Design review

Metal shrinks as it solidifies. If one section is twice as thick as the next, it freezes last and draws metal from its surroundings. The result is shrinkage porosity inside and distortion outside.

Fix: core out thick sections, or replace solid section with ribs. Ribs give stiffness without mass.

The part has to come out of the die. Without draft it sticks, tears on ejection and wears the tool faster.

Fix: add draft to every face across the direction the die opens — including internal faces, holes and cut-outs.

A sharp internal corner concentrates stress in the part — it cracks there first. And it cracks the die, which shows up as flash on the part.

Fix: put radii in. They cost little in the casting and give both a stronger part and a longer-lasting die.

An undercut stops the die opening. It is solved with slides — perfectly feasible, but that means a more expensive tool, a longer cycle and one more place for flash.

Fix: if the function can be achieved without an undercut, drop it. If it is necessary, say so early so it is priced correctly from the start.

Where the die splits there is a thin line of flash. Where the ejector pins push there are marks. Both are unavoidable — the only question is where they land.

Fix: mark on the drawing which faces are visible or functionally critical. Then we put the parting line elsewhere.

Casting gives you a tolerance. If the requirement is tighter, the face has to be machined — and that means machining allowance, which is metal you pay for and machine time you pay for.

Fix: put tight tolerances only where the function actually needs them. A handful of critical dimensions on a part is common. Many more than that are usually inherited from a drawing made for machining.