Casting Design Allowances: investment
Casting process design allowances — linear and volumetric shrinkage percentages, external and internal draft angles, minimum wall thickness, surface finish Ra, ISO 8062-3 dimensional tolerance grades (CT1-CT16), typical and maximum part weight ranges, relative cost, and production rate for 7 casting processes (sand, investment/lost-wax, die casting HPDC, permanent mold, centrifugal, shell mold, squeeze casting) across 11 alloy families (gray iron, ductile iron, carbon steel, stainless steel, aluminum A356/A380, copper alloys, zinc, magnesium, titanium Ti-6Al-4V, nickel superalloy)
| casting process | alloy family | dimensional tolerance grade achievable | dimensional tolerance grade typical | draft angle deg external (deg) | draft angle deg internal (deg) | linear shrinkage pct (%) | max practical weight kg (kg) | min wall thickness mm (mm) | notes | production rate parts per hour typical (parts/hr) | relative cost | surface finish Ra um typical (um) | typical lot size min (pieces) | typical weight range kg max (kg) | typical weight range kg min (kg) | volumetric shrinkage pct (%) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| investment | aluminum_A356 | CT4 | CT6 | 0 | 0.5 | 1.3 | 100 | 1.5 | A356/A357; excellent surface finish achievable; automotive/aerospace | 12 | high_very_high | 2 | 50 | 20 | 0.005 | 4.5 |
| investment | carbon_steel | CT5 | CT7 | 0 | 0.5 | 2 | 300 | 3 | H13/P20/4140; ceramic shell; secondary heat treatment common | 10 | very_high | 3.2 | 50 | 50 | 0.01 | 6 |
| investment | copper_alloys | CT5 | CT7 | 0 | 0.5 | 1.5 | 100 | 2 | Beryllium copper/aluminum bronze; decorative and functional components | 10 | very_high | 3.2 | 50 | 30 | 0.01 | 4.5 |
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