I just wanted to thank you all again for your patience and guidance over the past four or five months. Although I'm still a nooB with lots of dumb questions ahead, with your help I've solved most of the problems and am becoming a lost-wax casting machine! Isn't it awesome that we live in a time where a person can wake up one day and decide to learn something new (like silversmith), spend a couple months on the web and at RCM researching/asking questions and actually achieve it? I still have never seen anyone cast metal nor do I know any metal/silversmiths. My wife is amazed at what "I" have accomplished but what I tell her is without RCM I'd of been DOA.
So far: I've made several nice molds (but still use RTV for lack of vulcanize). Making wax-patterns with a better than 50% usable pattern rate. Have the invest/burnout down cold (or hot as it were). Am successfully casting in fine and sterling. Have a new home made burner rig that allows much more flexibility and volume. And am able to perform finish work that (appears to me at least) is yielding professional results. So....much....fun!
Here's a few pics of my temporary *draft* burner setup for review/critique/fun. I call her Ugly Betty, you'll see why. She'll be mounted safely to an adjustable steel frame by this weekend (but have an order to fill today =)
Note the pics are hi-res 800x600 approx 250k each, not for dial-up.
Basic setup:
=B
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