Cast vs Mold: Difference and Comparison

The most common procedure is cast and mold to make a replica of any product. It produces the exact 3-dimensional replica o the object.

Everything around us, from kitchenware to toys, has undergone have undergone the molding and casting process.

The two processes help to get the task done very efficiently. Different industries use different technicalities to produce the molds and extract the cast. Cast and mold also belong in different stages to imitate any object.

Key Takeaways

1. Casting involves pouring molten metal or other material into a mold, and solidifying it into a specific shape or form.
2. Molding creates a mold or impression of an object, which can then be used to create a cast or multiple copies of the original object.
3. Casting is often used to create complex shapes or objects that would be difficult or impossible to produce using other manufacturing techniques. Molding is more commonly used for creating multiple copies of a simple object.

Cast vs. Mold

Cast is the product or shape, or a solid object formed by pouring a mixture into a mold to give it a shape of the mold. Mold is a equipment or a cavity where a liquid mixture is poured to produce a cast. It can be a hollow tool.

A mold is often created with certain substances and is left to solidify further. Once it hardens, a casting substance is poured into the hollow cavity to replicate the desired product.

The entire process is known as casting and molding. And the products obtained are cast and molded.

Comparison Table

Parameter of Comparison	Cast	Mold
Definition	It is a replica of an object that the mold has been created of	It is a hollow cavity of the desired shape of the object
Process	Casting	Molding
Made up of	Common materials(preferably hard)	Same materials as that of casting (preferably soft)
Stage	Final stage	First stage
Efficiency	The product is a final product	Several casts can be created from one mold.

What is Cast?

The cast is the last stage that follows a mold known as casting. It is a manufacturing process where a liquid is poured into the already-created mold (a hollow cavity of the desired shape).

Then the liquid is allowed to solidify or cure with the help of a chemical reaction or through cooling. Then the final result that has been obtained is known as the cast.

Different materials cast an object, such as silicon, polyurethane, gypsum, epoxy resin, liquid latex rubber, concrete, plaster, etc.

Multiple casts can be created using a single mold. It also helps create a replica or duplicate of the original product. After the finished product is obtained, the features can be enhanced by polishing and sanding.

Jewelers often use it to cast the desired shape the customer wants. The jeweler heats the casting substance at a higher temperature and turns it into a liquid; the liquid is then poured into the mold and left to harden to obtain the cast.

In cases where multiple molds are created for one cast, the casting material can be poured o injected through various openings. Altogether it is an easy process.

What is Mold?

Mold is a hollow cavity. The process of making a mold is known as molding. It carries the impression f the object that one wants to create.

It is followed by the casting procedure, which generates the cast. It entirely replicated the object as the finished product. The mold generally created can be natural or synthetic (manmade).

Certain materials are used to make the original mold, such as silicon, polyurethane, polysulfide, wax, clay, metal wood, etc. Usually, a flexible material is chosen, making it easier to obtain the cast.

There are several kinds of molding procedures, such as injection molding, blow molding, compression molding, rational molding, laminating, transfer molding, etc. Each industry uses its molding technique to prepare its molds.

A single mold can be saved up and used for creating several casts. The mold captures the most intricate of the details of the object and saves it. Natural mold is formed when a living organism is buried and left to decay there.

It leaves an impression on the spot and acts as a mold. Historians then use these molds to discover more about certain living creatures from the past and study more about them.

Main Differences Between Cast and Mold

1. 1. Cast is the final product obtained when the casting liquid is poured into the mold and is left to harden. Mold, conversely, is the hollow cavity formed to imprint the object and take a replica out of it.
2. The process of making a cast is known as casting, while the process of making a mold is known as molding.
3. Cast and mold can comprise similar substances such as silicon, polyurethane, gypsum, epoxy resin, liquid latex rubber, etc. Still, it is preferred that for casting hard substances be used as it makes the entire process more efficient and the final product to be more durable. And in the case of molding, use soft materials so that the cast extraction process gets easier.
4. Mold is the first stage of making the replica or impression of the desired object; however, the cast is the final product that has been obtained after the entire process.
5. The cast is the final product that has been made, and on certain occasions, the cast can also be used to make further molds. However, in the case of molds, a single mold can be used several times to create a cast.

References

1. https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0924013699003118
2. https://pubs.acs.org/doi/abs/10.1021/ja108781w
3. https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1359646204005196