Back in the days, casting was done through experience off course and trial and error. Today’s manufactorings techniques require more control of the process and predictable results:
Poriosity, shrinkage, speed of cooling, but also the way of inserting the melted material into the mold (gravity, injecting) etc. etc.
This can be done in simulation software like this:
Don’t ever tell Dave you can’t do something in Sketchup 
Unless of course you want him to do something. I had someone tell me ‘I just told you, you can’t so you would do it.’!
sorry-posted reply in wrong place
Hahahahaha! I’m right there with you man!!!
I have seen numerous situations where the production team tells me they can’t execute a part of the design because Revit can’t model that. And BTW…I’m not working at Frank Gehrey’s office!) I’m not talking about designing in Revit, which is a horrendous nightmare, but just making portions of a model! I have zero patience for that.
got a question about the forum posting methodology… I hit Reply To This Post…post a reply…but it does not show up right under the original post…rather, it’s at the bottom of the list, unrelated to the post. What am I doing wrong?
it’s in the correct order of post’s. but has the link back to the post your replying to in the top right of your post…
if you click that you see the context for your reply…
john
Dave’s models are always inspiring, of course. Then I bumped into this and it seemed like it was apropos, somehow…
This brings to my mind Charlie Chaplin wending his way through the gears of similarly large machinery in “Modern Times”!
So maybe once @DaveR models what you’ve pictured, someone else can take it to the next level by animating it with Charlie!
And coincidence of coincidences, Chaplin’s song “Smile” from Modern Times just happened to be playing on the radio as I read this post!
That looks like an interesting project. Maybe one day.
Here’s a little more cast iron. Legs for a lathe. These are based on drawings from the 1800s but you can still get similar ones new these days.
Making a little progress putting something on those legs. Tail stock needs a bit of refinement and there’s a shoe box full of parts to add. Headstock casting is in process so the stepped pulley doesn’t have to float.
Excellent. Thanks for showing us. Nice to see some skillful and artful work, in the course of a sometimes tedious work day.
Industrial Art(s)
Not much progress today. Only the hand wheels.
Maybe I could run the lathe off Aaron’s steam engine. It would be a just a little overkill.
It’s missing Mr. Watt’s balls. That wasn’t covered on the plan, though.
I love the smooth transitions on your head and tail stocks. Could you post a hidden geometry shot of those?
Thanks.
I did but it’s hidden so you can’t see it. 
Kidding. Give me a few moments.
