3D RESIN Print to Solid Metal, Investment Casting | with Elegoo Mars 4 Max

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#3dprinting #metalcasting #elegoo

[@dominicknepper2082]

Plaster of paris mixed with fine sand and clay powder works extremely well. That's the basic recipe for investment and it's super cheap.

[@PaulsGarage]

Thanks for the tip! What kind of clay and how much? I have sacks of kaolin, bentonite, and ball clay laying around here and they all act super different when exposed to water.

[@makingcookingfixing]

would like to know too the ratios

[@sirayatechofficial]

Thank you for choosing our Siraya Tech Cast Purple resin. The results look fantastic! If in the future, you need to cast a design that is thicker than dice, you might want to consider using our Cast True Blue. This version, although slightly more challenging to print due to its higher wax content and thus softer consistency, provides easier burnout than the purple variant.

[@PaulsGarage]

Thanks for commenting! I usually cast much larger things with sand casting and I intend to go large with investment casting, so I will definitely try True Blue at some point in the future.

[@renevandenbosch9967]

Wow. I think it's awesome that siraya actually reaches out to the community with tips! I just bought siraya tech fast abs like grey. I thought the colors were for a anesthetics. Are the colors for abs -like different in material properties as well? (besides maybe print sharpness because different pigments block uv differently?)

[@sirayatechofficial]

@@renevandenbosch9967 The color of UV resin is very important. It can change how fast the resin hardens and also its final qualities. For instance, in our "Fast ABS-Like" resin, different colors might show details differently. On the other hand, our "Fast Mecha White" resin has special ingredients that make it white and hard to scratch. So, the color is not just about looks; it affects how the resin works.

[@NeoIsrafil]

You guys are amazing. I use your cast blue and honest to God, best stuff for the job.

[@johnrambo4934]

Please send the man some casting!!! He definetely deserves It!! 💙

[@PatrickHoodDaniel]

I understand how much research and experimentaion goes into these types of projects and videos, so thank you so much for sharing!!

[@PaulsGarage]

Thank you for watching! It took forever yeah... And it isn't done 🤣

[@johnmccanntruth]

Nice job Paul. I think you hit the whole process for anyone wanting to get into it. Now you’re ready to cast some parts… 👍

[@PaulsGarage]

Vacuum casting next, I think I'm going to try investment casting some of the lathe parts for fun.

[@needmoresleep9041]

I love all your casting tutorial type stuff. Please more metal work

[@cucumbermeme]

I wrote my thesis as a mechanical engineer of the same process! I modeled a Casio watch case and printed/casted the same way. Very informative video, thank you!

[@PaulsGarage]

That's awesome! Did you use vacuum or a centrifuge or just gravity like this video? I'm going to vacuum casting as a next step here. Gotta get the detail cranked

[@VincentGroenewold]

Wow, that was a totally well thought out video, I like this new direction! ;)

[@PaulsGarage]

Thanks!! Hopefully next time it'll be even better with some vacuum assistance.

[@jeffreysanborn1005]

It is cool to watch your videos because this is exactly the step I am looking to make next. I have been sand casting for 2ish years and have done two lost pla's in there. I am wanting to take the next step toward resin printing for the details you talked about. Thank you for the honest information and reviews. I always feel I can trust the information you put out.

[@PaulsGarage]

Thank you! Resin printing detail is simply unbelievable. As far as I can tell, sand casting still wins for huge pieces, or you need ceramic shell which I haven't tried (yet), but I have plans to try to get even better detail with a vacuum and doing this with much larger castings. No idea if it'll work but it'll be fun!

[@jeffreysanborn1005]

@PaulsGarage Yeah, I definitely try to keep my sand casting skills sharp because there are still a lot of things I make that can be sand cast. I tend to learn at least something every time to help me refine the next one. It is a lot less prep work than investment, lol. I have a vacuum setup ready to be pieced together for my solid wall flasks, but I just haven't gotten to piecing it together, lol. I look forward to seeing your venture into using the vacuum aid. Edit: grammer.

[@AmateurRedneckWorkshop]

Thanks for the video keep on keeping on.

[@Mistertbones]

This is the first time I've ever seen anyone cast the Ameralabs Town print. It came out well.

[@PaulsGarage]

I was surprised how well it worked. I figured I could cast it or throw it away, might as well try it 🤷

[@Lollipop_11]

thank you so much that was so helpful for me

[@superciliousdude]

I just wanted to comment to thank you. Your videos are extremely information dense and I frequently avoid mistakes by re-watching them just prior to doing my own casting experiments.

[@PaulsGarage]

I'm glad I can help!

[@dfross87]

Try to learn from other people's mistakes. It's cheaper, and less painful!

[@PaulsGarage]

@@dfross87 yeah but some mistakes are too much fun to not try for yourself 😉

[@luciankristov6436]

Coolest metal casting channel my dude !

[@PaulsGarage]

I appreciate that!

[@gregwenderski9147]

Wow, great work Paul! You’re making me want to branch out!

[@PaulsGarage]

Go for it! All I do is branch out around here lol. They're are so many hobbies, gotta collect them all 🤣

[@DerekWoolverton]

Looking good. I've been melting down some scrap aluminum in the Vevor, though I made my own steel crucible for it. Works great and I can bang it on the bench to get the crud out of the bottom when I'm done. Next up, casting into Paper shell molds, because nobody's done that before, so obviously I need to try it.

[@PaulsGarage]

Of course try it! I would worry about the aluminum eventually eating through the steel, though, so keep an eye on that

[@menty6666]

Back when I was making glass casting molds, I used a 50/50 mix of plaster and fine mesh silica. Super cheap from a ceramic supply house, but you have to buy them separately and mix them. Also, it's a respiratory hazard, so get a good N100 mask and filter.

[@lorenbush8876]

I always used Kerr Satin Cast 20 for gold jewelry. I bought some tail pipe to use for casting flasks that I bought from a muffler/tail pipe place, I don't know if it comes in stainless steel or not.Don't be afraid of the centrifuge that is what I always used, I had a blowout but there was no problem the molten metal got caught in the splash pan, I was scared of the open broken arm centrifugal caster ,they have a super strong spring that could bust the bone up in your arm or worse I think if you ever screwed up , I have a Neycraft Spincaster with the splash pan built on so there is no worry of accidentally getting you arm in the way , I always just pulled the splash pan/tub bact to release it when it was ready to cast. I tried the vacuum casting and did not like it at all because it didn't produce as nice a casting and there was more to clean up. If you have a jewelry supply shop where you live you can buy the investment powder there, there could be one together with a lapidary supply also. Depending on how far the supply house is it might be cheaper to drive and go get what you want.

[@NeoIsrafil]

Oh, you found the sirayatech resin! Thats what i use too!

[@babbagebrassworks4278]

Evan and Katelyn did some glass pendant in a Microwave Furnace, temperature control would be hit n miss but they said the little furnace was $25.

[@NeoIsrafil]

Bit of advice, if you want to sprue, burnout pla filament glued on with a little wax or hot glue works for sprues, or you can just model them into your model, or use a support manually placed on the model and left on to cure. :)

[@PaulsGarage]

Investment casting a bit intimidating? Want to use your 3D printer to learn SAND Casting in your home shop? paulsmakeracademy.mykajabi.com/joinus

[@StellarMalice]

Already have this printer and my build plate has a different patten. What metal is the easiest to melt for this sort of thing.

[@PaulsGarage]

I saw one guy on youtube with this same printer who didn't have an etched build plate, I wonder why? I used za-12 (a zinc alloy like zamak) and that's pretty easy to melt, it only needs 900f or so. Pewter is lower temperature but higher cost by a lot. but this process can be used with bronze and gold and everything.

[@StellarMalice]

@@PaulsGarage don't suppose you fancy seeing if normal resin will felt away to.

[@sierraecho884]

Sighs, this is the biggest drawback. Investment plaster is expensive, burn out oven is expensive, you need the vacuum pump which is also expensive. I mean sure the whole process and the resulting quality is amazing no doubt but for me it is way above hobby grade. I am currently looking for easier and cheaper ways to 3Dprint --> cast in ZAMAC with good quality but way less equpment and money. I chose zamac because it has a low melting point, recreates good details and is fairly strong compared to the next great material which would be pewter. It is heavier than aluminium though. I am trying a combined method of sand casting and using dry wall compound thinly. I will also be trying out heat resistant spray paint (goes up to 800°C) for the mold material sprinkled with fine sand kind of like SuspendaSlurry replacement for cheap. The whole precise burnout cycle and special plaster stuff is just too much.

[@dominicknepper2082]

@@sierraecho884 Look at my other comment. He doesn't know how to cast. ( I have a minor in jewelry, I know this stuff inside and out and he gives bad advice.) Mix equal parts plaster and sand. Clay dust if you can find it, but not crucial. You'll get fine details for pennies per mold. As for the burn out, don't use this resin. Use jewelry resin. It's mostly wax. It's more expensive, but the burnout can be done without a specialized oven. I've used some fiberfrax (insulating wool, spun glass, whatever you want to call it,) and a grass burning torch. Casting, look up centrifugal casting. You spin the mold on a chain. Or try steam casting, that's pretty easy too. Even better, make your mold, go to your local community college and ask someone there to cast it for you. It's not hard if you don't screw around with bad advice and KZbinrs.

[@brendanmartin3359]

The metal die is awesome! They work best if you can have a felt/leather padded dice tray or tabletop that won’t dent.

[@PaulsGarage]

I think I need to get a dice tray. When I tried playing with my oldest kid she would roll the thing halfway across the room and into the wall lol

[@brendanmartin3359]

@@PaulsGarage lol sounds about right hahaha we broke a dnd mini or two doing that accidentally one time . They’re a pretty easy project if you have wood, and even felt works really well for the lining

[@asmotaku]

Onwaaaard to vacuum casting !

[@PaulsGarage]

Soon! (TM) 🤣

[@TurdFergusen]

Cant wait to see the filagree rings😊

[@PaulsGarage]

same here, gonna be a vacuum casting project for sure. Maybe design a bunch of random filigree stuff. anyone need filigree gingery lathe handles?

[@digital0785]

go big.. I was looking at this to possibly do end tanks for an intercooler haha

[@PaulsGarage]

Aren't end tanks usually stamped from sheet? I think Ive seen some sand cast ones but I gotta think a stamped sheet one would be tougher and lighter

[@leahannwhite1111]

👍💓!!!

[@BionicleFreek99]

I'll be sure to find a supplier for my mysterious white powder.

[@ssjronin3972]

Can you use the melting furnace for the burn out process, isn't it controlled heat?

[@CandyGramForMongo_]

Boiling the investment… Glad I’m not the only one. 😂 Start using silver when you get to the point you’ve got the process down. It polishes very well and it’s silver (90%/10% copper, harder that way).

[@PaulsGarage]

I'd love to use silver. I one made a big sword for someone out of silver (they provided the silver, obviously) and it flowed so nice

[@TurdFergusen]

sterling?

[@PaulsGarage]

no it was .999, a 100oz or something ingot they bought for an investment actually. It was a crazy day!

[@donlindell1994]

Damn, I loved this episode! I feel like I just finished a whole semester in advanced material fabrication at university! Can you show me how to fly helicopters now?

[@PaulsGarage]

I can show you how to fly a helicopter if you sign a safety waiver and pay in advance 🤣🤣 but you're probably better off going to someone who knows how to do it! I can't even fly the things in a simulator... Well, I can fly them, but the landing part has never once gone well 🤣

[@shawnwillis7561]

HELLO!! I remember from a video that you mentioned 3d files for a pouring basin and sprue that we can download. Where can i find those? Im getting very close to doing my first casting using polycast filament. Im really hoping i can print a pouring basin to give my casting the best chance to not have porosity. Thank you sir

[@texastaterbug5395]

Hmm. I usually use metal dice. Get a rolling mat or rolling tray with a felt lining. Even better, enamel the pips in your favorite color and get a matching felt rolling tray.

[@PaulsGarage]

Good idea! I've never tried metal dice. Maybe aluminum would be better?

[@texastaterbug5395]

@@PaulsGarage perhaps. The most important thing would be to eliminate voids. Assuming you want fair dice. I have a couple of baseball sized d20s that weigh over a kilogram and my d6s seem denser than aluminum, so I was surprised your die didn't want to roll well.

[@PaulsGarage]

do i want fair dice? depends who rolling them 😂 Isuppose it would roll better on a surface with a bit more friction. On smooth surfaces it wants to slide and not roll, unless it gets a corner dug into the soft wood, then it rolls (but dents). Maybe i need a silicon mat or a tray like you said.

[@SeaforgedArtifacts]

Nice! Been getting into this as well! Have you ever cast anything bigger than ring/dice size?

[@PaulsGarage]

Not with investment casting, but sand casting yes. Biggest part was a little over 2 feet long. That would use a LOT of investment plaster lol

[@SeaforgedArtifacts]

@@PaulsGarage that's massive! Well for hobbies anyway. Trying to figure out how to cast a medium sized Stirling engine myself.

[@PaulsGarage]

That sounds like an awesome project! Sterling engines are awesome. You might need to get some parts machined for that right? I'm always nervous about machining my castings. I do a lot to try to reduce porosity but you can never be sure without an xray test

[@SeaforgedArtifacts]

@@PaulsGarage fair enough! Yeah, if it's a high compression thing, getting voids could be a real problem. Though I have seen some pretty janky cast aluminum gasbike motors and they get around it by just steel lining the cylinder. As for the sterling engine, I am not super concerned about voids because of the lack of a need for compression and fuel.

[@BryceGoodson]

I just cure this resin in a jar with water. Works great and fast.

[@xKatjaxPurrsx]

"Burnout takes like a day" BIG MOOD.

[@PaulsGarage]

On the plus side at least i didn't have to sit there the whole time 🤣

[@gimpyd666]

How about printing and casting the Sankara stones from Indiana Jones Temple of Doom? Love your content

[@PaulsGarage]

That would be cool but they are pretty chunky, I'd have to do it hollow or something. I haven't seen that movie in forever...

[@Ratkill]

What do you think about using silicone safe resin to make silicone molds of the printed part to cast in wax for use in regular plaster? Trying to find a way around running a 240v for a kiln out to my garage lol

[@PaulsGarage]

There are lots of options like that. Lots of lost wax rings are made from a mold to make the wax wing over and over, it would definitely work. The burnout would still require an oven and melting the metal would still require something, the resin isn't the issue there. The electric furnace I used there is 120v and works on a standard outlet. The burnout oven I used is 240v, but you can definitely find small burnout ovens for 120v. Size will be limited though

[@derekturner3272]

That extra inch ALWAYS matters.... :)

[@PaulsGarage]

Giggity?

[@Miketz]

As a DIYer who is looking at the cheap retail options and wondering if I should change my ways, I am following this series with interest.

[@PaulsGarage]

Products out there are often even cheaper than materials to build your own. Im still glad I build my own heat treat oven and foundry furnace, you can't put a price on the learning experience.

[@Miketz]

@@PaulsGarage The time you spend building the tools is time that could be better spent learning how to use them.

[@PaulsGarage]

Good point, but I've never been able to make a tool without then knowing how it works. I think building and learning always compounds, it definitely gets easier the more you do it. I'm noticing more lately that expensive equipment is often worth it, but cheap equipment is also often good enough. Quite challenging when deciding to build, or buy cheap, or buy good.

[@Miketz]

@@PaulsGarage I will usually do the research on how to build something myself before crunching the numbers to decide if I build/buy. I sometimes find that buying a cheap commercial option and then modifying/upgrading it is a good middle ground. :)

[@antonvanmessem10]

Hello everyone, I hope you are well! I recently purchased Siraya Tech Cast resin which melts in heat for making jewelry etc. and so I printed calibration cones for my printing parameters. So I do the post process, namely IPA then drying with compressed air then hot water for 30 seconds then cold water for 30 seconds then drying then curing in vegetable glycerin so that there is no oxygen in contact with the resin during curing. I clean the glycerin with water then for a little test I put it through a heat gun to see how it melts etc... and at the maximum power of my heat gun (I would say 300°C it sends wood) the part still didn't melt... there are several pieces that came off but nothing actually melted... I don't know if this is normal? and if anyone has already used it could they tell me how long you have to put it in the oven for it to melt when it's in the plaster! Thank you in advance for your valuable help!!

[@Nanogoldheals]

What’s your settings for this resin!?

[@sammaldonado5931]

I have a centrifuge, it cost me abput 60 usd (in mexican money). Insanely cheap for the thing you can do with that lol! you should try it! no air vents and molten metal spinning at hihg speed what could go worng? you can use a lot more alloys using a centrifuge

[@PaulsGarage]

Sounds fun but I don't need molten metal flying everywhere 😂

[@sierraecho884]

@@PaulsGarage Usually those are inside a box for exactly this reason. Centrifular juwelry casting is pretty awesome. It even works with delft clay. So basically you stick your wax master directly into delft clay and cast metal in it without any burnout. The centrifugal force forces the metal in there really well and at the same time melts the wax. Super cheap and easy with great results, sadly not many people do it though.

[@clidelivingston]

Is there a company you can send parts too to have casted in metal? I have a ANYCUBIC printer and I need some parts casted in metal.

[@PaulsGarage]

Not sure exactly, you would probably have to find someone with the equipment. There are some companies out there that will send you custom metal parts if you send them a file though. PCBway is one I've seen advertised, but I have never worked with them myself. If you try them out let me know how it goes

[@clidelivingston]

@@PaulsGarage Thanks. I will let you know.

[@clappercl]

So, when's that van gettin' finished? 😂🤣😂🤣

[@PaulsGarage]

2030 at the absolute earliest 🤣

[@StellarMalice]

Mars 4 max you said do you have a flex plate or upgraded plate as mine doesn't look it that.

[@PaulsGarage]

I have no upgrades, just the standard plate. I've heard the flex plates are pretty cool though

[@ket7926]

crazy idea, instead of printing all the models and then adding the glue stick, wouldn't it be faster to just make the model have all the vents and things it needs from the get go?

[@PaulsGarage]

Absolutely yes. The only complication is that the models might need more support than the vents and sprues would provide, so it would take planning to have vents AND supports. In the end you would save time especially if you are making multiples

[@TurdFergusen]

Oh re: Metal dice… I think you need to round the corners a bit and maybe even round the edges oh so slightly

[@PaulsGarage]

My desk would certainly prefer that

[@jc7997aj]

Why pay that much for the resin tho ? Is it special for casting ? I 3d print minis (40k ,d and d etc...) i use sunlu nylon like 35 to 45 a L. I use a satun 8k just how much better would your brand be compared to the sun lu ?

[@PaulsGarage]

Yes is it special for casting. It's designed to burn out cleanly, unlike other resins which leaves stuff behind in the mold and contaminate the casting. I'd you aren't going to cast them in metal, definitely use a different resin. This resin is too brittle and waxy.

[@StefanvanAalst]

Increase or decrease shop time if you're going to make something for the other significant?

[@PaulsGarage]

Depends I suppose. The 'non-shop' time might get considerably better if you make some jewelry 😉

[@StefanvanAalst]

Wouldn't making jewelry increase the time spent in the shop?

[@CarpeUniversum]

PLEASE try printing a large complex object with a deep convex interior cavity! Like a Toy gun with a deep barrel, or somethin. I dare you?

[@CarpeUniversum]

I'll ssuuuubscriiibe... * wink*

[@PaulsGarage]

Sounds fun

[@colethynne]

What temp should the flask be for when I pour molten silver into the investment? Thanks, great video :)

[@PaulsGarage]

From what I've heard, thicker designs need 700-900f, while fine detailed things need closer to 1000f molds. I have not heard that this is silver specific, but generally silver/gold/copper alloys melt in a similar range. The metal I'm using here (za12) melts at a waaaay cooler temperature, so I'm not sure if it's different for me here. In part that's why I didn't mention the temperature, I wasn't sure 900f (what I did here) was correct for this specific metal. For silver it is probably closer though

[@colethynne]

@@PaulsGarage wouldn’t 900f melt the silicone gasket? I am not understanding how the flask can be so hot to be used in the vacuum chamber.

[@PaulsGarage]

@colethynne long term, yes it would probably damage the silicone, but it's only that hot when it's first removed from the burnout oven and it is just set on the silicone. silicone isn't great at conducting heat and the flask probably isn't hot enough for long enough to heat the silicone all the way up. It isn't as hard on the silicone as throwing it in the oven at 900f.

[@colethynne]

@@PaulsGarage okay great point thank you. I guess I didn’t consider the flask is rapidly loosing heat once it’s been removed

[@PaulsGarage]

@colethynne yeah that too. The hotter something is, the faster it radiates heat away. So it's rapidly cooling while at the same time the silicone can't absorb the heat very quickly. The silicone is also being cooled by the room temperature metal that it's sitting on.

[@fredio54]

Audio quality bad for some reason but otherwise another no BS good video :-) I want to use this for an ultimate surge tank base that would be impossible to machine.

[@PaulsGarage]

Pretty sure my 15 year old voice recorder is dying on me. There are whole sections I've had to edit out of the last few videos because the audio was unsalvageable

[@fredio54]

@@PaulsGarage consider getting a USB mic or shotgun/lav mic with a digital USB interface and recording directly into a computer with audacity or something? Or even just some good in ear Bluetooth buds and record to a phone? Is the audio in your camera no good? Which camera are you using?

[@PaulsGarage]

Camera audio is garbage. I'm using a lav mic but it's plugged into an ancient recorder. I definitely need a new recorder. It only has 3 sensitivity settings, and with the sensitivity turned all the way down, the pin mic still peaks really bad. I have a yeti mic I could use but it would have to plug into a computer, this recorder can't power it.

[@DieSnider]

Most PRO resin needs to be cured aprox. 90min. we use 3D systems on a Anycubic D2 and 6K.

[@Bargle5]

First comment? Oooh, my first first comment.

[@PaulsGarage]

Can confirm first 🥇

[@matthewthompson7012]

1:46 big enough for her 😂

[@NoMercyFtw]

Sorry i got lost at the end

[@jakobfindlay4136]

i print down as low as 10 micron layers on my mars 3 but see barely any difference in 10 and 20 micron

[@PaulsGarage]

I've never tried smaller than 30. That seems pretty great in my opinion

[@user-gk2cg2th9h]

If your 8k printer is larger your resolution will be similar

[@PaulsGarage]

It's a little bigger, about an inch. The difference in pixel size is 5 or 6 microns, so about 15% smaller pixels on the 8k vs. this one. I can tell the difference only with AA off on very flat surfaces if I have the face slightly off the line of pixels a few degrees. Then I can see individual pixel rows and the larger pixels have fewer, larger row lines. That's a super specific case though obviously

[@xxxmikeyjock]

small is not what I need

[@PaulsGarage]

What size thing are you printing? I think you can take lychee slicer, and use it to "try out" build areas of different printers. You could see if the file you want to print fits on this, or a bigger one etc... I gotta say at first I was disappointed by how small resin printer plates are, but after messing with them for a while there's a surprising amount that will fit on a plate

[@Sylonce]

Hollow dies

[@qrubmeeaz]

Too much rambling. Make your point and get on with it.

[@ThantiK]

Resin printing is killing you.

[@PaulsGarage]

In which of the many possible ways is it killing me? The poisonous fumes? Poisonous contact with skin? The risk of overspending on even more tools I don't need? 🤣

[@mathkor89]

9 inches are big already I would even say too big 🫣