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Heard about that new ceramic foam filter for aluminum pours from a rep at the trade show in Cleveland. Thought it was just an overpriced gimmick, but we tried a box on a run of A356 last week.
The rep kept going on about reduced inclusions and better yield. I was fully expecting zero difference, but we actually saw way less dross and the castings came out of the shakeout looking cleaner. The pour guy even commented on how smooth it ran. Still not cheap, but maybe there's something to it after all. Anyone else given these a shot on production runs? What was your take?
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morgan_ramirez21d ago
Right? It's one of those things you have to see to believe. We tracked the scrap rate on a high volume part and it dropped enough to basically pay for the filters over a few months. The real test was cutting some parts open, the lack of junk in the thick sections was obvious. Makes you wonder what else we're all brushing off as marketing talk.
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jesse_fisher21d ago
Yeah that "marketing talk" line hits home. We almost skipped a new coolant because the sales pitch sounded too good, but it actually doubled our tool life on some nasty stainless jobs. Makes you question your own gut sometimes.
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