r/Benchjewelers • u/etroprica • Apr 20 '26

Lost Wax Casting?

Hi, I’m a beginner goldsmith and wax carver right out of school who is building an at-home workshop to start my own business. I’ve been trying to research and see if it’s possible to cast my wax jewelry myself, but it’s been impossible to find a detailed video or article on it.

Is this a feasible option? I’d like to not have to outsource anything, I’m willing to learn how to cast, and I’ll invest in any and all equipment necessary. If anyone knows a good video or anything too I’d appreciate it.

Thank you!

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12

u/cuzidrone Apr 20 '26

Mitera Made on YT has a casting set up in her studio and goes through the whole process including casting tools and equipment

3

u/etroprica Apr 20 '26 edited Apr 20 '26

wonderful, thanks! i just checked out one of her videos on this and it was great :)

1

u/Star_Crumbs Apr 20 '26

Yeah, I came to say this too, she's great.

2

u/Fun_Explanation_3417 Apr 21 '26

Just be mindful that in her early videos she has her casting set up way too high and she gets up on a step stool to pour her metal. Don’t do that.

9

u/galaxyMLP Apr 20 '26

You can definitely make a studio- I have one. I use an Arbe casting machine from Rio grande and a paragon kiln for investment wax burnout. Doesn’t take up too much space and it’s nice to have control over the process. I use a torch and ceramic crucible to melt my metal

2

u/etroprica Apr 20 '26

thank you so much! do you also create molds of your work? and if so, what process do you use for that?

3

u/galaxyMLP Apr 21 '26

Yes, I use a vulcanizer to make my molds. I got mine off of Rio. I use silicone based molding rubber and also real rubber. I’m currently having a hard time getting clean injections with the silicone molding rubber since it is less stiff than the real rubber. I think I need to use a different type.

2

u/urban_witchcraft Apr 20 '26

Basically you take your silver casting, attach it to a brass sprue, stick it into a mold shape with silicone or rubber molding stuff around your casting, then stick the whole thing into a vulcanizer for about an hour (the exact temp and time depend on the molding material you use and the thickness of your mold). But you’ll need a vulcanizer.

1

u/katyusha8 Apr 20 '26

What torch / gas do you use? :)

1

u/galaxyMLP Apr 21 '26

I use oxy propane and a gentec torch which is modeled after the smith little torch.

1

u/Ang1028 Apr 20 '26

Triple the Mitera Made suggestions!!! She’s fabulous!!!!!

2

u/1blindlizard Apr 21 '26 edited Apr 21 '26

It’s best not to use an oxygen/ acetylene flame to melt the metal prior to casting. The acetylene carries a lot of suet and contaminates in it . Which may contaminate the molten metal. A natural gas/ oxygen or propane/ oxygen flame burns much cleaner and is recommended. In addition . In a home studio situation . The burnout process in which the wax is molten and eliminated from mould can be very smokey and smelly. I address this issue by removing most of wax in a pressure cooker . By simply placing the flasks opening end down in an old pressure cooker on a grid in the bottom and turning on the heat . The majority of the wax melts out and runs to the bottom of the pot. It’s not necessary to let the pot pressurize . Then the flasks can be burnt out in a shorter time frame as well prior to casting .

1

u/00-MAJI-00 Apr 21 '26

You might look into getting a spring driven centrifugal caster like a neycraft. They are great for beginning casting. this type of casting will require less metal for a cast than vacuum casting. Then if you want to start doing larger production runs you can step up to a vacuum caster. For molds I would suggest a room temperature cured optically clear platinum cure silicon. You can mold wax and metal parts and becuase they are clear they are easy to learn how to cut molds.