Every metal casting you produce will require some kind of finishing operation before it becomes a useful, serviceable casting. Finishing of castings can be a laborious job if carried out entirely by hand, luckily for the home metal craftsman or woman (yes. there are a few women who are involved with metal casting) there are a number of very handy tools which can be used to great effect to remove flashings, fins, sprues, risers & dags, which remain after the casting operation.

The number one tool in the workshop is a reliable 4 angle grinder, they can be fitted with a coarse-grained resinoid grinding wheel which are known to remove aluminium, bronze or brass metal at a rapid rate with out clogging up.

The 4 angle grinder will also eccept an abrasive metal cut-off wheel, which is used to cut off the sprues and risers from bronze or aluminium castings. The big 9 angle grinders can also be used to cut & grind any large size castings.

Angle grinders big & small can also be fitted with the abrasive flap type wheel which are a multi layered grit wheel. Flap wheel finishing will give a very smooth lustrous finish on any type of metal, good quality flap wheels can be expensive to buy,they remove metal quickly and will last quite a long time, so they are worth the money.

Another machine metal finishing worth the expense, is the beltlinishing tool, of which there are several different brands available. They are supplied with belts ranging from coarse to fine, a handy feature of the machine is the ability to carry out a quick belt change.

Finishing and preparation of a number of castings can be done in a very short time using this type of machine, the linishing machine is attached to a one horsepower bench grinder, and once you install and use one; you will wonder how you ever did without it.

They are expensive to buy, but as you do more & more castings, you will need a faster & better finishing system for your castings. A very handy linishing belt is the scotch brite belt, this belt will give a beautiful finish on any type of metal, cast or other wise.

Now, we are not advocating for you to rush out tomorrow to spend a sqillion on new tools, as quite a bit of excellent finishing can be achieved with normal hand tools.There is not much sense in spending a large amount of money if you don't have a great need.But you'll know when it's time to buy some good power tools, ifyou don't already own some.

And of course, once you finish with all of the initial grindingand cleaning, you may want to give the item a high polish.A calico cloth buffing wheel mounted on your bench grinder,and some special buffing compound will put a mirror finish onyour unique casting creation.

And don't forget to also buy and wear a pair of eye safety goggles, or wear a full face shield, plus a pair of thick leather gloves to protect your hands & fingers. Resinoid and abrasive cut off wheels throw a huge amount of hot particles of sharp splinter shaped metal...which could inflict VERY serious injury to your eyes and skin.

Metal craft hobbies can provide a lot of enjoyment but you need to be careful at the same time.

Col Croucher.