So....I have been given permission to reproduce a vintage style NY Central depot sign. In this case, it's actually a NY Central Depot PLATFORM sign, which looks like your typical NYC cast depot sign but is much smaller. For reproduction purposes, that's a good thing!

I'm guessing the way to do it would have it formed (sand?) and then have the form poured with aluminum. Who nowadays would be able to do something like that?

The only requirement is that I have to have "reproduction 2022" cast somewhere on the back, which I am fine with.

Anyone have any advice on going forward with this?

Talk to Erich Armpriester at the Strasburg Rail Road. He can help you with that.

https://www.strasburgrailroad.com/mechanical-department/

Keep in mind that if you use an original sign as the pattern for your mold the finished cast metal part will be smaller since the metal shrinks when it cools.

For Aluminum it shrinks about 1/4" per foot.

That maybe acceptable for a reproduction.

If the original sign is "one sided" (the back is flat rough cast metal) that requires an easier one sided mold. It would be hard to cast "reproduced 2022" lettering on the back of the reproduction. Getting cast text on the back side would require a two part mold. Not impossible, but more complicated.

To get the most accurate reproduction size wise you would want to do a 3D scan of the original and increase the cad model by about 1/4" per foot. Then 3D print it in plastic and use the plastic "oversized" model to make the sand mold.

Or 3D scan it and use a Computer Controlled router to crave it out of plastic, or even carve it out of aluminum.

Good luck.

Could you post a photo and dimensions of what you wish to reproduce?

Does the reproduction wording have to be cast integral, or can it be stamped in and/or written with a dremel? Aluminum is pretty soft, a dremel would make short work of it and deeply enough it wouldn't be easily removed.

Laser mark it on the back if it is a flat casting.

I too have a sign that’s a platform sign. If you find a way to reproduce them, I’d be interested in doing mine as well.

Any shop with a CNC mill, or even a sign shop with a CNC router should be able to engrave the reproduction notice NICE AND BIG. The problem with stamps is the lettering will be so small it will likely be missed, negating the whole purpose.

Patternmaking is not rocket science! Indeed, one of the projects for my High-School Patternmaking and Foundry class was a desk nameplate that comprised the exact scope of what you're contemplating. (I was fortunate to attend one of New York City's Specialized high schools, Brooklyn Technical High School, which at the time covered all sorts of industrial processes in its curriculum - but that is a whole 'nother discussion...).

All one needs is a "shrink rule", a measuring device that has been compensated to allow for the shrinkage of the casting material, so that the final product is sized correctly. Not terribly important for something that is a standalone item, but I mention it for point of reference as it is critical for any castings that were replacing an existing piece or would need to fit with other pieces of hardware:

https://www.mecholic.com/2017/01/what-i ... scale.html

The other details are compensating the places on the pattern where surfaces meet to make it easier for the metal to flow and the casting to be removed from its forms or also, adding extra material to surfaces to allow for machine finishing. "Fillets" and "rounds" smooth out the intersections of planes to allow the casting material to fill the meeting points cleanly. Fillets were historically created on wood patterns with the use of beeswax flowed into corners with a metal wand with a rounded ball end of a design-specific diameter.

https://www.bentonfoundry.com/wp-conten ... ngtips.pdf

Faces that are to be machined or milled to a finished surface will also have an allowance added to compensate for the area to be milled away, such as the lettering, border facing, and edging of the sign.

Finding a foundry to pour your castings might not be as hard as you think, either -- there are groups of metal artists that specialize in art casting - (some on surprisingly large scale) who just might be able to help you out with a limited run of castings.

Please post an image of the sign or duplicate of the sign with dimensions cited.

Thanks for all of the advice. I don't have the sign in my possession yet but you guys have def. helped. Thanks!

Cattail Foundry near Strasburg, PA. That will be an easy item for them to cast.

Kevin K