Urethane Casting & Cast Polyurethane
Two related processes live on this page because they solve two very different problems with the same family of materials.
Vacuum (urethane) casting — moulded parts without moulded tooling
A master pattern is 3D printed or machined, a silicone tool is cast around it, and parts are poured in that tool under vacuum. The result looks and behaves close to an injection-moulded part — including clear, coloured, textured and over-moulded finishes — at a fraction of the tooling cost. It is the right answer for roughly 10–100 parts: too many to print economically, far too few to justify steel.
Cast polyurethane — the industrial workhorse
Cast polyurethane outlasts rubber in abrasion, tear and load-bearing service and is specified by durometer for the job. This is where most of our industrial demand sits: drive and idler roller recovering, conveyor wheels, bumpers and stops, chute and hopper liners, wear pads, scraper blades, die-cutting pads, and custom bushings and mounts — including exact replacements for worn parts no longer sold.
What to send
For cast parts, a 3D model or drawing plus quantity, colour and required durometer. For roller recovering, send the roller core (or its dimensions), the finished outside diameter, the durometer and the service conditions — abrasion, impact, oil, heat, food contact — email [email protected].
Upload your drawing — quote in 1 business day
Urethane Casting — processes available
| Process | Where it fits |
|---|---|
| Vacuum / silicone-tool casting | Moulded-quality plastic parts in low volume from a printed or machined master pattern. |
| Open cast polyurethane | Wheels, rollers, pads, bumpers and liners cast to the durometer the application needs. |
| Roller recovering | Worn drive, idler and pinch rollers stripped, re-cast on the original core and ground to size. |
| Bonded urethane-to-metal | Urethane chemically bonded to steel or aluminum inserts, cores and mounting plates. |
| Precision grinding | Cast rollers ground to finished diameter, concentricity and surface finish. |
Materials
| Polyurethane | Polyester and polyether urethane, 20 Shore A through 75 Shore D |
|---|---|
| Casting resins | ABS-like, PP-like, PC-like, rubber-like, clear, and high-temperature resins |
| Rubbers | Natural rubber, nitrile, EPDM, neoprene, silicone and Viton where urethane is unsuitable |
| Colours | Pigmented to standard or matched shades; FDA-compliant grades for food contact on request |
| Inserts | Steel, stainless and aluminum cores, hubs and mounting plates bonded in |
Typical capabilities
| Cast tolerance | ±0.010 in (±0.25 mm) typical on cast features; ground features held tighter |
|---|---|
| Durometer range | 20 Shore A (very soft) to 75 Shore D (rigid), specified per application |
| Silicone tool life | Typically 20–25 pours per tool before the surface degrades |
| Economic volume | Roughly 10–100 parts for vacuum casting; one piece upward for industrial cast urethane |
| Roller sizes | Small idlers through large drive rollers — send core dimensions for confirmation |
| Bond strength | Chemically bonded urethane-to-metal, tested to exceed the tear strength of the urethane |
Components we already stock for this work
Ship the standard parts on the same order
Custom parts rarely go into service alone. These are real, currently listed catalog items from the component families that usually accompany this kind of work — quote them on the same request and they arrive together.
Power Transmission
Other processes we quote
Urethane Casting — Frequently Asked Questions
How do I get a quote for urethane casting?
Upload your drawing or 3D model on this page — STEP, IGES, DWG, DXF, STL, SolidWorks, Inventor, Parasolid, PDF drawings, photos, or a ZIP of the whole package — with the quantity and material, or email the same files to [email protected]. We review the package and reply with pricing, lead time and any manufacturability notes within 1 business day. If you only have a physical sample, send photos with a few measured dimensions and we will work from that.
Can you recover a worn conveyor or drive roller?
Yes, and it is usually far cheaper than a new roller assembly. Send the roller (or its core dimensions, finished outside diameter, face width and shaft detail) with the durometer and service conditions. The old covering is stripped, the core inspected, new urethane cast on and ground to the finished diameter and concentricity. If bearings or seals in the assembly are also worn, we supply those from our catalog at the same time.
What durometer should I specify?
As a starting point: 60–70 Shore A for soft grip and shock absorption, 80–90 Shore A for general conveyor rollers and wheels, 95 Shore A and above for load-bearing wheels and high-abrasion liners, and Shore D for rigid structural components. Describe the load, speed, surface and environment instead of guessing and we will recommend a durometer and a urethane chemistry.
When should I choose urethane casting over injection molding?
When you need roughly 10 to 100 plastic parts. Below that, 3D printing is cheaper; above it, bridge tooling starts to win. Vacuum casting gets you moulded-looking parts with no hard tooling, which also makes it useful for a final fit-and-finish check before you commit to a steel tool.
Who actually manufactures the parts?
KKM Solutions is a manufacturing sourcing partner, not an in-house plant. Your job is placed with a vetted contract manufacturer matched to the process, material, tolerance and volume — so a prototype, a 5-axis aerospace-grade part and a 10,000-piece production run each go to a shop that runs that work every day, instead of being forced onto whatever equipment one factory happens to own. KKM manages the order, the paperwork and the delivery, and you deal with one supplier throughout.
What happens to my drawings and design files?
Files you send are used only to quote and manufacture your parts, are shared only with the supplier quoting the job, and are never published, resold, or used to list a product in our catalog. If you need a signed non-disclosure agreement in place first, ask for one at [email protected] before sending anything.
Can KKM Solutions supply the standard components that go with a custom part?
Yes — that is the reason to buy custom parts here rather than from a pure manufacturing marketplace. The catalog already lists more than 300,000 bearings, seals, sensors, motors, drives, pneumatic and power-transmission components, so a machined shaft can ship with its bearings and seals, and a fabricated frame with its guarding hardware, on one order and one invoice.
Need urethane casting?
Upload the drawing and we will come back with price, lead time and any design notes within 1 business day.
KKM Solutions manufactures through a vetted network of contract machine shops, fabricators, moulders and finishers rather than an in-house plant. Process capabilities, tolerances and lead times shown on this page are typical for the processes described and are confirmed against your drawing on the written quote, which is the governing document for every order.