Die Casting for Dummies. Die casting is a process where metals, such as zinc or aluminum, is injected into a mold, referred to as a “die,” put under high pressure to result in uniform and detailed metal parts.

• You may wonder how die casts are made. To begin with, there are two kinds of processes – a cold chamber process or a hot chamber process. A cold chamber process is usually used for metals such as aluminum and copper. On the other hand, a hot chamber process is good for metals with high fluidity like lead, tin, and the easy-to-die zinc. A hot chamber process uses a hot-chamber machine, also called gooseneck machines.
• The basic zinc die casting process starts by injecting a molten metal like zinc, into a die made of steel into the hot-chamber machine. It is then kept in high pressure until the die is completely solidified. The casting will be opened and the object ejected from the mold.
• Die casting is a very quick process – making small components like gears can take less than a second while larger objects that weigh more than five pounds may take about three minutes. This is why the zinc die casting process is used widely. Die castings is one of the most distributed exports of the metalwork industry.