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I was at the old steel mill museum in Pittsburgh and they had a display of original sand molds from the 1920s.
The level of detail in those hand carved patterns, especially on a gear mold, made me wonder if anyone still uses that kind of manual skill in their shop today or if it's all 3D printed now?
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emery191mo ago
Oh wow, I saw a video about a foundry that still does hand carved molds for custom restoration work. That skill is definitely still out there.
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karen_west591mo ago
You know my buddy Mike? He restores old architecture for a living. A few years back he had to match a broken cast iron railing from like 1870. No way to find a replacement, so he tracked down this one guy in Pennsylvania who still carves molds by hand. The guy spent two days making a perfect sand mold just from looking at photos and the broken piece. My friend said watching him work was like seeing a magician. The new railing piece fit so perfect you couldn't tell which one was the repair.
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riley_schmidt1mo agoMost Upvoted
Man I used to think all that old school craft was basically gone. Like I figured everything was 3D printed or CNC machined now. But seeing a real foundry still carving molds by hand for restorations, that's wild. It makes sense though, for fixing a historic gate or a broken statue piece, you need that exact touch. Really cool to know people are still keeping those skills alive.
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