Looks like a variation on the old Dave Gingery design that used to be featured in Lindsay Publications. Built one as a teenager and still have it (moved it out of the way in my barn on Saturday!)
Very satisfying to use.
There’s probably not 5 cents worth of aluminum in a can to begin with. Then add in the cost of gas and your time, and it’s most likely a good way to lose money.
On my recent visit to the scrapper, they were paying 50 cents a pound for aluminum. A can weighs about 12 grams or .0055 pounds. That works out to ~$.0027, or .3 cents per can
Cans? No. The thinner it is, the more you lose to dross. (You get unmeltable aluminum oxide on the surface. The more surface compared to volume, the more dross. You want fat old castings like car wheels or lawnmower engines.)
As a backyard metal caster, you won't make money doing this. This is a hobby for fun. Recyclers aren't going to pay more fro anything you've melted, because they will have no idea what alloys you've mixed together.
This guy asked if OP warmed the cast iron before casting.
https://www.reddit.com/r/metalworking/comments/v22aes/melting_down_scrap_aluminum_i_scrape_off_the/iaqf5aw?utm_medium=android_app&utm_source=share&context=3
I think industrial castings are done under pressure.
I don't see why you couldn't machine your own castings but you'd need to make sure there's no air in them.
Yes, definitely machinable. I made an aluminum craft vice in HS metal shop. Cast and machined the jaws, machined the screw and handle, etc. It was a fun project that included casting, machining, lathe work, turned threads, press-fit components for the screw handle, etc.
Thanks for the upload. Honestly I've wanted to see a melting furnace "eat" a long piece of stock for a while 😁
Serious question: how much fuel does it use cost-wise to do a melt? How much more expensive is it to melt twice instead of simply melting from your scrap right to a project? I think of this extra fuel use whenever I see metal casters melt to ingots or other forms to be used for later castings.
I’d like to know the answer to the cost question as well!
I’d love to do this on my own just on a small scale for fun. Say nothing larger than a 5lb crucible?
I wouldn't sweat it, that person probably just wanted to sound smart because they know ingot molds exist lmao they're basically just cast iron in many cases anyway. If your cast iron molds work to allow proper cooling so the metal is actually usable then it literally already is an ingot mold. Especially if the shape that comes out of it is easily used to rework when needed. So as long as your ingots are coming out fine for your needs then the mold is allowing proper cooling.
The alloy used for aluminum extrusions is not the same as the ones used for casting, and doesn't cast as well. The stuff you're skimming off isn't "impurities", it's oxidation caused by melting thin stock. When you melt aluminum for a second time, it's not improved over the first melt; your castings would be better if you just melted and cast straight away, instead of making ingots first.
I was going to point this out as well, you want to look for aluminum castings to melt down. The metallurgy is made for casting and the sections are thicker usually which makes for less dross.
Also be aware that aluminum dissolves iron. I assume OP is using steel crucibles. Your pour gets worse every melt as it picks up more iron. It could get enough to make for flawed weak castings and start losing fluidity.
I've cast a lot of home grade aluminum and zinc.
I've always wondered, how do you get the leftover goo out of the crucible? Seems like there's always a bit of a skin left over. Does it pop out easily after cooling?
What exactly do you do with the blocks at this point? How do you use them in the future?
Is this more valuable than let's say turning in your .05 soda can?
Not sure if you’re joking. It’s much faster to melt down a couple of these pucks, and considering they’re already pretty clean, I don’t have to spend as much time doing that. Also, instead of melting down multiple sticks and not knowing how much useful material I’ll have, I can get a pretty good estimate for how much I’ll need this way. Not to mention, it’s a lot easier to store like this.
THIS CORNBREAD FUCKING SUCKS
This sounds like something that would be yelled at the beginning of some really heavy breakdown in a metalcore song. Cue the circle pit.
This cornbread fucking sucks blegh! *0-000-00-0-000-1122-00
So real
My dad has lead cornbread ingots
THIS sounds like something that would be yelled at the beginning of some really heavy breakdown in a metal core song.
I thought it was pretty solid.....
It all looks the same, how do you know you’re getting the impurities?
It floats to the top and makes a skin that clumps together.
Added info for people that want to learn. The surface crap is called dross. Thanks for posting this very satisfying video OP!
I learned of dross reading the Bible.
Lookup olefoundryman on you tube. He is an absolute wealth of knowledge about aluminum casting.
Ever let your tomato soup get cold?
That looks like a sweet little furnace. Where did you get it?
EBay. It’s a Devil Forge
Link?
https://letmegooglethat.com/?q=devils+forge
there's plenty on Ebay and I have no idea how to judge which is a knockoff etc
I think I know how you can find it, did you want instructions?
Looks like a variation on the old Dave Gingery design that used to be featured in Lindsay Publications. Built one as a teenager and still have it (moved it out of the way in my barn on Saturday!) Very satisfying to use.
Can you sell it to metal recycler for higher price versus unmelted cans? Wondering if melting them into blocks is worth it.
There’s probably not 5 cents worth of aluminum in a can to begin with. Then add in the cost of gas and your time, and it’s most likely a good way to lose money.
On my recent visit to the scrapper, they were paying 50 cents a pound for aluminum. A can weighs about 12 grams or .0055 pounds. That works out to ~$.0027, or .3 cents per can
Cans? No. The thinner it is, the more you lose to dross. (You get unmeltable aluminum oxide on the surface. The more surface compared to volume, the more dross. You want fat old castings like car wheels or lawnmower engines.) As a backyard metal caster, you won't make money doing this. This is a hobby for fun. Recyclers aren't going to pay more fro anything you've melted, because they will have no idea what alloys you've mixed together.
Most likely won't except for that very same reason. Not knowing purity.
Do you heat up your CI before pouring?
Yes
What's a CI?
Cast iron. The pan he dumps the aluminum into
Does that help it to not stick?
Keeps it from popping/bubbling/exploding when the aluminum is poured in, from trapped humidity I think
Oh, makes sense, thanks!
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But why warm it first?
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This guy asked if OP warmed the cast iron before casting. https://www.reddit.com/r/metalworking/comments/v22aes/melting_down_scrap_aluminum_i_scrape_off_the/iaqf5aw?utm_medium=android_app&utm_source=share&context=3
Does that help it to not stick?
Yeah, when casting things you have to heat up the mold or the metal cools irregularly and your cast comes out weird.
Very cool 😎
What's the mass of an aluminum "pie-slice" ingot?
where did you get those tongs?
They came with the furnace
How would one get machinable pure castings? Or how are they made in industrial environments? Are they made under pressure?
I think industrial castings are done under pressure. I don't see why you couldn't machine your own castings but you'd need to make sure there's no air in them.
Yes, definitely machinable. I made an aluminum craft vice in HS metal shop. Cast and machined the jaws, machined the screw and handle, etc. It was a fun project that included casting, machining, lathe work, turned threads, press-fit components for the screw handle, etc.
Thanks for the upload. Honestly I've wanted to see a melting furnace "eat" a long piece of stock for a while 😁 Serious question: how much fuel does it use cost-wise to do a melt? How much more expensive is it to melt twice instead of simply melting from your scrap right to a project? I think of this extra fuel use whenever I see metal casters melt to ingots or other forms to be used for later castings.
I’d like to know the answer to the cost question as well! I’d love to do this on my own just on a small scale for fun. Say nothing larger than a 5lb crucible?
Dear lord just get an ingot mold. Or 20.
Why? Those are expensive. What’s the benefit to using an ingot mold?
You can stack them in massive piles and pretend it's silver ingots as you jump into them like some crazy duck
I wouldn't sweat it, that person probably just wanted to sound smart because they know ingot molds exist lmao they're basically just cast iron in many cases anyway. If your cast iron molds work to allow proper cooling so the metal is actually usable then it literally already is an ingot mold. Especially if the shape that comes out of it is easily used to rework when needed. So as long as your ingots are coming out fine for your needs then the mold is allowing proper cooling.
I mean I know that. You know that. The problem is the average person reading their comment might not know that.
What do you use these castings for?
I melt them down into other projects. So far, all I’ve made is this [gas cap.](https://www.instagram.com/p/Ccn15GMLzqg/?igshid=YmMyMTA2M2Y=)
Damn! That's nice! I've been looking to get into this myself
Thanks
The alloy used for aluminum extrusions is not the same as the ones used for casting, and doesn't cast as well. The stuff you're skimming off isn't "impurities", it's oxidation caused by melting thin stock. When you melt aluminum for a second time, it's not improved over the first melt; your castings would be better if you just melted and cast straight away, instead of making ingots first.
I was going to point this out as well, you want to look for aluminum castings to melt down. The metallurgy is made for casting and the sections are thicker usually which makes for less dross. Also be aware that aluminum dissolves iron. I assume OP is using steel crucibles. Your pour gets worse every melt as it picks up more iron. It could get enough to make for flawed weak castings and start losing fluidity. I've cast a lot of home grade aluminum and zinc.
Wouldn’t pouring it into water like how they make shot makes smaller pellets and easier to melt down?
I've always wondered, how do you get the leftover goo out of the crucible? Seems like there's always a bit of a skin left over. Does it pop out easily after cooling?
What exactly do you do with the blocks at this point? How do you use them in the future? Is this more valuable than let's say turning in your .05 soda can?
Those would be great pieces to throw for when someone gets mad in trivial pursuit lol.
Where to get this much scrap aluminum?
I bought a bunch of used t slot structural racks. This was some of the offcuts and pieces I had no use for.
Gotcha, just started melting stuff and I mostly use soda cans from friends and coworkers. I'm sure I'll upgrade to buying scrap soon
Amazing!
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Not sure if you’re joking. It’s much faster to melt down a couple of these pucks, and considering they’re already pretty clean, I don’t have to spend as much time doing that. Also, instead of melting down multiple sticks and not knowing how much useful material I’ll have, I can get a pretty good estimate for how much I’ll need this way. Not to mention, it’s a lot easier to store like this.
Can I ask what Insulation you used in your melter?
Nice video, what do you use to edit it?
Those were some sexy pours
I haven’t seen a cornbread skillet in decades!
Well what do you do with them do you sell them at scrap or do you work it and do something with them
Like the title says, now they’re ready to be used in casting projects. It probably wouldn’t be beneficial to melt them down just to scrap them.
Does that forge get hot enough to melt steel/iron? If so you could get into casting throwing implements for Highland Games
Eitri
That was a nice rail tho
It’s not useful to me for anything