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Why did you pick the P40 for the first parts you made?

On a visit to the Tri-State Warbird Museum in Batavia, Ohio in 2009 it was discovered that they needed some aluminum castings made for their P40M restoration. 

Will you make castings for any type of warbird ?

Yes!! 

What materials do you use in your castings?

First a note about the difference in aluminum alloy designations.  Wrought aluminum (sheets, plates, and tubing)  goes by a four digit number; i.e. 2024, 6061.  Casting alloys go by a three digit number; i.e. 713, 295, 356.   Heat treating specifications are the same for both wrought and cast aluminum.

We do our utmost to use the materials specified on the original drawings.  Sometimes, however, that is not possible.  In this case we look at the physical and mechanical properties and select an alloy that meets or exceeds those of the originally specified material.  Some of the older casting alloys specified on old aircraft blueprints are simply not available in small quanities i.e. under 10,000 lbs.

Upon request, we provide certificates of analysis for each of the alloys we use in producing castings  for the customer.


How do I have castings made?

The first step in having us make castings is for the customer to have a pattern made.  The customer then ships us the pattern.  Upon completion of the job the pattern is returned to the customer.

To a limited extend, we can produce simple patterns in house but we are a foundry not a pattern shop.

If there are no pattern-making shops in the customers area, we can recommend a reputable pattern shop that is local to us. 

Please call Barry (937-232-8951) to discuss your particular needs.

What foundry process do you use?

We use oil-bonded sand which is also known by the trade name "Petrobond".  Oil-bonded sand is a mixture of sand (olivine or silica), a binder, and a special oil. The advantage that oil-bonded sand has over traditional water-bonded sand (known as green-sand) is the fact that oil-sand has no water, none of the permeability issues, generates no steam, and has the benefit of using finer grades of sand. This all adds up to better quality castings and a finer surface finish out of the mold. The sand is packed (rammed) around a pattern in the shape of the part.  The pattern is removed and the gates and pouring sprue are cut if they are not already on the match plate; if necessary the core or cores are set into the drag (bottom half of the mold). (A core is used to make a part hollow or to make a void in the casting.) Then the cope (top half of the mold) is carefully lowered onto the drag and weighted; thus closing the mold.  Once the mold is closed and the metal is heated to pouring temperature the mold is filled with the molten metal and allowed to cool.  The mold is then "shaken out" and the casting recovered.  The parts are then cut off the gates and sprue and are ready for machining.
FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
Email: barry@blackcrossaviation.comCell: 937-232-8951