Casting with cuttlebone

[T*O*F]

I have seen mention of items being cast in cuttlebone in the jewelry business.  It seems like a rather simple process.  Does anyone have experience with this method?  It seems ideal for casting small, one-off items like thumbpieces or fancy front sights, etc.

[ScottH]

it has been years since we did it in high school but for small parts it would work if you are a good carver in reverse impression.
the way I saw it done you had to carve out the cavity in the shape you wanted so you had a void to pour molten silver into. also it shows the cuttlebone imprint, something like light herringbone, after casting the hot metal which means there will be considerable clean up. certainly not as precise as lost wax casting

[davec2]

Most of the castings I do in silver and gold are lost wax, centrifugal castings.  However, when I need something fast, I often use cuttlebone.  As noted by ScottH, you can carve out an impression and then pour it full of silver or gold.  But when you carve out the cavity, the cuttlebone is not compressed and a lot of detail is lost as the cuttle bone chars during the solidification of the metal.  The surface has a very coarse "wood grain" appearance.  However, depending on what you are trying to cast, you can squeeze a pattern between two prepared pieces of cuttle bone and make an imprint in the soft bone.  This leaves a much more dense surface that will yield much better detail in the final casting.  In general, this will allow you to quickly cast a piece in the approximate shape and size you are after, but considerable refinement will need to be applied to get a final part.

There are several youtube videos that show some not very talented people doing cuttlebone casting.  At least the ones I have seen aren't very good.  The process can yield much better castings than the videos I have seen show, but again, as Scott points out, this is not lost wax casting or even Delft clay casting.

[Bill Raby]

   I was in the jewelry for 20 years and never saw anyone do cuttlebone casting. I cannot imagine it would give much, if any, detail. Or even fill out the mold. It is not terribly expensive to get set up for lost wax casting. The basic equipment would be a centrifuge and burnout furnace. You can get those from Rio Grande for about $500 each. Maybe a coupel hundred dollars more for odds and ends stuff. If it something that you would only want to do every now and then just carve parts from modeling wax and bring to a jewelry store to have them cast. Any place that does custom jewelry design should be bale to handle it if it is not too big. Casting is one of those things that takes an afternoon to learn and a decade to know what you are doing.

[Mike Brooks]

   I was in the jewelry for 20 years and never saw anyone do cuttlebone casting. I cannot imagine it would give much, if any, detail. Or even fill out the mold. It is not terribly expensive to get set up for lost wax casting. The basic equipment would be a centrifuge and burnout furnace. You can get those from Rio Grande for about $500 each. Maybe a coupel hundred dollars more for odds and ends stuff. If it something that you would only want to do every now and then just carve parts from modeling wax and bring to a jewelry store to have them cast. Any place that does custom jewelry design should be bale to handle it if it is not too big. Casting is one of those things that takes an afternoon to learn and a decade to know what you are doing.

$1200! You're talking to folks here that think $50 for a good research book is ALOT of money.

[BOB HILL]

I did some small molds for my wife to cast some pewter in years ago.  I carved the main part out of the bone, then ,as Dave mentioned, I pressed the piece she wanted to cast into the depression I had carved. This gave a better impression than I could have carved in the bone. She could get several casting before losing to much detail.     Bob