That moment a mold shift wrecked a 50-pound casting at 3 AM

I was pouring a big ductile iron gear at the Marion plant and the cope lifted halfway through the pour, sending hot metal spraying everywhere and ruining the part, how do you guys keep your cope weights secure on tall molds?

3 comments

3 Comments

shane_fisher3717d agoMost Upvoted

You ever try those screw-type clamps that lock the cope to the drag? I started using them on anything over 30 inches tall and it made a huge difference. Also, I spread my weights out more instead of stacking them all in one spot, that way the pressure is even across the whole mold. Saved my bacon on a few 2 AM pours that would've ended like yours.

david56223d ago

Ah man, that's a rough way to spend 3 AM. I've had a cope lift on me before too and it's a sickening feeling watching all that work go down the drain. For tall molds I always double up on the weights and make sure the bearers are snug against the flask, but even then you're never 100% safe.

felix_hayes6423d ago

Is it Really that big of a deal though @david562? I've had a cope shift on me before and it was more annoying than anything else, a quick fix and back to it. A little extra sand and a couple more weights and I've never had a full blown blowout, maybe I'm just lucky with the alloys I run.