B2B Products

Brief Fact of Precision Casting

The history of investment casting will continually be redefined through the advancement of materials employed in the process. Each passing year has shown that raw materials can be combined in such a manner that results in improvements of process and cost. Investment cast wax, ceramic, and alloys combined with improved equipment to produce castings on a high or low volume basis ensure that the process will be deployed well into the future.  Once the molds have been done then the wax patterns will be produced as well.  Patterns of the precision castings are done in two ways: first is where wax is poured into the mold and swished to produce even coating; and the other is through leaving the filled mold until it is cool and the desired thickness is obtained. When the wax patterns are removed from the mold then assembly should be done.

Advancements in the pattern making, wax, refractories, and melting equipment have resulted in processes that can hold extremely tight dimensional properties. Modern investment castings generally hold dimensions that are measured by a few thousandths of an inch per inch. This allows components to be made that often can be used directly from the manufacturer without subsequent machining. Worst cases allow the parts to be near net shape, which minimizes the amount of handling and processing to be completed on the casting. Users of these casting processes can also deploy the process to create parts that can be poured in thousands of different materials including steel, non-ferrous materials, duplex alloys, aluminum, iron, and more.  One of the most recent advancement in investment castings is the lost foam casting. This type eliminates some of the steps in the entire process. On an overall consideration, the procedure is used for smaller casts but is able to produce complicated tasks such as door frames for aircraft and steel and aluminum castings. Although it entails lower costs for equipment, it is relatively more expensive than either sand or die casting systems. It also requires some minor surface finishing and machining.

The common applications for precision castings are various, for example, the power generation and the aerospace industries.  The reasons why these industries tend to apply the precision casting is because they produce complicated shapes for turbine blades, besides, they are also important in making out cooling systems.  Some of the common examples of blades produced from the process are directionally solidified, conventional equiaxed and single crystal blades. To some extent, military, medical, automotive and commercial fields also use investment casts.  In words, this ancient art technique has improved massively to change our life directly.  

 

How Does Metal Parts Work in Industry?

Metal stamping is the process a process that is crucial to many complex industries such as cutting and shaping metal alloys into specific forms, especially to be used as components for large machinery or structures. It can be applied to industries like medical field, automotive or aerospace industry.  And the metal sheets can be molded into different pre-determined shapes, and the most common alloys that are used in metal stamping are steel, zinc, nickel, aluminum and titanium.  People who choose metal stamping is because it is cost-effective and productive. 

In the medical field, the metal stamping can create the high precision metal parts for medical devices.  The metal precision stamping in the medical device industry has helped to create better surgical instrument and benefit the patients all over the world.  The medical metal stampings usually produce the metal components with a thickness of .002’ to .135’. 

Others like the automotive industry, they also rely on quality and precise metal parts stamping since the automotive requires good components for safe vehicles.  The metal precision stamping is used to create oxygen sensors, fuel injections and other sensors to regulate the vehicles and keep it moving on the road.  As for the application on the aerospace industry, the more precise the equipment is, the more successful flight there will be.  With good metal stamping services like customized metal parts, it can accurate the creation of gages, landing gear, navigation systems and aircraft engine as well. 

There are certain products that have to be produced only through metal stamping: Base weights, brackets, balance clamps, brake flanges, conveyor flights, bushing seats or engine bases. The most commonly used type is the progressive die drawing.  It is drawn through a series of dies and stamping is done by all the dies simultaneously, thus considerably reducing the time it takes.

 

What Should You Know About Metal Stamping?

Metal stamping is a form of metalworking that is completed using various levels of difficulty. Almost anyone can form their own jewelry, flowers, numbers and letters out of metal using metal stamping kits or other tools. The higher the quality of the metal used, the longer these personal things will last. Metal stamping is also an industrial fabrication process used to create weaponry, vehicle components, dollar bill changers, vending machines, decorative sheet metal parts, medical life-saving devices, and many other items.  Sheet metal stamping is one of the most popular one in the industry, and there are three main components in sheet metal stamping -- the die, the punch and the binder/blank holder. The sheet is kept between the blank holder and the die and the punch is driven into the die wherein the sheet spreads over the die because of the drawing and stretching.

Sheet metal stamping, also known as thin stampings, is the system wherein metal sheets are used for producing final products.. Sheet metal stamping is used most primarily in the case-building process. It is also the most important part as each of the panels has to be stamped one by one. When a metal sheet is inserted into the die or the press, it is molded into the required shape and size. Metal sheets of only a certain thickness can be inserted into metal stamping machines. The material for stamping can only be some certain types, for example, aluminum, brass, steel, galvanized steel, stainless steel, copper, zinc and titanium.  When working with metal stamping in the industrial world, material quality is very important. Quality control, from verifying the metal when it's received to complete testing and inspection once the product, should be completed without careless. The stamped parts can be made into fuel injectors for an automobile, engines in an aircraft, bayonet assemblies, and navigation systems used by the military. With components that can take lives if they fail, it's important to ensure the company you're working with takes quality control very seriously.

Before the metal sheet is inserted into the machine, the customer provides the prototype or at least a diagram of the final product. In case the customer doesn't have a clear idea of what the final product should look like, most metal stamping producers also offer engineering services for designing the products as well. Even some secondary services such as deburring and plating are provided by the metal stamping companies after the metal sheet is stamped.  Material identification provides documentation as to where the metal has been before being used in fabrication.  It shows where it's made and how it's transferred. By using metals from reputable sources, metal stampings are more durable and last longer than questionable materials. 

 

How Does Metal Machining Work?

Metal machining, briefly speaking, is a tool to process materials.  There are different machining operations applied in the metal industry, and most common processes include drilling, milling and turning.  These are the basic type for metal machining, and drilling is one of the most popular types among all.  It is done in the principle of producing or refining holes on the metal.  The process usually finished with the help of standard tools that contain rotating cutters or cutting edges.  The cutting edges are placed on the lower extremity of the material before it comes in contact and then puts one hole on the piece. 

Milling, another basic process of metal machining, is a methodology where the cutting tool is used in order to come up with a straight surface.  They move in a slower manner to come up with the desired shape of the product.  The other basic process is turning, which contains a single cutting edge in the cutting tools.  The technique is normally employed when the desired shape is a cylinder. 

On the other hand, process like boring, broaching, planning, sawing and shaping are considered as miscellaneous processes mostly.  The boring is also the process of enlarging a hole that may have resulted from the drilling process.  This kind of process is more like a finishing procedure in the final steps of manufacturing a specific product.  As for burnishing, the process is done to make the end shiny.  Normally, it can be performed by using a drill press, a lathe or a milling tool.  The single pointed or multiple-edged tools may be used depending on the requirements of the procedure in all of the processes.  

In words, the metal machining is an important tool to process materials.  In combination with these gadgets, a sharp cutting tool is also utilized in the process to accomplish the desired shape from the metal.  It may form part of recreational activities while for some it might mean a serious job in the industry.  

 

How Does Metal Parts Effect Our Life

The making of metal parts has been one of the popular industries among the metal market.  Especially when people realize that metal materials are flexible for different applications, the ideas of turning original metal into creative or useful stuff spring up, and one of the most common one is the metal parts.

The importance of the metal parts is not as simple as its function.  For instance, the screws, contact rivets as well as miniature components fasteners are key parts of the electronics industry.  And they are made from the idea of metal parts.  In addition, without these fasteners, lots of heavy industries will not be able to carry on their business, like automotive or the aviation industry.  Without the metal parts manufacturers, we are not this lucky to enjoy the convenience of the traffic solutions nowadays. 

Among all of the processes, the cold heading is one of the steps that require to be forced to a metal blank with a punch and die.  This is an effective process since it allows a supplier to make precise parts given the use of a die.  Various shapes and designs can be realized and easy to create personalize shapes for different needs.  Besides, the process strengthens the metal through deformation and makes the metal parts way more durable and resistant.  Moreover, the production can occur more quickly and efficiently with the scrap.  

However, the cold heading process is not completely perfect since it can not meet the needs of larger projects, which need another type of metalworking; furthermore, the process can not be applied to all kinds of metal neither.  Metal materials like steel, copper or nickel work well enough with cold heading while the others like magnesium, refractory metals or zinc.  It’s important to know whether to look for a cold heading company or another type of supplier because this will lead you to the way of time-saving and cost-saving, and at the same time, create a better product.

 

Introduction to Metal Stampings

Do you know how to make jewelry?  The most common way to make it is to apply the metal stampings. It is a process which involves with blanking, embossing, bending flanging and coining.  The metalworking could be a single stage operation and you can use it to stamp names, dates or messages on bracelets or necklaces.  Nevertheless, you need to decide on how to use this metal styling. Your stamped metal pieces will help you create a personalized handcrafted statement. Needless to say, metal is one of the most commonly used materials used in stamping.

There are other objects such as polystyrene that could be utilized with the metal to create unique patterns. Some common metals used in metal stampings are aluminum, brass, copper, bronze, nickel, steel, titanium and more. One needs to bear in mind that each substance mentioned above has metal points, corrosion resistance, tensile strengths, toughness and more. Through stampings, one can easily employ variant types of finishes. For instance: If you are keen on preventing corrosion, you need to use zinc, silver or gold. Today, the metal stamping is common process employed on jewelry. Many people want personalized bracelets or necklaces for themselves. This is possible only with the metal stamping processes. Metal stamping is currently in demand to create familiar or everyday products. This includes sheet metal machines, car parts, cans, pots, pans, etc.

Aside from metal stampings, there is another type of art work called metal prototype.  With such prototypes, manufacturers or designers can turn an idea into physical item. This item can be a great help for product development process. Today, prototypes are used in wide variety of industries. You can easily get such metal workings including prototypes, stampings from the web sources. Manufacturers find it easier to create samples or test models of new tools.  

 

Introduction to Steel Grating

The steel grating is designed to support big spaces and huge structure of polished elevators or floors, and some companies use it for hygienic reasons because the material is easy to be cleaned up as well as to be dried in a short time.  Moreover, once you applied the steel grating, you don’t have to do extra maintenance. 

With lots of steel grating manufacturers competing in the grating market, sometimes you may be confused by different models of the grating.  But in fact, you should learn some basic idea about your need in the grating before you purchase.  Generally, there are three types of steel grating.  First of all, is the grating in 30mm centers, which is available in steel and aluminum.  This kind of grating is usually used to support heavy loading applications.  Next is the grating in 40mm centers, which is available in both forge bars like mild steel with aluminum.  The 40mm-centers grating is recommended for designing walkways, platforms and ladders.  The final one is the grating in 60mm centers, which is suitable for mining industries.  This type is very light, so it is not suitable for heavy loading.  

Normally, the requirement of steel varies from 20 to 50mm, and the applications of the steel grating can be in the flooring industry, security screens and earth mats for safety, stair treads and hand rails as well as sun shades and drain covers and shelving and manhole covers.  The different specifications and suitability of the type can be used in different industries.  No matter which industry mentioned above, it is always important to know the relationship between your demand and the size of the grating.

How Can You Work with Metal Prototype?

The prototype is a work that performs as something original serving as a typical example for other things of the same category.  The prototype can be applied to various fields and art metal prototype is one of the common one in the industry. 

The metal art ranges from paper clip to huge metal sculpture, which all requires precise design and work.  For the artists, it can never be a certain thing to tell when they have something in mind while the actual work is way far from the original idea.  However, the metal prototype allows the artists to have the first look of their idea.  The rest of the works depend on how perfect the prototype finished, but most of the time, the pieces are full of flaws.  

When it comes to the working forms, the metal prototype can be done by heating and shaping, welding, casting or bonding.  Compare to other art work like stone sculpture, the metal art prototype can be easily reworked, reshaped and re-colored in all the ways mentioned above.  In this way, if you want to challenge yourself by making the best shape of your work, the prototyping can meet your needs with doubts.  Another good thing about the metal prototype is that you can improve your work by create the second or the third prototype based on the first one.  In words, if you are that kinds of type of artists who usually change your mind or having lots of idea about your art work, the art metal prototype is your first choice.

 

 

The Structure of Bicycle – Frame and Nickel Alloy Tube

The bicycle frame is like the bones of human body.  With the frame, all the other components like wheel or chains can be installed onto it.  The material of the frame can be various, and they include wood, magnesium, thermoplastic, stainless steel or aluminum alloy.  And in history, steel has always been the one for the frame.  The frame made of stainless steel seamless tube can make your bicycle lighter to ride on.  Usually the reason why to choose this material is because the steel frame can be inexpensive carbon steel. 

Besides, the nickel alloy tube can almost reach the same purpose as steel does.  They have lower density and lower strength, and can possess a better ratio in strength and weight.  However, the early aluminum structure is more vulnerable to fatigue because of the imperfect welding technique and ineffective alloys.  After years of developing, the alloy welding is good enough to be applied to airliner’s structures so it can assure the strength and reliability of the frame.  Yet, there are still some cons for using the nickel alloy tube since the material may cause excessive ride harshness in lower quality frames and at the same time, decreasing the ease of reparability.  

There are several reasons to consider the chosen material for the frame.  First is density, which is a way to measure how light or heavy the material per unit volume.  Next is stiffness and it can affect the power transmission efficiency while riding.  Yield strength, additionally, determines how much force is needed to permanently deform the material and yet the elongation decides how much deformity the material allows before it is cracking.  Last but not least, is the limitation of the fatigue and endurance, and it plays the role of determining the durability of the frame when subjected to stress from ride bumps.  

 

 

Penny-farthing frame, one of the types in bicycle history, featuring a large front wheel and a small rear wheel.

Basic Information about Compression Fittings

Speaking of hydraulic components, the compression fitting is always the first one to be thought about.  The importance of the compression fittings are like screws to the machine, and it is worthy to know things about it.  Basically, the compression fitting is made of an outer compression nut and an inner compression ring.  The compression ring is most commonly called as ferrule, which is made of cooper or brass. 

So, how do they work?  To put the operation process into words, the ferrule is compressed between the nut and the fitting when the nut is tightened.  The end of the ferrule is clamped around the pipe while the middle of it bows away from the pipe.  In this way, the ferrule can seal the space between two pipes to form a tight joint to prevent from leakage.  As a family of hydraulic hose fittings, it is vital to control the force pressing rate when the nut is going to be tightened.  It is not a good idea to over-tight the nut because the ferrule can be deformed and caused the joint to fail.  In order to prevent from this accident happens, it is highly suggested that the ferrule should be tightened by hands at the very first step, and then you can decide whether you are going to tighten the nut by wrench.  

After the testing tightens is finished, you can now try whether the fittings work or not.  Now is the time for you to check if there’s any space between two pipes.  But be careful, when you’re trying to re-tight the ferrule, you should tighten it very slowly and wait until the leakage stops.  The application of the compression fittings is very common, and they are mostly applied to water faucet as well as toilet stop valves.  To prevent from any troubles while using these appliances, you should pay more attention to choose good set of fittings to help.