When it comes to jewelry making, the most common ways are the processes of casting, forging, soldering and engraving. Today's article will introduce you to an ancient and exquisite jewelry making process - jewelry casting process. Jewelry casting not only has a deep historical heritage, with the development of society, but also has a more modern color. So, now let us into the world of jewelry casting process!
What are some common jewelry casting processes?
Lost wax casting
Lost wax casting is one of the most common types of casting nowadays and also one of the oldest. You first need to make a wax mold, then wrap the wax mold with some durable material and finally place it in a hot environment until the wax melts. Finally, the melted metal is poured into the holes where the wax flows out and after waiting for the metal to cool down you will get a perfect replica of the wax mold for your jewelry!
Sand casting
Sand casting is particularly suitable for producing some large parts. The steps are as follows: you can start by making a jewelry prototype using metal materials. Then mix the sand with the adhesive and place the made jewelry prototype into it. But here you don't need to put a whole model into a hot environment, you just need to remove the jewelry model to get a sand mold.
Metal mold casting
Metal mold casting refers to the use of metal in a molten state that is poured into a mold made from a heat-resistant material. The cast part can then be removed after waiting for the metal to cool.
Vacuum casting
Vacuum technology is used to inject the molten metal into a specific mold. The advantage of vacuum technology is that it can reduce the air bubbles produced by the molten metal during the casting process and improve the quality of the metal parts.
Resin casting
Resin fabrication is better suited for producing small-scale metal parts. Unlike the above mentioned methods of jewelry casting, you need to first use CAD software to first create a 3D model of the jewelry, which is a prototype of the jewelry you are making. After that, you will create a mold based on your model. The material used to make the mold is usually silicone or some other flexible material to make the mold. This makes it easier for you to subsequently remove the metal parts.
Application of modern jewelry casting process
The traditional jewelry casting process has been quietly changing over time. The addition of modern technology has made jewelry casting more efficient and more suitable for high volume production. Here's a brief overview of how the perfect combination of 3D printers and jewelry casting can improve the overall efficiency of jewelry casting.
It can be said that 3D printers can be used in conjunction with many jewelry casting methods, as there is no way to dissociate jewelry casting from the step of "making a mold". Whether you are a professional jewelry designer or just a jewelry enthusiast, you can use a 3D printer to create a perfect mold.
The process of making metal casting molds using a 3D printer can be roughly broken down into the following steps
Design of the model
Compared to other metal casting methods, you will likewise need to make an overall design of the jewelry that you are making first. Before using a 3D printer, you will also need to design your model using specialized computer software. It is a good idea to visualize all the details, including the location of the air vents and the casting ports, and you need to make sure that the design makes sense.
Uploading and post-processing of files
Upload your finished file into the 3D printer and make some subsequent adjustments to the parameters and details. For example, you can adjust the accuracy parameter of the model, pull the value higher, so that the details on the subsequent printed model will be more clear. After the mold is printed out, you can make some details on the mold processing, such as grinding and polishing. So that the subsequent casting process, the jewelry will present a more perfect effect.
Making casting molds
Put the entire casting mold you have processed into the silicone material (or another refractory material) and wait enough time to remove the mold.
Cast (pour metal into a mold)
Once you have heated and melted the metal, you can pour it into the mold that you have made in advance. This is the step where you especially need to pay attention to the fact that you need to make sure that the metal fills an entire mold cavity. This reduces the likelihood of air bubbles appearing on the surface of the metal and reduces the amount of extra work that will have to be done. Finally, wait for the metal to cool down and then you can remove the metal part.
Post-processing of jewelry
The so-called post-processing refers to the treatment of metal parts with some details. For example, steps such as grinding and polishing the surface of the metal to restore the luster of the jewelry and make the effect more perfect.
One might wonder why not just print out the metal parts, wouldn't that be more convenient? In fact, using a 3D printer promises that the molds will be less costly to invest in, and the metal parts cast using this method are much better in terms of detail and smoothness than those printed directly.
Challenges and Future of Jewelry Casting
In the future, or rather in the near future, there will be more emerging technologies to join the jewelry casting process, jewelry makers can be more efficient, lower cost, casting more complex shapes of jewelry. Moreover, in the future, we may also be exposed to personalized casting jewelry, designing and making our own unique jewelry.
However, the addition of emerging technologies will inevitably bring about some new problems. For example, the entry threshold for the use of emerging technologies will be raised, and society will need to invest more costs in training relevant talents. In addition, what kind of production materials will be used to comply with the increasingly demanding environmental regulations?
Therefore, the continuous evolution of the jewelry casting process will change not only the jewelry casting itself, but also, slowly have some impact on this society.
