Metal Casting Zone

Hi,

What a good idea to make a place on the web for metal casting!!
I have always been casting metal, but more easy: tin.

Now i want to cast iron. I already designed a crucible.
I've read enough information on the internet.
I know I have the choice to make a crucible out of
metal or out of a ceramic.
I prefer to make it out of metal.

My question, can I use regular stainless-steel for that?
Or should I use some other metal?
I know cast-iron melts at 1200 C. And if i take a look
at the iron-carbon fase diagram:

upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/8/8e/Steel_pd.svg

I can use 0% carbon steel, is there a common brand steel
that i can use?

Thanks a lot!

In a word, no. Do not attempt to melt iron in a steel container. You will have a puddle of molten metal in the bottom of your furnace, or worse yet, on your feet. The melting temp of the two are too close, and any steel container at that temp would be like trying to pick up playdough. As far as I know, the only safe container for the backyard melter is clay-graphite. Don't use silicon carbide. And you should consider them a consumable item, they will wear down pretty rapidly. Iron at molten temps is a very aggressive flux, and eats the crucible away in short order.
However, a fairly cheap supplier of these is Legend Mining Supply, google them and see what you find. I have heard from many who have purchased from them and have had good results. They also have about the best prices (for their budget graphite crucibles). You can also order them from Budget Casting Supply, but they are expensive.

Or you could make your own out of graphite. I make mine on a wood lathe with regular tools. You can find graphite for a reasonable price on eBay. I also use graphite for my reusable molds but I make sure I'm going to use it because the process is dirty to say the least. If you want I can post pics of my graphite crucibles.

~Eureka~

Eureka wrote:
Or you could make your own out of graphite. I make mine on a wood lathe with regular tools. You can find graphite for a reasonable price on eBay. I also use graphite for my reusable molds but I make sure I'm going to use it because the process is dirty to say the least. If you want I can post pics of my graphite crucibles.

~Eureka~please post pics. i would love to get hold of a chunk of graphite.

I am definitely interested in seeing your process as well. I am planning a new furnace to melt iron and will need crucible. I am too cheap to just buy them.

this post got me thinking so checked ebay and found this....
cgi.ebay.com.au/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=360136719358&fromMakeTrack=true&ssPageName=VIP:watchlink:middle:au

what most interests me is the sellers claims:

YOU GET 4LBS OF GRAPHITE POWDER

Particle size ranges from 100mesh to 1250mesh, sand to dust. If you need it finer, you can grind it in your coffee grinder. It's easy to work with. When ground to a fine consistency, it flows like liquid.

Perfect for sintering your own electrodes for the production of carbon monoxide di-hydrogen...simple process (place two electrodes in water about .25" apart, charge them with 24vac, you can use DC too, and the gas which bubbles out is COH2 which can run cars, trucks and generators)

Pure carbon graphite can be sintered, used for home made resistors, crucibles, giant pencils, lubricant, alloying metals, electrodes, motor brushes, electrical contacts, bushings, bearings, carbon dioxide or monoxide production, pyrotechnics, lathe and mill work and much more. Use colloidal silica to make a mold for metal castings or make your mold and bake the graphite.

Carbon can also be used to make carbon monoxide di-hydrogen gas which can be used in place of gasoline to power motor vehicles.

We have a lot of carbon graphite blocks available, mostly sheets and long blocks up to 24 inches long. Large sheets of graphite are perfect for glass work / glasswork.
Glassworkers lay their hot glass on the graphite so it does not develop cracks or loose heat. Glass molds, metal molds and plastic molds can all be made with graphite blocks.

Notice to Ebay: This is not classified in the USPS publication 52 guidelines as restricted. This carbon graphite powder is Not flammable, Not of animal or vegetable origin and Not activated carbon as used in fish tank filters. This is the type of graphite used to make heat resistant crucibles, powder lubricants, make-up and motor brushes. It is not flammable and non-toxic.

maybe the topic of another thread here but has anyone tried this out???

Hi All,

Well I wouldn't use the powdered graphite except for separating powder. I use block graphite. It cost more but I I'm not sure about gluing the powder together and them shaping and machining it. I am getting a big shipment of graphite in on Monday and i will be willing to share. I'll post pics later I'm between doors right now still running

Thanks

Eureka

great i look forward to your pics and posts in due time. casting has been around for thousands of yrs but i can wait till tomorrow! lol lol lol.

Hi Everyone,

I know I have been saying I'll post pics but you know how Murphy gets in the way. Well my card reader died and I had to replace it. So now I can actually get them from my camera to the computer.

I also just received $400.00 of new graphite so I thought I would go through the entire process in making a A type crucible and a cup type.

xlchainsaw got me thinking; how can we use graphite powder to our advantage in making crucibles? So I went to my local pottery supply house and talked with them, what we came up with is a #10 cone rated fireclay in powder form that I will mix with graphite. Then use a mold to form the crucible 1/2 to 3/4 in thick, then fire it at 3000+ for 1 to 2 hours and then use Epsom salt as a final covering to seal the unit.

Which leads me to building a new 3000 degree furnace. So I may document that as well. I hope this works because graphite powder is way cheaper than graphite block. So please be patient I will will have the information from my trials posted soon.

~Eureka

Yes! Do document that 3000 degree furnace. My furnace kicked the bucket, so I am going to wait and build a 3000 degree one as well. I would love to know your experiences.