Wax Model
A wax model is a precise wax replica of a design, made by hand or from CAM, used to create a casting mould.
A wax model is an exact copy of a piece, formed in jeweller's wax, that stands in for the finished jewellery just long enough to make a mould. In the lost wax method the wax is later melted away and replaced by metal, so the model shapes the cavity the metal will fill.
Carved by hand or grown from CAM
A wax can be carved by hand from a block of hard carving wax, a craft that rewards years of practice, or it can be milled or 3D printed from a CAD file. The hand route gives a personal touch; the CAM route gives repeatable precision.
Either way the wax carries every detail the final piece needs, since anything missing from the wax will be missing from the metal.
Its role in lost wax casting
The wax model is attached to a wax sprue and surrounded by a plaster-like investment. When that investment is heated the wax burns out completely, leaving a hollow mould in the exact shape of the piece, which molten metal then fills.
Because the wax is sacrificed in the process, each casting needs its own wax, though a rubber mould of a master can be used to produce many identical waxes for a repeated design.
- A wax model is a precise wax replica of the piece to be cast
- It can be hand carved or produced from CAM by milling or printing
- In lost wax casting the wax is melted out to leave the mould
- Rubber moulds can produce many waxes for a repeated design
Wax Model, in short.
Why wax and not another material?
Wax carves and prints easily to fine detail and, crucially, melts and burns away cleanly at low heat, leaving no residue in the mould. That clean burnout is what makes lost wax casting work.
Can one wax model be reused?
The wax itself is destroyed during casting, so it is used once. To repeat a design, a jeweller makes a rubber mould from a master and injects new waxes as needed.
Is a 3D printed resin the same as a wax model?
It serves the same role but is a castable resin rather than true wax. Both are burned out to leave a mould, and workshops choose between them based on detail and the casting setup.
Related terms
See wax model inside a real jewellery system.
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