$30 backyard aluminum foundry

January 20, 2010 - 6:51 am 25 Comments

DON’T TRY THIS AT HOME!!!!! An overview of my aluminum foundry. Only cost me about $30 bucks at Ace Hardware. Got some scrap aluminum at a welding yard for free and tried to mold them into ingots using a wal-mart muffin pan.

Duration : 0:2:5


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25 Responses to “$30 backyard aluminum foundry”

  1. MikeofWyoming Says:

    I had my girls …
    I had my girls press hand prints into moist sand and made casts of their hands.

  2. nativeskater25 Says:

    dont try this at …
    dont try this at home, but you did?

  3. Nuvious Says:

    Just made …
    Just made paperweights effectively :) . Could’ve done lost-foam casting, etc. Just a fun weekend project was all.

  4. mitchellberry Says:

    and what do you use …
    and what do you use the aluminum for exactly?

  5. goodoldjam Says:

    Heat gun would …
    Heat gun would probably hold up alot better than a blow dryer, if you don’t have compressed air.

  6. jimmybobson123 Says:

    chuck em at CARS!!! …
    chuck em at CARS!!!!!!!!!

  7. ab48726 Says:

    I used a vacuum …
    I used a vacuum cleaner blower for my waste oil furnace wired with a dimmer switch to control the blower speed. I had to restrict the intake a lot to keep the airflow down but it worked great. Unfortunately I don’t have that blower anymore but I’m looking for another one for my propane furnace.

  8. danz409 Says:

    7 cents a pound!!?! …
    7 cents a pound!!?!?! where!?! thats a of a steal!

  9. Nuvious Says:

    Likely not. That …
    Likely not. That blowdryer and pipe wasn’t enough and I later upgraded to compressed air. Try to find a small blower from a vacuum or something instead.

  10. tjinga2u1 Says:

    hay i have a paint …
    hay i have a paint can some charcoal
    a steel can for the aluminium
    but all i hyave to force air on it is with
    straws lol but will that be strong enoughf?

  11. Nuvious Says:

    I’m with …
    I’m with AMSroadrunner on the leaf-blower idea. All you’d really need is a more powerful hair dryer with a dedicated cool setting or a small blower fan.

  12. AMSroadrunner Says:

    that would seem WAY …
    that would seem WAY too powerful for this size. Yes? We are just talking a one gallon bucket.

  13. chaz706 Says:

    You’re going to …
    You’re going to need a ceramic crucible. If your oven is too hot, not only will it melt aluminum but steel too. The melting point for Al is lower than steel.

  14. theartilerysheller1 Says:

    instead of using a …
    instead of using a hair dryer, a leaf blower works really well

  15. bandiepoo945 Says:

    After digging …
    After digging various holes, making many small brick ovens, buying a propane weed burner, and even trying road flares, I have discolored plenty of aluminum cans and melted the steel crucible. Never once did I get liquid aluminum. I think I’ll try it your way.

  16. smazz104 Says:

    what are you going …
    what are you going to do with the aluminum after pouring into the ingot trays?

  17. clockguy2 Says:

    Uh…Why can’t we …
    Uh…Why can’t we try it?

  18. AreThereNoMoreNames Says:

    It forces air into …
    It forces air into the charcoal to heat it up more.

  19. dov3r2011 Says:

    me and my friend …
    me and my friend did this it worked excellent! thank you

  20. ParapaDrifter Says:

    and a hair dryer …
    and a hair dryer heats the crucible that high? incredible… I don’t see how this getup absorbs and retains that much heat… Can the same principal be applied to ceramic kilns?

  21. ParapaDrifter Says:

    paint can is more …
    paint can is more likely steel, meltingpoint much higher. Al is around 1200F

  22. lilg606 Says:

    DUDE!!! thank you …
    DUDE!!! thank you so much!!!
    Ive been trying to figure out how to do this for so long!!
    i think I’m gonna put a little more money into mine

  23. rivethead469 Says:

    why doesnt the …
    why doesnt the paint can melt to?

  24. slipstream1802 Says:

    Nice vid. As noted, …
    Nice vid. As noted, would like to see more info. on melting aluminum.

  25. eaglesbaseball134 Says:

    i saw a video where …
    i saw a video where a guy puts in a peice of aluminum, about 7 inches long, into a foundry a little bigger than this, and it melted in like 20 seconds. the melting point of aluminum is 1220.58 °F

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