Gray & Ductile Iron Castings
WE CAST
WHAT OTHERS
WON'T.
Complex geometry. Challenging weights. Flexible quantities. Difficult foundry transfers. When other suppliers say no, Dakota Foundry brings the experience, equipment and determination to find a way forward.
As Featured In & Recognized By
200–2,000 LB
Sweet Spot
5,000 LB
Gray Iron Max
3,500 LB
Ductile Iron Max
Is Your Casting a Fit?
WE BUILD THE
IMPOSSIBLE.
Dakota Foundry thrives on challenging work — complex patterns, difficult geometries, heavy castings and the jobs that other foundries turn away.
- Production sweet spot: approximately 200–2,000 lb
- Gray iron up to 5,000 lb
- Ductile iron up to 3,500 lb
- Prototype to production quantities
- Complex cored and complicated patterns
- Tight delivery windows
- Domestic sourcing requirements
- Foundry rescue — quality or delivery failures
What We Do
Full-Service Gray & Ductile Iron Casting Capabilities
From difficult print to dependable iron casting, Dakota Foundry combines experienced people, flexible molding and integrated tooling support to cast what others won't.
Tooling, Design & Development
- Casting design assistance
- Pattern and core-box development
- CNC-machined tooling through Spartan Pattern
- MAGMA casting simulation
- On-site pattern storage
Gray Iron Castings
- Classes 30, 35, 40 and 45
- Castings up to 5,000 pounds
- Complex and cored components
- Prototype and production quantities
Ductile Iron Castings
- 60-40-18
- 65-45-12
- 80-55-06
- Castings up to 3,500 pounds
Molding
- No-Bake rollover molding
- Production sweet spot ~200–2,000 lbs
- Floor molding for larger castings
- Green sand for select applications
Core Production & 3D Sand
- Complex core assemblies
- Conventional core production
- 3D-printed sand molds and cores
- Rapid prototype support
Melting & Metallurgy
- Gray and ductile iron melting
- Controlled material chemistry
- In-process metallurgical verification
- Heat-specific quality documentation when required
Finishing & Value-Added Support
- Shakeout and cleaning
- Grinding and casting finishing
- Shot-blast capabilities where applicable
- Machining and finishing coordination when required
Quality & Verification
- In-process and final inspection
- Material and chemistry verification
- Dimensional and visual inspection
- Customer-required certifications and documentation
- Responsive corrective-action support
Have a Casting Others Won't Take On?
Send Us Your Print
How It Works
PRINT TO PALLET.
SEVEN STEPS.
Send us your drawing or 3D model to begin. We will verify the tooling path, produce and validate a sample casting, and move into production only after receiving customer approval.
PATTERN VERIFY OR BUILD
We inspect and verify customer-supplied tooling or develop a new casting pattern. New pattern builds and major tooling revisions typically require 4–8 weeks.
PATTERN VERIFY OR BUILD
We inspect and verify customer-supplied tooling or develop a new casting pattern. New pattern builds and major tooling revisions typically require 4–8 weeks.
MOLD & CORE
Once the pattern is ready, we produce the required sand mold and cores according to the approved casting design.
SAMPLE POUR
We melt and pour the specified gray or ductile iron to produce an initial sample casting for evaluation.
CUSTOMER APPROVAL
The sample is finished, inspected and submitted to the customer for validation. Written customer approval is required before production is released.
PRODUCTION
After sample approval, the project enters the production schedule for molding, pouring and completion of the approved quantity.
FINISH & VERIFY
Production castings are cleaned, ground, inspected and verified against the approved requirements.
SHIP
Completed castings are packaged and shipped according to the approved delivery plan.
Estimated Project Timing
Pattern verification or new pattern build
Typically 4–8 weeks
Sample through production completion
Typically an additional 8–12 weeks
Timing depends on
Casting complexity, material requirements, customer approval timing and the current production schedule
All timelines are estimates and begin after the required project information, purchase order and applicable tooling requirements have been confirmed. Production cannot begin until the customer approves the submitted sample.
Need It Faster?
Expedited production and expedited shipping may be available for an additional cost, subject to foundry capacity, material availability and project requirements.
250+ Unique Castings. One World Record.
Recreating the legendary 150 HP Case steam engine required far more than a standard production run. It required years of problem-solving, historical research, pattern development and more than 250 unique castings—many of them produced with the help of the Dakota Foundry team.
Led by Kory Anderson and supported by skilled foundrymen, patternmakers, machinists and builders, the completed engine earned a Guinness World Records title as the world's largest steam-powered tractor.
This project represents what Dakota Foundry does best: taking on complex work, solving difficult casting challenges and helping build what others consider impossible.
See how a South Dakota foundry helped bring an American manufacturing legend back to life.
What Customers Say
The quality is exceptional. Minimal shift, no warp, no inclusions or porosity, no cold shots and well ground to boot. We all thought we had died and gone to heaven! YOUR CREW IS BETTER THAN ADVERTISED.
Jeff Machacek
VP, Northfield Machinery Builders, Inc.
Industries Served
View All →The Anderson Foundries Network
ONE NETWORK. EVERY CASTING NEED.
Dakota Foundry for iron. Muncie Castings for aluminum. Spartan Pattern for tooling. Anderson Foundries connects it all.
One Trusted Casting Network
Anderson Foundries
A growing American foundry network connecting customers with aluminum, gray iron, ductile iron and advanced tooling solutions.
Aluminum Castings
Muncie Castings
An experienced American foundry producing aluminum castings up to 400 pounds, with flexible production capabilities, responsive service and complete support from tooling through finished casting.
Advanced Pattern & Tooling Solutions
Spartan Pattern
Expert pattern design, CNC-machined patterns, core boxes, 3D sand printing and MAGMA casting simulation — all built to improve quality before the first pour.
Common Questions
Frequently Asked Questions
Dakota Foundry produces gray iron castings up to 5,000 pounds and ductile iron castings up to 3,500 pounds. Our production sweet spot is generally castings weighing approximately 200 to 2,000 pounds, although every project is evaluated individually.
Or email [email protected]
Get in Touch
Request a Quote
Tell us about your casting project and our team will get back to you promptly.
A Division of Anderson Foundries
Address
Dakota Foundry
20 Park Lane
Webster, South Dakota 57274
Office
605-345-3349Attach your drawing, 3D model or project specs. We accept PDF, DWG and STEP formats. Difficult castings, challenging geometries and foundry rescues welcome.