Can I cast multiple times?

Signed-In Members Don't See This Ad
S

spaceengravers

Member
Joined
Nov 30, 2009
Messages
107
Location
Stillwater, OK
I haven't done any casting yet, but am getting into it after the holidays. I'm wondering if I can cast something twice. What I'm wanting to do is give things a "floating" look. I know you can just drop the things in the cast while curing but this seems to be a random process...I'm wanting to find a way for some pretty precision placements. So what I'm thinking is cast, turn to shape, attach items to casted barrel, then recast again and turn to shape again...I know it's a little bit more of a process, but will it work WITHOUT a line or obvious transition between the two castings? Ideally it would look like one casting with the parts floating in the middle...
 
Signed-In Members Don't See This Ad
Haven't tried that one yet, but I have re-cast blanks that (for one reason or another) didn't get enough 'coverage' the first time, with no ill effects. I say "Go for it!"
 
The short answer is "Try it!"

I had Jeff in Indiana and the late jarheaded do "ladybug" blanks for me, where they cast red, then drilled holes through the blank and cast again with black. That's not the same as your goal, since you want a clear outer layer. Give it a shot! Looking forward to the results!
 
spaceengravers said:
I haven't done any casting yet, but am getting into it after the holidays. I'm wondering if I can cast something twice. What I'm wanting to do is give things a "floating" look. I know you can just drop the things in the cast while curing but this seems to be a random process...I'm wanting to find a way for some pretty precision placements. So what I'm thinking is cast, turn to shape, attach items to casted barrel, then recast again and turn to shape again...I know it's a little bit more of a process, but will it work WITHOUT a line or obvious transition between the two castings? Ideally it would look like one casting with the parts floating in the middle...
Click to expand...

The short answer is yes you can. The long answer is a bunch of questions.....

If you are doing this to a pen, why not just attach the inlay to the barrel before you cast? The thickness of a pen is not enough to give a floating affect.

If it is for a bottle stopper, that is the exact process you use to put trinkets in the top.

The line will not show 99.9% of the time. Just make sure you get good adhesion.

BTW, what I just talked about works with PR. I don't know about alumite because I haven't used it.....

Good luck and give it a go!!
 
I would not try it with Alumilite. PR is "designed" to be able to stick to itself when cured allowing multiple pours- that's why it's "sticky" when it comes out of the mold before your Post Cure.

Alumilite does not have this property- Curtis if you are listening, chime in on this- you clearly are the Alumilite Expert!

If you are turning down your first cast, would it have tube in it or are you turning round with a chuck? If you have tube in it, you would need to plug the ends. Not impossible, but just needs to be considered before you have to drill out your filled tubes, or your blank floats to the top of your mold because you have trapped air inside... DAMHIK :biggrin:

-Doug
 
Thanks everyone! I was considering this for a pen and although the thickness may not be enough for the floating effect I wanted, I wanted to try it versus the attaching to the brass tube. But since I've never done it, and you guys have, I'll defer to your experience.

Thanks again...I'll post pics when I finally get all the supplies and start my casting experiments...
 
There is another way...

I made a pen where I painted the tube dark blue with a couple of little silver "spritzes" on it. Then I put on a layer of thick CA and added some gold leaf. Then 3 layers of thick CA. Wrapped that with a red reflective ribbon. 4 more layers of thick CA. More gold leaf. More thick CA.

By the time I was done I had a full Sierra pen blank out of nothing but CA and "floating objects".

attachment.jpg


attachment.jpg


Things I learned: don't rub the gold leaf - it becomes gold smear; don't sand the CA between coats - you seal in the sanding scratches; wear a filtered mask - that much CA fumes will kick your sinuses behinds and they may never recover (I really miss the smell of turning but now I HAVE to wear filtered masks when I do anything or I'm toast).
 

Attachments

  • CA-sierra-1.jpg
    CA-sierra-1.jpg
    20 KB · Views: 301
  • CA-sierra-2.jpg
    CA-sierra-2.jpg
    17.8 KB · Views: 307
Last edited:
RHunter said:
I would not try it with Alumilite. PR is "designed" to be able to stick to itself when cured allowing multiple pours- that's why it's "sticky" when it comes out of the mold before your Post Cure.

Alumilite does not have this property- Curtis if you are listening, chime in on this- you clearly are the Alumilite Expert!
Click to expand...

I'm not Curtis but I have a fair amount of experience with Alumilite. You can cast multiple times and the layers will stick together fine. I found out the hard way when I misjudged the amount of resin needed for a WW cast. I didn't have time to mix more resin and fill it up so I cast the first layer and cast another directly on top. There was no visible line and no separation at all.

I think it works well with alumilite because it is urethane based and is naturally sticky, similar to polyurethane glue (Gorilla Glue) that sticks to just about everything.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top Bottom