Good points on casting vs injection molding—agree with most of what you said. A couple quick thoughts from my experience:
- Injection molding definitely nails precision, especially for detailed or intricate designs. If your project demands tight tolerances, it's hard to beat.
- Casting can actually give you some flexibility with materials and finishes, even though it might take extra elbow grease afterward (like you mentioned with sanding).
Sounds like your custom hardware turned out pretty decent...nice job giving it a shot.
Good breakdown on both methods. I've mostly used casting for custom hardware—like decorative handles or unique fixtures—and yeah, sanding afterward can be a bit tedious. But honestly, I kinda enjoy the hands-on finishing touches...feels rewarding seeing it come together. Injection molding definitely shines when precision matters, but for one-off or small-batch stuff, casting has always been my go-to. Glad your project turned out well—it's always satisfying when experimenting pays off.
"But honestly, I kinda enjoy the hands-on finishing touches...feels rewarding seeing it come together."
I get what you're saying about the satisfaction of hands-on finishing, but personally, the sanding and cleanup after casting always felt like a huge time sink for me. I remember spending hours sanding down a custom bracket I cast for a DIY camera rig—by the end, I was questioning my life choices, haha. Injection molding might have higher upfront costs, but the consistency and minimal post-processing can save your sanity, especially if you're juggling multiple projects.
I get what you're saying about the satisfaction of hands-on finishing, but personally, the sanding and cleanup after casting always felt like a huge time sink for me.
I see your point about injection molding being more efficient, especially for repetitive tasks. But as someone who's just started tackling custom home projects, I'm wondering—is injection molding practical for smaller, one-off items? I mean, if you're not planning multiple copies, wouldn't the upfront cost and setup time outweigh the benefits? I've been thinking about casting some custom handles for cabinets...but your sanding horror story has me reconsidering, haha.
Injection molding can be great, but honestly, for one-off custom handles, it's probably overkill. I remember trying to set up a small injection mold for some unique drawer pulls once—by the time I got everything dialed in, I could've sanded and finished a dozen castings, haha. If sanding's your main worry, maybe look into smoother-casting resins or silicone molds that leave cleaner surfaces? Might save you some headache without the upfront hassle...
