Zinc alloy castings in Zamak 3 and Zamak 5, cast to near net shape and machined in-house to ±0.005 mm. We quote in 12 hours, start production in 24, and inspect every part before it ships.
Most of these show up at the assembly line, not at the die caster.
The tool was quoted as net shape, but the gate area and parting line leave 0.3 mm of stock. That means a second setup, a second supplier, and a stack-up you did not plan for. Every extra op adds a fixture, a lead time, and a place for the tolerance to drift.
A datasheet says 120 HB, then the first lot comes back soft because the alloy was diluted with remelt. Thin walls sag under load. If the grade is not verified at the melt, the part fails in the field, not in the lab.
Gas trapped during fill opens up when the part hits the plating tank. You get pits, blisters, and a rejection pile. The cause is usually gate placement and shot profile, not the coating line.
One shop casts, another machines, and nobody owns the final dimension. Blame travels faster than the parts. When the drilled hole misses the cast boss, both suppliers can prove they were in spec.
Casting, machining, finishing, and inspection under one roof in Dongguan.
Zinc is the most fluid of the die casting alloys, so it fills thin sections that aluminum cannot. We hold walls down to about 0.5 mm on small housings and brackets. That fluidity is what makes net shape possible, but only if the gate and overflow are placed for the actual part geometry. We review fill simulation before the tool is cut.
Zinc pours at roughly 400 °C, against about 600 °C for aluminum. The lower temperature is easier on the tool. Die life on a zinc tool typically runs several times longer than the same tool in aluminum, which changes how you amortize the tool over the program.
Castings arrive at the machine with stock on the faces that matter: bearing bores, sealing faces, threaded bosses, and dowel holes. We cut those on 3-axis, 4-axis, and mill-turn centers, with 16 simultaneous 5-axis machines for parts that need one setup across five faces. Critical dimensions hold ±0.005 mm.
Because the casting and the machining are in the same building, the datum is not a negotiation. If the cast boss moves, we adjust the fixture the same day instead of shipping a deviation report across an ocean.
Both cast well. The choice usually comes down to strength versus ductility and plating.
| Property | Zamak 3 | Zamak 5 |
|---|---|---|
| Typical market | North America | Europe |
| Tensile strength | About 41,000 psi | Above 47,000 psi |
| Ductility | Higher, better for bending | Lower, stiffer |
| Hardness | About 82 HB | Slightly higher |
| Plating | Good | Good, common in EU goods |
| Best for | Housings, brackets, covers | Load-bearing fittings, connectors |
Pick the steps you need; we handle the interfaces between them.
Zinc and aluminum die casting, from tool review through first article. We build the tool around the machining stock, not the other way around.
16 simultaneous 5-axis centers for complex castings that need five faces cut in one setup. Holds ±0.005 mm on critical features.
3-axis, 4-axis, and mill-turn capacity for bores, threads, and faces on cast parts. Good fit for medium and high volume runs.
Machined or printed prototypes before you commit to a tool. Use them to check fit and assembly, not just shape.
Anodizing, plating, powder coating, black oxide, blasting, and laser marking. Zinc takes most coatings well, which widens your options.
For the brackets and covers that bolt to the casting. Buying both from one supplier keeps the hole pattern aligned.
Scope is set on the quote. Nothing below is assumed.
| Item | Range | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Order quantity | 1 prototype to 10,000+ | No minimum order quantity |
| Casting process | Zinc die casting | Zamak 3 or Zamak 5 |
| Machining stock | Set per feature | Left on critical faces only |
| Tolerance | ±0.005 mm | On machined features |
| Finish | Ra 0.8–1.6 μm | As-machined or finer on request |
| Inspection | 100% before shipment | Material, in-process, final |
| First article | Included on request | Report with the first parts |
| Leading time | Quote in 12 hours | Production start in 24 hours |
Numbers first. The rest is process.
Held on bores, faces, and dowel holes after casting. The cast tolerances are wider by design.
Zinc fills thin sections that aluminum struggles with. Good for small housings and light covers.
Quotation and a free DFM review within 12 hours of receiving your files.
Once the tool and the first article are approved, we can start cutting within a day.
Across three wholly-owned plants, including 16 simultaneous 5-axis centers.
Every part inspected before shipment, with reports on request.
Sensor bodies and actuator housings that need flat sealing faces and tight bore alignment.
Boxes and covers with thin walls, cast-in bosses, and a finish that takes powder coat.
Pressure-tight castings where porosity is a leak path. Gating and shot profile reviewed first.
Small, high-volume parts that ship as net shape with only the mating face cut.
Zamak 3 is the usual choice for North American parts. It is more ductile, so it bends instead of cracking, and it plates well. Housings, brackets, and covers are typical.
Zamak 5 trades some ductility for strength and hardness. European customers often specify it for load-bearing fittings and connectors. If your part sees repeated load or needs higher surface hardness, start with Zamak 5 and check the plating spec.
For non-critical features, yes. Zinc fills thin sections well, so cast holes, ribs, and lettering come out clean. Net shape production is realistic when the tolerances are loose enough to be held by the tool.
Anything that seals, rotates, or locates another part should still be machined. A bearing bore or a sealing face needs a cut surface, not a cast skin. We typically leave stock on those features and cut them on our own CNCs.
Zinc pours at roughly 400 °C versus about 600 °C for aluminum. The lower thermal load slows die wear, so a zinc tool normally lasts several times longer.
That changes the economics on mid-volume programs. You amortize the tool over more parts, and you spend less on tool maintenance during the run.
Anodizing, electroless nickel, zinc, silver and gold plating, powder coating, black oxide, bead blasting, tumbling, brushing, and polishing. Laser marking is available with a minimum character height of 1.5 mm.
Zinc accepts a wider range of coatings than aluminum, which is one reason it shows up in electrical and telecom hardware. Tell us the finish on the quote and we will leave the right stock and surface condition.
We review gate and overflow placement against the part geometry before the tool is cut. Shot profile is set to keep the fill front moving and vent the last-filled areas.
If a part is pressure-tight or will be plated, say so on the RFQ. Those two cases need different process settings, and porosity that is harmless on a painted cover can reject a plated one.
There is no minimum order quantity. We run single prototypes through 10,000+ piece runs.
A prototype order is often machined rather than cast, because the tool cost does not make sense for one part. We will tell you which route is cheaper for your quantity.
Quotation and a free DFM analysis come back within 12 hours. Production can start within 24 hours of approval, and parts typically ship in 3–5 days.
Tooling for a new casting is a separate timeline and depends on the part. We will put that schedule in the quote so there is no ambiguity about when the first parts arrive.
Uploads are handled as confidential, and we sign an NDA on request before reviewing files. Our information security management system is certified to ISO 27001:2022.
If your program requires it, we can limit the drawing package to the features needed for the quote and keep the rest off the shop floor.
Upload the model and we will return a quote with a DFM review within 12 hours. Cast, machined, finished, and inspected by one supplier.
12-hour quote100% inspectionNo minimum order quantityNDA on request
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Upload your 3D model or 2D drawing and get a quotation with a free DFM analysis. Maximum processing size 4,000 mm.
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