partial casting/ blocking mold partially to produce two similar parts 1

[suhasbhat85]

I have a question regarding casting operation.
I want to know if it is feasible to block off a certain portion of the mold cavity to produce a part similar to the original part but excludes certain features
( For Example trying to produce blocks "E" and "F" using the same mold by blocking the lower leg of the E mold by appropriate means to produce F )
Please let me know your opinion or if you have missed something very obvious.

Thank you,
Regards,
Suhas

 

[Compositepro]

yes.

 

[EdStainless]

We didn't do it with the molds but we had patterns that were modular.
You could add/remove features easily for a family of similar parts.

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Plymouth Tube

 

[suhasbhat85]

Thanks for the reply,
also I meant to say "if I have missed something very obvious"

 

[KENAT]

What process etc. as this may affect feasibility/cost effectiveness.

Posting guidelines faq731-376

http://eng-tips.com/market.cfm?

(probably not aimed specifically at you)
What is Engineering anyway: faq1088-1484​

 

[arunmrao]

Yes, you can either block in the mould or modify the pattern as suggested . At times, you may need to block a hole or an extension, which is easily achieved.

 

[tbuelna]

As KENAT notes, the feasibility and cost of doing this can vary greatly depending upon the type of casting process used, the casting alloy used, and the physical characteristics of the cast part. It would usually cost far less to design this capability into a new set of tooling, as opposed to reworking an existing set of tooling. If the difference in physical characteristics between configurations "E" and "F" is significant, the modifications that must be made to the tooling can be quite extensive for things like gating, venting, risers, chills, core supports, etc.

 

[suhasbhat85]

I was checking the feasibility of this idea to see if the overall tooling cost could be reduced if incorporated at appropriate point in design in Die casting. And to see if there could be an inherent reason for not being able to achieve this.
Let me further explore the possibilities and constraints
Thank you all for your replies