11 Different Types of Casting Process
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The extremely high level of precision needed within the aerospace industry makes CNC machining a suitable manufacturing process for the sector.
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Reliable vacuum casting service for prototypes and low-volume production parts at competitive pricing. Highly detailed elastomer parts with excellent quality and faster turnarounds.
Vacuum casting or urethane casting is a technology that combines silicone molds and a 3D printed master pattern to create short-run, rigid parts with production-level quality. The process hardens thermoplastic polyurethane inside silicon or epoxy molds. The result is vacuum casting parts with the same shapes as the original master models. The final dimensions of the vacuum casting parts will depend on the master model, part geometry, and the material chosen.
As a leading vacuum casting manufacturer, RapidDirect offers low-cost fabrication of high-quality plastic parts. This technology eliminates the need for expensive upfront investments. Our vacuum casting services offer the complete solution for creating excellent quality prototypes and low-volume production parts.
We combine our extensive technical experiences and advanced technologies to deliver superior urethane casting services with faster lead times.
We use high-quality elastomeric materials to ensure the manufacture of vacuum casting plastic parts with complex structures. Offer detailed design support to ensure your prototypes and small-batch components are closely similar to the intended final products.
We carefully incorporate various color pigments to achieve the intended effects on your finished products. You can select from our extensive list of color options.
Choose from a wide range of possible materials and surface finishes for your vacuum cast parts. We provide the highest quality resins to ensure superior product quality, and offer a wide range of surface finishing options to bring your product to life.
RapidDirect is proudly ISO certified, ensuring our products and services comply with international quality standards. We offer manufacturing analysis and quality control to provide parts that meet the highest standards.
Get reliable custom vacuum casting services from highly skilled and experienced specialists. We boast the best hands in the industry with expertise in fabrication, material selection, surface finishing, and many more.
Along with our exceptional vacuum casting service, RapidDirect also offers an effective means of managing your orders with only a few clicks.
No need to request multiple quotes for different quantities of the same part. We provide you with a comprehensive quote with different prices you can use to compare and make the proper order based on your budget.
Monitor your order’s delivery status in real time and with relative ease, thanks to our order tracking features. This guarantees that your vacuum casting products will arrive on time.
Have all your vacuum casting parts quotes and orders on one page. Aside from regular updates for existing orders, making future orders is never easier.
Vacuum casting is the ideal solution for creating high-quality prototypes and small-batch parts for different applications. We help you reach your manufacturing goals.
The vacuum casting process involves low-cost tooling to ensure a more accessible and cost-effective way of creating prototypes. Create quality prototypes with various materials and design changes. Test your designs easily and get them ready for functional testing.
We help you create vacuum casting products ideal for market and consumer testing, concept models, and user evaluation. These parts come with high-quality finishes and end-use functionalities. Our urethane casting services allow you to incorporate changes quickly for further testing and market launch.
Vacuum cast parts are excellent options for custom and first-run production. You can cost-effectively test product quality before starting full-scale production.
RapidDirect offers a range of vacuum casting tolerances to meet your custom requirements. Based on the master pattern and part geometry, we can reach dimensional tolerances between 0.2 – 0.4 m. Below are the technical specifications for our vacuum casting services.
Type | Information |
Accuracy |
Highest precision to reach ±0.05 mm |
Max Part Size |
+/- 0.025 mm
+/- 0.001 inch |
Minimum wall thickness |
1.5mm~2.5mm |
Quantities |
20-25 copies per mold |
Color & Finishing |
Color and texture can be customized |
Typical Lead Time |
Up to 20 parts in 15 days or less |
You can choose a wide range of vacuum casting materials depending on the peculiarities of your project. These resins are typically analogs of common plastic materials with comparable performance and appearance. We have grouped our urethane casting materials into general categories to help you make the best decisions for your project.
Versatile polyurethane plastic resin that is analogous to ABS thermoplastic. Hard, rigid, and impact resistant, it is ideal for various products.
Price: $$
Colors: All colors; precise pantone color matching available
Hardness: Shore D 78-82
Applications: General purpose items, enclosures
Stiff, transparent urethane resin simulating acrylic. It is hard, with medium to high strength and good clarity for see-through products.
Price: $$
Colors: Clear
Hardness: Shore D 87
Applications: Light pipes, see-through components
Tough, flexible, and abrasion-resistant urethane with low cost and polypropylene-like ductility.
Price: $$
Colors: Black or natural only
Hardness: Shore D 65-75
Applications: Enclosures, food containers, medical applications, toys
Rigid, high-impact, and clear material with a wide variety of uses. Easy to machine and finish, simulating polycarbonate.
Price: $$
Colors: Clear and various colors
Hardness: Shore D 82-86
Applications: Light diffusers, signs, skylights, visors
UV stable, high-quality urethane resin with good clarity. Great for glossy, clear parts as a classic substitute for acrylic-like.
Price: $$
Colors: RAL/Pantone colors
Hardness: Shore D 90-99
Applications: Lighting, signal display, partition material
High impact strength, low-cost resin with a wide range of options.
Price: $$
Colors: Pantone colors
Hardness: Shore D 85-90
Applications: Displays, disposable items, packaging
Polyurethane plastic resin, simulating rubber-like materials like TPU, TPE and silicone rubber.
Price: $$
Colors: All colors and precise Pantone color matchings
Hardness: Shore A 20 to 90
Applications: Wearables, overmolds, gaskets
Note: You can learn more from our eBook on plastic materials.
With an extensive array of surface finishes, RapidDirect can create unique surface layers for your vacuum casting parts. These finishes help you meet your products’ appearance, hardness, and chemical resistance requirements. Depending on your material selection and part applications, we can offer the following surface finishes:
Available Finishing | Description | SPI Standard | Link |
|
High Gloss | Highly reflective surface finish created by polishing the master pattern before mold making. The high-gloss finish offers high transparency useful for cosmetic parts, lenses, and other cleanable surfaces. | A1, A2, A3 | Learn More>> |
|
Semi Gloss | This B grade finish is not highly reflective but offers some sheen. Using gritty sandpaper, you will get smooth, cleanable surfaces between high-gloss and matte. |
B1, B2, B3 |
Learn More>> |
|
Matte Finish | Vacuum cast parts will have a satin-like finish through the bead or sand blasting of the master pattern. The C-grade finishes are ideal for high-touch areas and handheld components. | C1, C2, C3 | |
|
Custom | RapidDirect can also provide custom finishes through additional processes. On request, you can get unique secondary finishes for the best results. |
D1, D2, D3 |
|
We have been helping various industries such as aerospace, automotive, medical devices and other industries to develop various elastomeric vacuum cast parts since 2009.
A customer’s words have a more substantial impact than a company’s claims – and see what our satisfied customers have said regarding how we fulfilled their requirements.
Because of RapidDirect’s technological competency, we were able order high-quality custom elastomer parts at reasonable costs. Despite the complexity of our design, RapidDirect delivered excellently fabricated castings with consistency and superior quality. We also benefited from the many customization options to make the castings more desirable.
Gabriel Smyth
– Tooling Design Engineer
We have benefited greatly from RapidDirect’s urethane casting capabilities. Our company needed pre-launch prototypes for first-run functional testing, and they recommended urethane casting as the ideal option. We got high-quality castings that met every one of our specifications. Our customers have expressed satisfaction in terms of usage of these components.
Remi Haslam
– Project Manager
I wholeheartedly recommend RapidDirect’s vacuum casting services for any company looking to produce precise castings. Over the past 6 years, I have examined a lot of casting tools made by different companies and concluded that RapidDirect offered incredible value. When you consider the machine’s cost, quality, and output, I’m confident you won’t find a better casting service for your money.
Thierry Breitkopf
– Chief Engineer
Our company handles a lot of complex cases. Since we started using RapidDirect, the castings’ consistency, quality, and cleanliness have all significantly improved. Their quick response, manufacturing efficiency, and fast delivery saves us a lot of time.
Steven Goldberg
– Outsourcing Manager
It was an honor to be one of the first labs to use RapidDirect. Over the past ten years, we have discovered that the outcomes we achieve are astounding. Every time, the castings produced are solid and free of pores. RapidDirect units improve bond strength and polishability by maintaining the plastic’s structure. It is perfect machining!
Malachi Clerf
– Designer
Due to its fast production, low costs, and durable parts, our vacuum casting service is the favored option for making custom parts used in the automotive, medical, consumer goods, and other industries.
With an increase in industrial demands and applications, there has been a parallel increase in the demand for complex and …
Plastic parts do not often get the credit they deserve for the role played in our world. There’s hardly a …
Summary: Should you choose vacuum casting for your prototyping needs? Here is everything you need to know about the process. …
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