What Is the Price of Metal Parts Manufactured by Lost-Wax Casting?

lost wax casting price

Are you trying to figure out how much metal parts produced by lost-wax casting actually cost—and why the prices can vary so widely?

Whether you’re sourcing components for automotive, machinery, aerospace, medical devices, or custom industrial parts, understanding the true cost structure behind investment casting is essential. Lost-wax casting offers excellent surface finish, tight tolerances, and design freedom, but its pricing depends on multiple factors such as material grade, part size, tooling complexity, annual order quantity, and post-processing requirements. Before you request quotes from suppliers, it’s important to know what drives these costs so you can budget accurately and negotiate more confidently.

Lost-Wax Casting Is a Precision Manufacturing Process

A model of the part (wax pattern) is first made using wax or similar materials. The wax pattern is then coated with refractory material to form a shell mold. The wax is melted and drained out by heating (this is the "lost-wax" step), leaving a hollow mold cavity. Molten metal is poured into the cavity, and after cooling, the shell is broken away to obtain the metal part.

This process is suitable for parts with complex shapes, fine details, and high precision requirements, such as jewelry, turbine blades, mechanical components, etc.

What Are the Cost Components of the Lost-Wax Casting Process?

Now let's look at how the price is structured. (Cost Structure)

For beginners, the price can be broken down into several main parts:

Cost Item	Description	Influencing Factors
① Design and Mold Fees	The cost of making the wax pattern or metal master mold. For one-time production, wax pattern costs are calculated per piece; for mass production, a reusable metal mold is made first (higher initial cost but lower per-unit cost when spread out).	Part complexity, size, precision requirements, whether a metal mold needs to be made
② Material Costs	The cost of the metal used (such as stainless steel, copper alloy, aluminum alloy, titanium alloy, gold, silver, etc.).	Type of metal, market price fluctuations, weight/volume
③ Casting Process Fees	Includes labor and equipment costs for making the shell, firing, pouring, cooling, and other processes.	Factory equipment level, process difficulty, production batch size
④ Post-processing Fees	Removal of sprues, grinding, polishing, heat treatment, machining, surface treatment (plating, spraying, etc.).	Surface finish requirements, tolerance requirements, whether additional processing is needed
⑤ Inspection and Quality Control Fees	Dimensional inspection, non-destructive testing, composition analysis, etc., to ensure quality.	Inspection standards, quantity
⑥ Management and Profit	Factory operating costs, transportation, profit margin.	Regional economic level, order volume

Tip: Simply put: Design + Materials + Process + Post-processing + Inspection = Final Unit Price. The larger the batch, the lower the design and mold costs per piece.

What Is the Price of Lost-Wax Casting? (Approximate Reference)

Because material and process differences are significant, here is a rough range (in RMB or USD for easy understanding by beginners):

Type	Material Example	Unit Price Range (Small Batch 1–100 Pieces)	Possible Price Drop for Mass Production (Thousands of Pieces)
Small jewelry/accessories	Silver, copper, K-gold	¥10 – ¥300 / 1.5$–45$	¥2 – ¥50 / 0.3$–7$
Ordinary mechanical hardware parts	Stainless steel 304, brass	¥20 – ¥500 / 3$–75$	¥5 – ¥100 / 0.8$–15$
High-precision complex parts	Titanium alloy, high-temperature alloys	¥200 – ¥2000+ / 30$–300$+	¥50 – ¥500 / 8$–75$
Artistic sculpture/large pieces	Bronze, aluminum alloy	¥500 – ¥5000+ / 75$–750$+	Depends on size and quantity, may drop to a few hundred RMB

Warning: These are very rough reference prices. Actual quotations must be based on drawings, material, quantity, and surface requirements to be accurate.

Why Is There Such a Large Price Difference for Parts Produced by Lost-Wax Casting?

1. Complexity: Complex internal structures, thin walls, fine patterns → harder mold making, higher scrap rate → more expensive.

2. Material: Precious metals (gold, platinum) or special alloys (titanium, nickel-based superalloys) are expensive themselves and require high melting standards.

3. Precision and Surface: Requirements for mirror finish or zero defects → additional post-processing steps and time.

4. Batch Size: For prototyping or small batches, mold costs are high per piece; large batches can significantly reduce unit price.

5. Region: Higher labor costs in developed countries, relatively cheaper in China, but high-end process factories may also quote higher.

6. Process Chain Length: If CNC precision machining, heat treatment, or special coatings are needed after casting, the overall price goes up.

Practical Advice for Beginners:

Clarify your requirements first: Size, material, precision, surface, quantity.
Get quotes from several factories: Provide 3D drawings or samples, and ask for prototype pricing and bulk pricing.
Ask what is included: Does the quote include post-processing, inspection, shipping?
Consider alternative processes: If precision requirements are not high, you can use sand casting or die casting to reduce costs; if the quantity is very small, consider combining 3D printing with later casting.
Ways to control costs: Simplify design, choose common materials, plan batch sizes reasonably.

Summary

The price of metal parts made by lost-wax casting depends on design complexity + material + process difficulty + post-processing + quantity. For small batches, the unit price may range from a few yuan to several thousand yuan, but for large batches, it can drop significantly. As a beginner, clarify your parameters first with a drawing, then get quotes from multiple sources to better understand the reasons behind the quotes.

If needed, I can prepare a lost-wax casting quotation for you. You just need to tell us what kind of metal parts you need to manufacture. Do you need me to prepare this quotation for you? Contact us by email today!