Custom Alloy Success Stories

Belmont has been working with customers for over a century to develop custom alloys for their business. Through partnering with our customers to understand their metallurgical challenges and then leveraging our expertise, we have developed impactful solutions.

Belmont offers a unique service where we can produce 5-10 lb samples that meet your precise specifications. This is ideal for R&D departments and University’s that are doing research in this field. For more information on this service please visit our R&D Alloy Production webpage: Alloys for Research & Development

Here are a few of the many examples over the years of what we can do:

Paktong (Cupro Nickel and Nickel-Copper)

  • Problem: Paktong is an ancient, long lost alloy of copper, nickel and zinc, which resembles silver. It is slow to tarnish and wears well. Paktong was imported into England from China. When a well established Antiquities company decided to duplicate the alloy, they chose Oxford University to analyze a Chinese casting from 1720 for duplication. But the defined formula did not cast well and the color was not correct.
  • Solution: Belmont was able to determine that the formula they analyzed was not the original formula. The addition of certain trace elements was required to act as grain refiners and color enhancers. Some of these base metals either burn off in the original casting process or segregate, which would render their original assay unusable. With the right element additions, Belmont shipped the alloy to a casting house in Pennsylvania where they were finally able to cast the finished products with the right color and consistency.
  • Impact: Our customer used the alloy to produce beautiful Candelabra’s with the material. They ended up having tremendous success with debuting the product at company events, starting in Milan, Paris, New York and then throughout the world

Premier Watch Manufacturer

  • Problem: A premier watch manufacturer that was having a problem with their brass watch bezels, the pins that protrude from the bezels that hold on the strap were breaking and causing a failure in almost 50% of the bezels.
  • Solution: Belmont worked closely with the manufacturer to come up with a new red metals alloy that was more ductile, but also met the color requirements and castability of the original alloy.
  • Impact: The new alloy that Belmont helped to develop reduced the failure rate of the castings to less than 1%. This alloy became one of the staples of the industry.

Global Jewelry Manufacturer

  • Problem: A leading Global Jewelry Manufacturer was faced with growing concerns of toxic metals in their cast metal products. Laws were changing quickly and the availability of high quality, lead free alloys that would allow them to cast their parts with low porosity was nonexistent. They needed a tin based alloy that would replace their Pacific Rim factories current alloys without changing the manufacturing processes now in place.
  • Solution: After literally inviting all of the world’s major producers to submit a single, viable formula, they ultimately chose the Belmont brand as their starting point. After several iterations of the original alloy, Belmont was able to supply their in-house and outside vendors with one remarkable alloy that would require little or no change to their production methods.
  • Impact: After several years of use, it was decided to expand the program to other countries and remains as a single and unique alloy for their product line.

Please don’t hesistate to contact our Sales Department for a consultation and let Belmont go to work for your business!