In the metal accessories industry, the ability to make components using the lost-wax investment casting technique can really make a difference. Stefano Giacomozzi of F&G, a company in the Marche region of Italy that has been involved in the production of buckles and metal accessories for the fashion industry for more than 50 years, explains why. Here, all processing is done in-house and both maximum ductility in the face of requests and total confidentiality on the designs provided by brands to make the finished product are guaranteed.
“The lost-wax investment casting technique, used on brass, bronze, and precious metals, makes it possible to obtain results of marked three-dimensionality, giving greater realism to the appearance of the buckle, while working on thinner thicknesses than can be obtained with zamak processing, up to 1.5/1.2 mm,” Giacomozzi explains. “So as a result we have not only thinner objects but of a much higher artistic level, so much so that we collaborate with sculptors who handcraft the first prototype.
A niche working technique, derived from goldsmithing, capable of preserving every detail with extreme precision. “Recently,” Giacomozzi recounts, “we made, for one brand, a tiger head studded with rhinestones that was part of a buckle; in another case, thanks to a special mold that allowed us to keep every smallest detail intact, we created an engraving on the barb. If we had used zamak we would have had to laser process it, but it would not have had the same definition.” In short, a solution adopted by luxury brands that elevates the product to a quality level at first glance.
“If the difference between zamak and brass is normally not noticeable,” Giacomozzi goes on to explain, “in this case the difference can be seen and a lot. There is no other process that can guarantee the three-dimensionality and quality of detail given by investment casting. We have our own collection to give an idea of the results that can be achieved, but each product is then 100 percent customized.”
