metal * See list of Shanks available for use.

• Ladles - used for pouring the Cast Iron * See list of Ladles available for use.

• Centrifugal Spin Caster - Mostly for jewelry applications
• Cement Mixer - Used to mix resin bonded sand, petrobond and greensand for casting applications

• Burnout Kiln Burnout Kiln used for Vitraphying Ceramic Shell, reclaiming wax and evacuating Investment molds. *Cupola Furnace R2V2 - Iron Casting Furnace

Projects

• Rooster - 2 part resin bonded sand mold
• Casting Ingots - Casting Ingots for Maker Faire 2016
• Packing Peanuts - An alternative to the ceramic shell process

Howtos

• Mixing resing sand

Resources
Some additional resources to learn about the process
*Hot Metal: A Complete Guide to the Metal Casting of Sculpture

Chuck Kraus's Foundry Manual: foundry_handbook_final-chuck_s_manual.restored.opt.pdf