Lost wax casting is an industrial process based on and also called Investment casting, one of the oldest known metal-forming techniques. From 5,000 years ago, when beeswax formed the pattern, to today’s high-technology waxes, refractory materials and specialist alloys, the castings allow the production of components with accuracy, repeatability, versatility and integrity in a variety of metals and high-performance alloys. Lost-foam casting is a modern form of investment casting that eliminates certain steps in the process.
Usually, there are 2 different types of lost wax casting, the difference is the adhesive and sand, one is water glass and quartz sand, the other one is silica gel and zircon sand. The differences for these 2 types are as following:
| Process | Cost | Casting surface | Tolerance | Material |
| Water glass | Cheap | Ra6.4-Ra12.5 | CT7, CT8 | Carbon steel, steel alloy |
| Silica gel | High | Ra3.2-Ra6.4 | CT6, CT7 | Stainless steel, Carbon steel, steel alloy |
