Lost Wax Casting Process

Mold Making and Wax Pouring Working from an original sculpted from wood, stone, clay, plaster, terra cotta, wax, etc., a rubber mold is created that is supported by a mother mold of plaster or fiberglass. Hot wax is poured into the rubber and plaster mold to create an even, uniform wax thickness of about 3/16ths of an inch. After the wax cools, it is removed from the rubber mold leaving a highly detailed positive image of the sculpture.

Wax Chasing The wax is chased giving us a detailed wax pattern identical to the artists original. We then attach wax sprue bars to provide a path for the molten metal to flow into the wax pattern.

Ceramic Shell Room The wax pattern and sprues are fortified by an outer ceramic shell that becomes the final mold after the shell is fired and the wax is "lost" (melted). We use electric melting for our bronze because it is cleaner, faster, and offers more control over this important step.

Dewax and Pouring Floor Next, we fire the now empty ceramic shell in a kiln at 1600 degrees Fahrenheit. We then pour the molten metal (bronze or stainless steel) into the shell and allow it to cool.

Sandblasting Next the ceramic shell is removed and the sprues are cut off. We then sandblast the resulting bronze sculpture to remove any ceramic remaining from the casting process before any welding can take place.

Welding No matter what level of welding is required, the Art Castings welders take special care in making certain that every piece is hand-crafted to the exact size and proportions of the original.

Metal Chasing Pneumatic tools are used to restore detail to the sculpture giving a detailed representation of the artist original.

Patina & Basing We offer a large selection of patinas. We often heat the sculpture and various chemicals are applied to the surface of the bronze giving the artist the desired color or effect they choose. Finally, the sculpture is mounted to the appropriate base and carefully packaged and shipped.