FR Bronze
Thanks
you for your interest in our fine quality bronze
sculptures.
We have over 3,000 of the world's
finest bronze sculptures. F&R Bronze strives to
bring you the largest selection of bronze statues
anywhere on the internet. Bringing some of the
world's finest bronzes to you from around the world.
In addition to the bronzes we make
and U.S. made bronzes, we also sell bronzes from
various places around the world. Please read below
to learn more about the origins of our bronze
statues. If you have any questions about any of our
bronze sculptures, please feel free to contact us.
Bronzes Sculptures That We Make
F&R Bronze has the ability to do custom pieces
for clients. We currently have 6 different artists
that we work with. We can custom create any piece
that you may need. We have many products that are
available exclusively through F&R Bronze Company.
For information on these products or wholesale
pricing please contact us.
Bronzes Cast in U.S.
F&R Bronze buys and has contracts with 4 different
foundries in the U.S. The benefit to U.S. cast
bronzes is that we are able to maintain high quality
control and can quickly customize and deliver a
quality piece to a customer. The cost of a U.S. cast
bronze can be a little higher than those of Mexico
or
Thailand. Anytime you buy a U.S. made product you
can always be assured it is of the finest quality,
and that it will come with the satisfaction of knowing you
have bought an American made product.
Bronzes Cast in Mexico
Some of the finest quality bronze castings come
from Mexico. The foundries we do business with in
Mexico are owned and operated by American bronze
companies and business owners. This is great for the
American consumers as these owners are able to
maintain the high quality standards that you find in
any American foundry while at the same time saving
on the cost of labor; saving the consumer almost
40%. We are also able to maintain a close eye
on production and can easily customize pieces to our
customers needs and have them cast and delivered in
under 6 weeks. Custom works can also be done through
these Mexican foundries, if you are an artist that
needs work done, please contact us to see if we can
help you.
Bronzes Cast in Thailand
All
bronzes marked with an asterisk* are cast in
Thailand. Bronzes cast in Thailand are made using
the original lost wax casting process. All of these
bronzes are hand made and hand finished. The benefit
to the consumer is the fact that the labor is
cheaper without a loss in quality to the product.
The fact is bronzes have been cast in China
and Thailand for over 3,000 years. Bronze casting
began in the U.S. only 130 years ago. We buy only
the highest quality import bronzes made by some of
the most reputable foundries in the world. If you
have any questions or concerns about import bronzes
please feel free to contact us. The main benefit
with import bronzes is the savings to the consumer,
the consumer can get a large life-size child or
animal at about 1/10 the cost of an American
casting. These bronzes have been being sold and used
throughout the U.S. for over 100 years. One prime
example is our limited edition life-size Reagan
bronze. This high quality piece is cast in Thailand
and is proudly displayed at the the Ronald Reagan
Presidential Library and Museum in Simi Valley,
California.
The
Original Lost Wax Casting Process
The following
is the step by step process of the “Lost Wax
Casting” method. After reviewing this process, which
normally takes approximately 3 to 4 weeks to complete a single sculpture.
There is a lot of time and labor involved in each
piece, each bronze is hand finished once in wax and
then again in metal. It takes very skilled artists
to complete this process, there is a great
misconception that bronze is just poured into one
mold and then you have a product this is the
furthest from the truth. To learn more about this in
depth process please read below.
Please
Note: There are those that claim
22 to 30 steps in the lost wax casting process, this
process can be broken down into over a 100 steps if
you want to get technical about it. We try to keep
simple and easy to follow.
STEP 1 Making the Mold:
This step is by far the most
critical. All the detail which appears on the sculpture must be captured
in the mold. The mold (depending on the size of the sculpture) is cut
into sections for casting.
STEP 2 Making the Wax Casting:
Molten wax is poured
into the mold to form layers of wax. This wax model is an exact duplicate
of the original casting.
STEP 3 Chasing the Wax:
The wax is pulled from the
mold and hand chased (re-detailed) by a skilled artisan. Although the
artist reproduces the original artwork, each piece may slightly differ
from the next.
STEP 4 Spruing:
Wax rods (gates) and pouring cup are
attached to the wax casting in just the right positions. This will assure
a full pour.
STEP 5 Casting the Ceramic Mold (Investment Casting):
In
a temperature controlled climate of 72 degrees Fahrenheit, the wax casting
is dipped into Investment liquid several times. On the first dip a fine
powder is applied. On the next dip of course, ceramic sand will be applied.
This step is repeated several times, each increasing the coarseness of
the material to create the ceramic mold. Between each dip, the ceramic
layer must cure (dry) before another layer can be applied.
STEP 6 Burn-Out: The ceramic shell is placed in a kiln
and fired. The shell bakes and the wax is melted (lost) from the shell.
This creates a hollow ceramic shell mold. Thus the term “Lost Wax.”
STEP 7 Casting:
The ceramic shell (mold) is removed
from the kiln and immediately the molten bronze is poured into the shell.
At the time of pouring, the bronze is 2100 degrees Fahrenheit.
STEP 8 Break-Out:
After the casting has cooled several
hours, the shell is carefully broken away leaving the unfinished bronze.
STEP 9 Sandblasting:
Any fragments of the ceramic shell
are removed by sandblasting. The sculpture is also carefully inspected
at this point.
STEP 10 Assembly:
At this time all the pieces of the
sculpture are welded together by our skilled craftsman.
STEP 11 Chasing: All the weld marks are chased and
re-detailed.
STEP 12 Glass Beading: This is similar to sandblasting.
The glass is extremely fine to ensure an even bronze finish.
STEP 13 Polish:
The raw bronze sculpture is now hand
polished in preparation for the patina.
This wonderful
video shows the complete process of the true and
traditional lost wax casting process from start to
finish. This
complete process takes 20 to 30 days and requires a
massive amount of labor, energy and resources from
start to finish.
It is commonly thought that bronze sculptures are
simple to make and all that is required is hot
molten metal that
is poured into a mold. This video gives a great
example and is a great educational tool. This gives
a greater
understanding and respect for the entire process to
get to the final product or finished bronze using
the traditional lost wax casting process.
A
special thanks to AP Casting - bronze
sculpture art gallery in Israel
for this great video
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