Technology Information

November 17, 2008

American Foundry Association and American Casting Association Information

Casting

Casting has endured through the ages since the time of Ancient Egypt, possibly longer. Since then small foundries have developed to meet the needs of the individual caster. There are several reasons that people choose to create their own home grown foundries. A top reason is the need to create parts and pieces that are no longer available on the market or that are just too expensive to purchase. Those who get into Casting for this reason are usually interested in restoration projects, home improvement projects, or hobby building like model planes and trains. Artists are the other group that see metal casting as a cheap and easy way to create sculptures from small to large. Jewelers even use metal casting to create complex pieces that would just otherwise be impossible to create.

Given the wide scope of metal casting there are several methods and techniques that have developed. For those new to metal casting or for those wanting to try some of these other methods may find it difficult to find information on your own. Luckily, there are several metal casting associations and groups that are more then willing to share information and exchange ideas, projects, and pictures of the goings on in the their home foundries.

On the internet, Metal Casting associations and groups are either message boards full of casters where they can ask questions, post ideas, and pictures or are websites that are maintained by a set group of people offering general information and educational resources.

Both of these types of websites are incredibly helpful to metal casters who can benefit from the educational purposes of some of the sites tempered with the real life applications and experiences of the message boards.

There will be more industrial foundry and metal casting information than sites directed at the small home foundries. Industrial metal casting sites can be wonderful sources of information so do not skip by these. Use both small metal casting sites and industrial sites to your advantage.

One of the most popular message board type sites for information is the Casting Hobby Group found through Yahoo Groups. This casting group was developed and maintained by experienced metal casters and enjoys a high amount of activity. This is a great place to go to for quick information and ideas not to mention photos and even furnace building plans.

The Casting Hobby Group can be found at http://groups.yahoo.com/group/castinghobby/

The Association of Backyard Metal Casters is located at http://www.abymc.com/.  This online metal casting association has an extensive membership complete with informative articles, forums, and even live chat. Of course, pictures are posted on the site to give visitors ideas about what other furnaces and foundries look like. Don’t worry if you’re foundry isn’t pretty, there actually doesn’t seem to be very many of them that are.

Now, The American Foundry Society is mainly for the industrial metal casters and companies but they also promote information and education to consumers. The information provided on the site is great for anyone wishing to follow advancements in metal casting technology. There is even an online store.

http://www.afsinc.org/ is the online home for the American Foundry Society.

For the most part metal casting associations and groups exist on the local level more than a unifying force on the web. What does exist on the web is a great source of information, ideas, and insight. It is a great idea to join any of the groups you can in order to share and find knowledge.
 
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November 15, 2008

The history of Artistic Casting and the way that you can practice Art Casting.

Metal Casting

Metal Casting is an ancient method of creating statues and sculptures that has been in practice in Meso-America, China, and Ancient Egypt since 2000 BC. The Greeks practiced it, so did the Romans, and pretty much any civilization with a strong interest in art.

Weapons and Sculptures have been made using bronze since the begining of its discovery by man. Bronze is able to fill in the fine detail of molds making it very desirable to artists. When art casting, bronze is the alloy of choice since it is both beautiful and easy to work with. There are few examples of bronze statues left from antiquity since the alloy became scarce and many of the statues were melted down for weapons and other sculptures usually for new emperors or victors.

The Lost Wax Casting process is the preferred method used when art casting. This process was used in ancient times to create bronze items. Small foundries like the type found in backyards, personnel workshops, and garages are able to use the Lost Wax Casting process with a certain amount of professionalism. Commercial foundries and professional art companies use the Lost Wax Casting process as well to create custom items and monuments. The process remains, essentially, the same since the ancient craftsmen who first pioneered the method. Lost wax casting also gets another name when it is used in the commercial manufacturing business or when its just to make jewelry and that name is Investment Casting.

Metal Casting is one of the more enjoyable reasons to fire up the furnace and get into metal casting. While most think metal casting to be strictly limited to hobbyist and historical re-enactors, casting is a popular skill and craft used by a wide range of people for varying reasons. Artists see the need to have metal casting skills as it allows the artists to have direct control over the process instead of out sourcing it to a commercial foundry. Commercial foundries that specialize in custom pieces will often charge outrageous prices for their services. Metal Casting on your own is often times economical and just smart.

The Lost Wax Casting process is rather simple when compared to other casting methods but it can be time consuming and attention to detail is important. The artists will start with an original piece sculpted from wax. The original can be made of other substances like clay or even metal but wax seems to be the easiest to work with. The original will be used to make the mold. If the piece to be cast is large, multiple molds will be needed. This is common in art casting and completely possible with the use of shims and keys that will allow placing the pieces together after the casting process easier. Most molds will be made out of latex or other materials to help transfer the fine detail into the mold cavity.

The original is often destroyed during the mold making process upon removal. Molten wax is poured into the mold until the desired thickness is achieved.  When dry, this wax copy is removed and chased which rids the piece of imperfections and is used to combine the pieces.  You will place paths for the molten metal on the wax copy.  You will also place a cup or funnel at the top of the copy. This process is called spruing and is done in wax.

A ceramic shell is placed around the copy. The shell isn’t really ceramic but a sand and liquid silica combination.  You will repeat this step until the shell is thick enough for the piece. You will then heat the item which will melt the wax inside. The wax runs out of the shell through the paths placed during spruing. 

Then comes the part for the molten bronze. The bronze is poured into the top of the hollow shell. When cool you are going to remove the shell carefully to reveal the finished product. The bronze sculpture is chased, painted, and finished up however the artists choose.

Art casting can be done with any metal or alloy. If you are going to use the Lost Wax Casting process then you do not have to stick with bronze. Sometimes it is a good idea to try a few other metals until you get the exact look that you are searching for.

 
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Casting Patterns and the Process of Creating Metal Casting Patterns

Metal Casting

A casting pattern is basically a shaped form of either metal or wood where sand is packed around it in the mold. You will find that once you remove the pattern, if done correctly, the remaining spase will be shape of the pattern object that was to be cast. The casting pattern should however be designed in order to be easily removed without any damage done to the mold. The pattern should be also be perfectly dimensioned and should be very durable for the intended use. The patterns that are used in sand casting can be made of plastic, metal, wood or any other material. The casting patterns are made to the right standards of construction this is basically because they can last for a reasonable time. The quality of the grade in the casting pattern is really what determines the durability of the pattern for the long term. If the pattern is made of right quality then they would be constantly providing dimensionally perfect casting patterns.

The process: The process of making Metal Casting is actually called as pattern making which is in fact a skilled trade which is related to the trades of die and tool making and mold making. However this also sometimes incorporates the elements of fine wood making. The makers of casting patterns basically learn their pattern making skills through trade schools and apprenticeships over a number of years of experience. There is also an engineer who a few times helps in making the casting patterns but in fact it is the pattern maker who carries out the design.

Design: The Metal Casting incorporate proper allowances for the shrinkage and this process is called as contraction allowance. Their accurate values however depend on the alloys that are being used and the accurate sand casting methods that is used. There are a few alloys that have the overall linear shrinkage of nearly 2.5 percent as other alloys might actually experience 0 percent shrinkage or even a light positive shrinkage or it might also increase the size in the casting process. The amount of the shrinkage is also dependant on the sand casting process that is employed for instance chemical bonded sands, clay bonded sands or other bonding materials.

The casting patterns should also include proper allowance for the draft. This means that the sides would be tapered so that when it would be taken out from the sand it will not tend to drag out sand of place along with it. This process is also called as taper that is normally done in the range of one to three degrees. The foundry engineers or the pattern maker of the casting patterns actually decide where the gating systems, risers and the sprues are places in terms of casting patterns. In this pattern a hole is desired in the Metal Casting that uses a core which defines the location and volume of in the casting where the metal would not flow into. Chills are also used sometimes located on the casting patterns surface and these are then formed into sand molds. These casting patterns however continue to be a vital requirement for sand casting of metal.
 
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Types of Casting Molds

Metal Casting

Metal Casting is basically the manufacturing process through which a liquid material is emptied into a mold that includes a hollow opening of the desired art or shape and is then allowed to harden. This hardened casting is then removed and broken out in order to complete the process. Apart from using sand as the main mold material there is a metal that is used as the mold. Normally, a cast meehanite or an iron is used as the material for mold and the objects are made from the sand or metal. The cavity surface is basically covered with a thin layer of material that is heat resistant which can be either sodium silicate or clay.

Casting Molds: The casting molds must be heated properly in order for the metal to react properly and this temperature is around 392 degrees Fahrenheit. The design of cavity for these casting molds does not chase the same principle for shrinkage like in the sand casting molds. This is because of the fact that the metal casting molds heat up and enlarge during the pouring process and so the cavity does not need to be expanded like in the sand castings. Nevertheless, care should be taken in order to ensure a correct thermal balance as you can use external water source for cooling or you can also opt for suitable radiation techniques.

Permanent Metal Casting : Although these permanent casting molds are not as flexible as the sand castings which allow to be used in different metal patterns or designs but these lower the cost of producing the part. When there is a production run of more than 1000 parts the permanent casting molds would produce much lower piece of cost part. Apart from this, the break even point also depends on the density of the part. There are more complex parts that are favored when you use these permanent casting molds. The typical part size would be around 50g to 70 kg and the basic materials used are medium and small parts that are made from magnesium, aluminum and brass and also their alloys.

Slush Metal Casting : The slush casting molds are actually a special type of permanent casting molds in which the molted metal is not allowed to solidify completely. After gaining the desired wall thickness the still not solidified molted metal is then poured out. This is basically used in order to make void ornamental objects like lamps, candlesticks and statues.

Corthias Casting Molds: This type casting molds is yet another variant of the permanent casting molds in which basically a plunger is used to pack the molted metal through the spure hole. This type of process allows thinner walls and to produce greater details.

Vacuum Permanent Casting Molds: This type of casting mold is also part of the permanent casting mold family and is very similar to the lowe pressure casting molds. In this type vacuum is used rather than a pressure. You can make thin wall casting through this type of casting molds like in the other low pressure casting molds. Apart from this the results are high as there are no risers used.
  
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Art Casting Information

Metal Casting

Metal Casting is one form of excellence, put with diverse craft skills. It should be perfect and graceful at the same time. One should have unique craft skills which can produce a perfect art casting. There are several websites which can provide a person with information on art casting technique, their sculptors and the craft skills which are required to be a sculptor.

The websites that showcases the Art founders combines to provide advanced foundry techniques and similar superb craft skills. One can thus understand the sculptor’s needs and vision after viewing the art form. Exhibitions, Galleries, and Museums were the normal places you used to see these sculptors. Even today, at large the sculptors are used in public places, galleries and such art casting are made out of modern equipments and casting techniques.

Types of art casting: There are many types and kinds of art casting. Wax art casting, sand art casting, lost wax casting and many more. These websites that offer a client the art casting images and its services, offers concept design, Marquette works and enlargement of certain sculptors. The creative department has created new work for their clients and have provided enlargement of the miniature sculptures.

Typically, an assignment would begin with the concept stage and wherein the creative department makes drawings for approval. After this, a Marquette is done and the scaling procedure is done to work up the required size and alignment of the sculpture. Such work undertaken is done under one roof with involvement of clients who accompany in decision making of the design, creating stage and also through out the casting and finishing of the sculpture. These websites provide their clients with full installation service and with delivery of the sculpture to other countries.

Lost Wax process: Most of the art casting of lost wax is processed by use of lost wax ceramic method of casting. This can make it a possibility of reproduction of maximum detail from original concept. Such facilities can make the sculptors to keep the original core in mold and allow the production of the largest wax in the country. A perfect cast is very much demanded by the clients. Smaller works like the abstract works, animal figures and many more are designed on such department. These wax shops are bright with daylight bulb.

Sand casting art form: The Art Casting shops which focus on making sand sculptures use sand pieces and they make sure that there are deep undercuts on the making process. The team which undertakes the process are experienced and they strive to create some of the magnificent works that ranges from life size horses to full sized boats and such letter signs. A lot of the works with right to sand casting provide great dimensional stability and less reduction of metal.

Strengths of the art casting work shops: One of the key strength of the Metal Casting shop is the depth of skill set and experience in the department. The Bronze one’s are collected and finished by master craftsmen. The final touch up process is one of the most important processes in the art casting process because this is where the scuplture is colored and patination takes place. These workshops provide lots of patinas and colors which a client may require right from traditional browns and green to blue, white, black and red color.
  
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DIY Casting Information

Metal Casting

People who like to make their own artifacts and are enchanted with the idea of building new and useful things from scratch are sure to enjoy ‘do it yourself casting’ that can be done at home using simple methods and techniques. A Metal Foundry is just the start of your home made process of creating and designing casting materials. A good understanding of some basic foundry knowledge and few simple tools can help you make metal casting at home possible. Many people find it difficult to get special parts for their cars or bikes or even find it very costly to modify their cars, house or even bikes. If you develop your hobby of Metal Casting , then you can easily make special parts for your cars and bikes and also will find it easy and save a lot of money. Casting can be used to make many things like, simple ornaments knobs and even handles. Hand wheels and small machinery or tools can also be made. Small articles like brass name plates, statues, vintage motorcycle and car parts, etc can also be made at home.

Furnace Designs that can be made at home:

Coffee Can Metal Casting : This is very easy to build and even a large coffee-can will serve the purpose. This is one of the things that can be used to build a very simple and non complex gas fired furnace.

The “2 bucks” furnace: Is not as the name suggests, the furnace can’t be built in two bucks.Really with this design we are basing the design off of two buckets. It is very useful and a good experienced person can build it with a budget that is below 10 bucks. It effectively burns propane.

Flowerpot crucible furnace: This furnace can also be built very easily and most importantly, it can be built using the waste material from your back yard. All you need is an old flower pot and a few metal cans. Melt the metal cans and coat the inside of the flower pot with the melted metal and you furnace is ready.

Brick Furnaces, Chimney Pipe Furnaces, Dirt and Brick Furnaces and Breaking Metal in Barbecue are just a few other type of furnaces that can be build at home.

Tools and material needed:

Home made Aluminum pulleys: Pulleys of different size and shapes can be made by bending aluminum rods or plates. Usually this process becomes fairly fun after you do a few and realize how simple and easy it can be.

Building steel crucibles: Steel crucibles are a bit difficult to make. You need to cut the steel and weld it using a welder, so it is a bit risky job and can cause injuries. It needs to be done with utmost care and precaution.

Home made ladle: A ladle can be made at home using a small portion of a steel water pipe; you can select the water pipe according to your needs and then cut it in the desired dimensions to create your home made ladle.

After doing all this basic work and gathering all the required information, you can now start your own Metal Casting and make desired articles. You also need to make the molds of your desired shape and size and you are ready to go. All types of metals and alloys can be used and melted for home casting, only their degree of heat required varies.

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November 14, 2008

Information on Cupola Casting

Metal Casting

A Cupola is a type of furnace that is very much alike to blast furnace. The Cupola furnace is refractory lined, stack of steel that is around 20 to 35 feet high. It rests on a base plate that is made of cast iron and has four legs. The casting that is obtained from the cupola furnace is known as a cupola casting.

Cupola Furnace: The Cupola Casting furnace is one of the oldest forms of furnace that have been used by the iron and metal foundries. The Cupola furnace is the crudest and the simplest furnace that has been used by the industries. However, the cupola’s use is declining and the furnace is fast being extinct.

Merits of the Cupola Metal Casting Furnace: Though the electric or the blast furnace has started replacing the Cupola Furnace, it has some special benefits of its own. Whats nice about the Cupola furnace is that is usually can be running continuously. The furnace also offers a very high melting rate. The most important merit of the furnace is that it has relatively very low melting cost. The furnace has also permits a lot of ease of operation.

However, due to the invention and development of the electric furnace, the use of Cupola furnaces has substantially declined. The electric furnace melts a much larger amount of metal. The operation cost of the electric furnace is also very low. The electric furnace also emits a much smaller level of smoke heat and also pollutants.

Construction of the Cupola furnace: The Cupola furnace is constructed in a crude and simple manner. The Cupola Casting furnace is a vertical structure like a steel shell. The steel is lined with refractory bricks from the inside. The furnace has an opening half way in the vertical shaft. The charge is introduced through the opening. The charge is divided into different layers. This is the place where the metal is contained that is inline to be melted. The metal is mixed with coke, fuel, and lime stone flux. The fuel is burnt directly into the air and is introduced in to the furnace through the tuyeres which are positioned above the hearth. The hot gases that have been produced ascend and pre heat the charge.

The cupolas in majority of the cases have drop down doors. The bottoms can be dropped down to facilitate the cleaning and the repairs. At bottom in front of the furnace is a tap hole. The molten metal is removed from the tap hole. There are several holes for slag to escape but sometimes there is another one at the rear. On the top of the stag you will find that it is covered with a spark or what is also called a fume arrester.

Usually the cupola has a diameter of 405 to 2000 mm. It is operated on varying fuels for different metal ratios. The molten metal that can be produced in the copula of this size at a speed of 1 to 30 tones per hour.

Continuity of process: After the process of melting has ended, the charging is halted. However, the blast of hot air is always maintained till all the metal has been melted and has been taken out from the tap hole. The left behind residue is removed a while after the air cools down and bit and this residue is usually removed by opening up the doors at the bottom.           

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The process of Resin Casting

Metal Casting

Technical Installation is the process that is used to preform Resin Casting. The process of Resin Casting is a complex process that is used in a variety of fields. The resin casting giver a high quality and precision to the product that is casted.

Need for Resin Metal Casting : Resin casting is used to obtain a high level of quality and also precision in the dimensions of the product. Resin casting is basically used in the process of miniaturization i.e. the process of making things small. The process of Resin Casting is also used extensively the field of electronics. The electronics industries today resort to the resin castings to achieve the norms of total quality management.

The process of resin metal casting earned success and also gained popularity in the field of electronics because it facilitated the acute miniaturization process and also at the same time maintained a high level of quality. The electronics industry is a very demanding field in terms of quality and cost. Experts recommend that the process of resin casting is an ideal way to achieve the required quality and it also helps cut down the cost of production. The process is also highly productive and also reliable with respect to speed.          

Industrial Applications of Resin Casting: The process of resin casting is basically used in the electronics industry. Resin Casting is used in the production of transformers, Liquid Crystals Displays more commonly known as the LCD’s. It also used in the manufacture of heavy electronic systems.

Important steps in Resin Metal Casting : The process of resin casting is completed in basically five important steps. The first step is to condition the resin, and then the material is transported. After the transportation of the material the three most important steps are executed. First the material is metered, then the material is mixed and then finally it is dispensed.

Conditioning process: The process of conditioning in the resin casting evenly distributes the fillers ion the mixture. The conditioning also eliminates the moisture and air. It also makes the mixture constant, and also elevates the temperature of the mixture. The process of conditioning also maintains a low viscosity in the mixture. This process is very important for complex combinations as it intensifies the quality of the product.

Process of Material Transportation: In the process of transportation of the materials, the piston pumps, screw pumps, and the gear pumps are used. For the highly viscous substances, instead of gear pumps, follower plate pumps are used.

Mixing Process: This process is very important as it is mean to be used to obtain an equal and stabilized reaction through all the materials. The most commonly used methods in the mixing are the static mixing tube, the dynamic blender, and the dynamic static mixing tube.

Dispensing process: The process of dispensing is the most important process in the Resin Casting . While the dispensing process takes place, the dispensing unit and the movement of the part are relative to one another.

Metering Systems and sometimes a vacuum system is what is used to cast Resin. In the industrial to cut costs and also time multiple dispensing units are used.          

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Learn about the various Metal Casting Associations and Metal Casting Groups

Metal Casting

Metal Casting is one of the most widely used processes that is used in the production and process industry. In the metal industry the process of Casting is the basic and he most essential step in the process of production. At the dawn of the industrial revolution, casting was a very crude process that had not undergone development.

Need for associations and institutes: Though the process of Metal Casting is an important step in  production, it remained underdeveloped for a very long period of time. The basic need for the formation of metal casting related associations was to develop the process of casting. Alot of the metal casting associations share information and work together so they can improve the metal casting process. Associations and the groups that have been formed by the companies are constantly experimenting with the proposed reforms in the casting process. Many of them have also come up with sound technical rectifications and an amazing number of proposals.

Aims and Objective of Casting Associations and groups: The basic objective of all the Meat casting Groups and associations that have been working for a few decades remains unchanged. The associations strive to develop the process of casting to the pinnacle. The global market has become demanding and competitive than ever. The associations helps the member companies in maximizing their quality standards. These associations also work for the spread of appropriate technology. Many innovations and inventions are proposed and executed for the technological benefit of the member companies. When you receive this kind of support it really helps the company cut its costs of production. It also helps the companies to increase the quality and also ht performance of their production units.
                       
Work against pollution: Metal Metal Casting companies are often pressurized and also accused of polluting the environment. A lot of information on how to dispose of pollutants is given to these companies by some of these casting associations. Using the same location is one way that companies who are close together work to help dispose of their waste. Many of the associations have set up their own norms for the member companies.

Man power safety: Some of the associations also keep a tab on the safety of the workers. A metal casting industry is a very dangerous place to work in. the associations hence have prescribed many safety norms to the member companies.

The norms regarding safety of the environment and the safety of the workers if not followed always invite trouble from the government. If the safety norms of the associations are followed then the intervention of the government reduces considerably.

Spread of Knowledge: To make the people in the industry aware of the ongoing commercial development and technical research the associations arrange international expos and also many exhibitions. The associations also represent their member companies in many seminars organized on the international level.

Commercial Aspects: Commercial Meetings and exchanges of ideas are one way that metal casting associations help with commercial aspects of metal casting associations. Many associations give sound financial information and also explains the market conditions to the member companies.

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Information on Casting Sand and Green Sand or Foundry Sand

Metal Casting

Green Sand: Green sand is also called as foundry sand or molding sand. This is utilized for sand Metal Casting . When this sand is oiled or moistened, it has a tendency to pack well and retain the shape. Green Sand is made up of three things: Pulverized Coal, Water, and Bentonite Clay and Sand. Out of these four components, the biggest part is that of the sand.  There are several proportions of these four components. The different ratios are used to adjust the surface finish, moldability and capacity of the hot molten metal to degas. The prime use of this sand is in the Metal Casting . The coal is usually called as sea coal in foundries. The Amount of Sea Coal is just about less than five percent. It undergoes partial combustion when there is molten metal present and this causes offgassing of organic vapors.

Green sand is stored in flasks (as the casters call the container). These are boxes that do not have a bottom or lid. This box is divided into two half parts and these are connected together. These halves are called as the top or cope and bottom or drag flask.

As per its name, green sand is not green in color. The word “green” is used as it is used in the wet state.

Casting Sand: Some Casting sands are oil bonded and foundry mix sand. This is a mixing of oil, resin and sharp fine silica sand. Such a mix can be utilized in sand casting of all varieties of metals. Some casting sands consist of 20 percent more oil and resin as compared to other brands. The objective is to ascertain the best mix for maximum green power and the best finish for the surface, that is possible.

A good sand to use for casting sand is an oil bonded sand and can be used as a substitute for water bonded green sand. The advantage over traditional, older sands is that as water is absent, the sand does not steam like the traditional sands. What is good about this sand is that it is more secure than green sand. The reason is that potentially explosive quantities of steam are not generated. Due to this dearth of steam generation and the smooth texture of the sand, the oil bonded sand results in a smoother surface finish. The novice can use these sands and get professional results.

Use of casting sand: The same techniques, patterns and tools that are used for water bonded sands can be used for oil bonded casting sands. As the sand has better adhesive properties, there are fewer hassles with loose sand in the impression. The difference is that water cannot be used to manage loose sections. However, as the self adhesion is better, there are fewer problems of crumbling.

When the oil comes in contact with molten metal, it does not burn. When the castings are being shaken out, it is advisable to take off the sand that is burned. This sand that is burned can then be mixed again in the pile of fresh sand. It reabsorbs oil and works very well. After repeated use of this sand, the oil gets depleted. In this case, around 30W of non-detergent motor oil can be used to reload the sand with oil.

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