hi from st augustine florida

[bobbydigital]

hi everybody,im having some crazy problems trying to make sodium silicate like i read on this site and i figured maybee i better sighn up and see if anybody who has actually done it could maybee tell me what im doing wrong lol

[Jammer]

I made it. Be very careful, it's a very exothermic reaction when I did the large amount. Watch the Nurdrage video a couple times.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xltvwhog ... ure=g-like

Lye, or Sodium Hydroxide is very alkaline and as dangerous as strond acid. I don't recommend anyone try this if they don't have a lab background or help and use from a real lab. Don't ry this with pickle jars in your kitchen sink, the heat will shatter the glass and you could get burnt and/or blinded very easily. Proceed at your own risk!

Danger...DANGER, Will Robinson Ok, so I'm old...

[Jammer]

Maybe someone can chime in with an alternative to Sodium Silicate. I know there are some recipes for some core binders using sugar or molasses. Or there's some that uses linseed oil. You mold the core and then bake it in the oven. I've heard the molasses one even smells good while it bakes.

[Nudge]

I can do that!

525g Sand (clean)
18g Flour
10g Wallpaper past
12ml Linseed oil
Method:
Mix up the wallpaper past to make a thick past then set aside.
Next mix the sand and flour together, then mix in the wallpaper past.
Once mixed add the linseed oil and mix well.

Now the mix is ready to use.
Ram / press into mould.

Once firm enough to remove from mould place over tray and bake @ 250 deg C until golden brown/ starting to smoke.
The pre baking process can take a while in damp conditions.(May take a few days) This can be speed up buy Slow baking until firm enough to remove.


It will also work without the past, but it is a bit crumbly and needs to be rammed into the mould.

[bobbydigital]

thanks nudge and jammer i guess ill try some other things then i was just really looking forward to bieng able to harded my molds instantly with the co2

[Nudge]

If you do that you wont be able to reuse the sand, it will be a one time use. If you wanted to do that you would be better to do an investment casting! ( I cant help with that )

[F.C.]

The question is, what is it you're trying to cast? What you're seeking to figure out may not be what you need to successfully accomplish your project. There's an abundance of ways to pour metal, including ways to make a hole to pour it into. If what you're intending to pour into is to be repetitive in shape then core sand wouldn't be the best solution but a permanent mold would be... as in bullet mold. This you can create in aluminum if casting low temp metals, or in bronze if casting harder alloys. Apply a layer of flame soot on the mold interior between each cast and your product will pop out of there clean as a new whistle, exact in shape and weight as the one cast previous. Just say'n... it ain't about "I know I can figure out how to do it this way", it's more like "what is it I'm wanting to do and how best, can I do it with the most ease and simplisity."

[bobbydigital]

is it possible that someone can tell me how to re size my pictures so i can post some here,i know everybody likes pictures,lol,i do but when i try to post them it says they are to big,lol,

[Jammer]

You can resize them with paint in your own files. Just open the picture with paint and resize it to 25% and save the copy or replace the original. If you use photobucket, you can set it up to load pictures in a forum size. I don't know if other photo storage sites do the same.

[F.C.]

Most computers come with a picture editing program. Not sure if paint program has re-sizing capability but I know "Microsoft Picture Manager" does. Go to your folders and find yourself a picture, right click it and see what options you have for opening it... i.e., it'll say "open with", select that option and a list of program options will pop up. Try each that you have and see what options you have to edit that pic. If there's something there to resize your photo do so then save it with the addition of an additional character such as "a" or "1" at the end of the file name. This way it'll list next to your original photo in the folder so you'll know it's a resized pic of the original. If you have Microsoft Picture Manager I'd choose the mid range easy option.