In determining the best type of casting to manufacture your product, it’s essential to understand the three main types of casting — die casting, investment casting, and sand casting — and the advantages of each one.
What Is Die Casting?
Die-casting utilizes metal as the mold material. The process involves injecting molten metal under high pressure into the mold, resulting in a more uniform product with a superior surface finish and dimensional accuracy. Die-casting can be performed through either a cold or hot chamber process.
Advantages of Die Casting:
- Offers high dimensional accuracy and precision
- Produces parts with excellent surface finish
- Delivers high-volume production runs due to shorter cycle times
- Creates complex and intricate parts, especially small precision components
- Provides ideal casting for non-ferrous metals such as aluminum, zinc, and magnesium
What Is Investment Casting?
Investment Casting creates a mold by forming a pattern using wax or another meltable material. The mold is then immersed in a refractory slurry, creating a coated skin upon drying. The dipping and drying cycle is repeated until a sturdy thickness is attained. Once complete, the mold wax is melted off in an oven, resulting in a mold ready to be filled with molten metal. Since the mold forms around a one-piece pattern, Investment Casting allows the production of highly intricate parts with undercuts.
Advantages of Investment Casting:
- Provides exceptional dimensional accuracy and precision
- Produces excellent surface finish and fine component details
- Creates parts with complex geometries and thin walls
- Delivers suitability for both ferrous and non-ferrous metals
- Provides ideal casting for low-to-medium volume production runs
What Is Sand Casting?
Sand Casting is a widely employed method for manufacturing larger products containing materials such as steel, iron, brass, and aluminum. The process involves pouring molten metal into a mold cavity formed with sand. This cavity is shaped using a pattern—essentially a replicated model of the intended part—and is commonly crafted from wood, plastic, or aluminum.
Advantages of Sand Casting:
- Provides cost-effective options for low-volume production or prototyping
- Offers greater flexibility in part size and weight ranges (from grams to tons)
- Handles large and heavy castings
- Delivers lower initial tooling costs compared to die-casting
- Produces casts suitable for a wide range of metals, including ferrous and non-ferrous
Key Considerations for Your Project:
- Part size and complexity: Sand casting is ideal for larger parts, while die and investment casting are better for smaller, more intricate components.
- Production volume: Die casting is most cost-effective for high volumes, while sand and investment casting are better for lower volumes.
- Material selection: Die casting is limited to non-ferrous metals, while sand and investment casting can accommodate a broader range of materials.
- Surface finish and dimensional accuracy: Die and investment casting generally produce superior surface finishes and tighter tolerances than sand casting.
- Tooling costs: Sand casting offers lower initial tooling costs, while die and investment casting can be more economical for large production runs.
The choice between casting methods ultimately depends on the project’s specific requirements, including part geometry, material, production volume, and budget constraints.
Contact APD to discuss the right process for your next project and take advantage of our turnkey services, including on-site design, engineering, prototyping, and logistics.
Why Choose APD’s OEM Services?
- Proven leader with more than 250 OEM clients
- In business since 1986, offering decades of experience
- U.S.-based in San Clemente, California
- Extensive vertical industry expertise
- ISO 9001 quality certified
Our Promise to You: A Partner You Can Trust
At APD, we are more than a manufacturing and distribution company; we are your reliable partner committed to your success.
- Trusted Partnership for reliable deliverables.
- Streamlined Processes for operational efficiency.
- Efficiency, Quality and Value for top-notch products.
- Quality Assurance with regulatory compliance, including ISO 9001.
- Proven Track Record for your peace of mind.
- Industry Leadership with nearly four decades of experience.
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