Casting Terminology

Centrifugal: Casting technique in which the molten metal is forced into the mold by centrifugal force.
Cuttlefish: The bone of a small squid called a cuttlefish, one can often find them on beaches. The material is porous and soft, cutting easily and able to take the heat of casting simple forms in silver or gold. A simple form of casting often used for small workshops.
Injection Wax: Wax used to inject into molds for casting.
Rubber Mold: For casting of alloys with a low melting point, such as tin alloys used in costume jewelry. This process eliminates the need for investment and burnout which is necessary with metals with a higher melting point, such as silver, gold and platinum.
Vacuum Casting: Casting technique in which the molten metal is forced into the mold by vacuum pressure.
Wax: Replica of a piece of jewelry in hard wax.
Wax Tree: A method of setting up multiple waxes for casting, involving the waxes to be attached to a central wax core which then goes into the casting investment.