How to Melt & Mold Brass

Melting Brass

• 1

  Remove any material from the brass, such as cloth. Wash the brass thoroughly in soapy water and dry with a lint-free cloth.

• 2

  Heat up a metal furnace (available from a craft store); do this outside, or at least in a well-ventilated area, removing any flammable material from the area around the furnace.

• 3

  Place the cleaned brass in a crucible. Wear welder̵7;s gloves, a heavy leather apron and safety goggles to protect yourself. Grasp the crucible with a pair of tongs and put into the furnace. Remove the crucible regularly, always using the tongs, to check how the metal is melting. Remove when all the metal has melted but before it can separate into its constituent parts.

Molding Brass

• 4

  Mix silica sand, clay and cornstarch to create a mold for the brass; you can also make a mold from rubber or plaster if you desire. Take 10 parts sand to 2 1/2 parts clay, and one-tenth of one part cornstarch.

• 5

  Mix the three ingredients of the mold very thoroughly to make what̵7;s known as ̶0;green sand.̶1; Form into the shape of the mold you̵7;ll need to mold or cast the brass, being sure to leave a large enough opening to pour the brass; the clay and cornstarch will make the mold quite solid.

• 6

  Pour the melted brass into the mold and leave for at least an hour ̵1; larger, thicker pieces will require more time to cool.

• 7

  Lift the mold with a crucible and submerge it in a metal bath filled with cold water. Leave in the bath for another hour to cool the brass completely; the cold water should cause the mold to crack and break off the brass.

• 8

  Lift the brass from the metal bath and break off any remaining pieces of the mold using your hands, being sure to keep the gloves on in case the metal is still warm. Wash the molded brass with soapy water and then dry with a lint-free cloth.