Investment castings are also referred to as precision castings, lost wax castings.
The term investment casting is derived from the process of investing a pattern with refractory materials.
In the investment casting process, wax pattern is the first step, multiple wax pattern can be assembled into one large pattern to be cast in one batch pour, and then coated with a refractory ceramic material. The wax is melted out and molten metal is poured into the cavity where the wax pattern was. The metal solidifies within the ceramic mold and then the metal casting is broken out.
Due to the properties of wax, investment castings are normally small, our maximum investment casting weight can be reach to 88 lbs.
Because of the complex process and high cost of pattern die, normally investment castings are expensive, but for mass production of small parts, the average cost of investment castings are sometimes lower than that of no-bake sand castings, and the benefits of investment castings are very demonstrable. The advantages of investment castings are:
- Excellent surface finish
- High dimensional accuracy
- No flash or parting lines
- Extremely intricate parts are castable