July 31, 201114 yr I'm assuming that the fluid these guys are pouring bronze into cannot be water:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ClnOO0kVoEU It's shown again in this video, which puts things into context a bit:http://youtu.be/rHE0j_3sNcQ What is the stuff boiling inside the cast iron molds?
August 1, 201114 yr It is easy to see from the video that the water is boiling with great vigor and after viewing the casting process of another manufacturer is looks to be a common practice amongst cymbal makers. In one shop it showed little bombs of molten bronze flying out of the "skillets". It is nice, or not so nice, to see some men who are not terrible afraid of their work but still respectful of it's danger. The only thing that really bothered me was the lack of facial protection and the seemingly very young workers in one of the videos. Well and I suppose they could have had better foot ware too, OK, and more protection from the heat, like a good set of leathers. These men sure seemed to know their trade.
August 1, 201114 yr Author So, do you think the plank which they place the skillets on is heated? I would think that water would not continue to boil otherwise, and I figured a violent explosion would occur if it were indeed just water. But yeah, I see the stuff flying out. I guess if the liquid was an oil, it would be smoking a bunch...
August 1, 201114 yr I worked with some visiting Japanese smiths for a week once and they also cast ingots into water after mixing up some special alloys. Steam explosions happen in molds because the steam is trapped inside the mold under the molten metal. This is not the case pouring metal into a pot of water where the steam is free to boil off. I believe casting a water ingot is supposed to protect it from gases that could cause porosity, but there were some language issues so I'm not always clear on the issues.
August 1, 201114 yr So, do you think the plank which they place the skillets on is heated? I would think that water would not continue to boil otherwise, and I figured a violent explosion would occur if it were indeed just water. But yeah, I see the stuff flying out. I guess if the liquid was an oil, it would be smoking a bunch... They preheated the skillets, which look quite thick, against the melting fire by standing them around the crucibles. The water could boil for quite some time from the heat of the iron. Phil
August 1, 201114 yr In the one video the "plank" looked like wood and in another one it looked like I don't know what, maybe stone, but I think the skillets were cast iron coated with graphite to keep the metal from sticking. Fun videos to watch and see others pouring metal half a world away and sure not doing it in a manner I would and living to see another day.
August 2, 201114 yr This water casting is common for Japanese copper work...as copper has a great affinity for oxygen it is one of the only "primitive" ways to get a good clean ingot: Ric
August 3, 201114 yr Author Then, must H20 be less reactive to copper than hydrogen and oxygen on their own?
August 3, 201114 yr I doubt molten metal is hot enough to split the hydrogen-oxygen-hydrogen bond. Water is put together rather tight. Phil
August 20, 201114 yr I have done the "don't try this at home" several times (carefully). Attached is a picture of what happens when you pour about 2 pounds of molten aluminum into about 20 gallons of water (slag tub). The net result is a loss of about five gallons of water. I have made a bunch of these with left over melts when I am done pouring. My favorite aluminum source is used gas grills. They recast real well.
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