PROJECT: Celtic Leaf Sword

Cast in Steel 2022 competition challenges university students to use modern casting tools to creatively design and produce a functioning version of a Celtic Leaf Sword.

Each Sword will be put through a series of tests appropriate for these types of swords. All submissions should include your sword, a project video and technical report documenting the design and manufacturing process.

Competition Requirements

Teams will perform all aspects of bringing a new Celtic Leaf Sword through the manufacturing process from conception to use. All four (4) components of the project must be submitted. All students must:

1. Provide a preliminary plan
   • Rough outline of steps
   • Tentative timeframe
   • Questions/issues they need to address
   • Preliminary decisions they’ve made (type of steel, casting process, etc.)
2. Make their version of a Celtic Leaf Sword
   • Your sword should weigh no more than 3.5 lbs.
   • Your sword should not be longer than 32 inches in overall length.
3. Document their project with a professional Technical Report supporting their decisions.
4. Produce a Project Video, not to exceed 5 minutes, that documents their project.

All project components submitted for the competition become property of SFSA.

Teams

Cast in Steel 2022 challenges university students to use steel casting to creatively make a Celtic Leaf Sword. Teams must have:

1. Student teams who will design, build, and test their Celtic Leaf Sword. At least one member must be a current college student.
2. A faculty sponsor to help the team.
3. An industrial partner familiar with steel castings.

Awards

Each sword entry will be eligible for 5 awards and a Grand Prize:

1. Best Design and Process ($200/student)
2. Best Authentic Celtic Leaf Sword ($200/student)
3. Best Casting ($200/student)
4. Best Project Video documenting the project ($200/student)
5. Best Performance based on testing and expert evaluation ($200/student)

Grand Prize based on the top 5 rankings from 1-5 above. Weighting of the scores will be (1) Design and Process 25%, (2) Celtic Sword Authenticity 15%, (3) Casting 25%, (4) Video 10%, and (5) Performance 25%

Prize money is capped at:

• $500/student for teams with 2-5 students
• $2500/team for teams with more than 5 students

Evaluation

1. Competition will be judged by panel of steel experts selected by SFSA
2. The technical reports and video entries will be judged by Master Founders and Lifetime SFSA members.
3. The performance evaluation will include a series of tests established to prove the worthiness of each sword.

Important Events Submission Dates

Friday, December 31, 2021		Proposed teams, and preliminary plan due.
Friday, April 1, 2022		Project video, technical report, and Celtic Leaf Sword due.
Friday, April 22, 2022*		Cast in Steel performance testing in Columbus, Ohio.
Sunday, April 24, 2022		Awards Ceremony in Columbus, Ohio at the AFS CastExpo
(AFS has graciously agreed to be the Presenting Sponsor at CastExpo)

*For the testing on Friday, April 22, teams, and mentors are highly encouraged to attend and compete with their Celtic Leaf Swords. We also encourage you to stay for the Awards Ceremony.

Technical Report Must Contain

Your technical report must not exceed 30 pages. (This will include your cover page and resources pages so clear and concise writing is necessary)

1. Cover Page:
   • Must use the outline of the below linked cover page. An example cover page is included in the document.
     

     2022 SFSA Cast In Steel Cover Page Outline and Example.docx

2. Address the following:
   • State the reason for the competition: “SFSA has created this competition to encourage students to learn about making steel products using the casting process and applying the latest technology available”. This should be in the introduction of your Technical Report.
   • *The historical background and accuracy of your Celtic Leaf Sword and explain why your Celtic Leaf Sword is an authentic Celtic Leaf Sword.
   • *Your design process and the steps you took to get to your final product.
   • *Your final results should show that it meets contest requirements (state the final length, weight, and materials of your Celtic Leaf Sword).

   *Present each in the one-page executive summary as part of your technical report.

3. Other suggested topics that can be addressed in your technical report:
   • What metallurgical decisions were made with respect to your Celtic Leaf Sword.
   • What type of casting process was selected, what led you to that decision, and the casting process steps you used while creating your Celtic Leaf Sword.
   • What kind of inspection and testing your Celtic Leaf Swords were subjected to before submission.

Registration

Are you ready to compete? CLICK HERE to register your team for the CIS 2022 competition.

American Foundry Society

More information about the American Foundry Society (AFS) and their 2022 CastExpo can be found at the link below.

https://www.afsinc.org/tradeshows/castexpo-2022

Sponsors

Companies interested in sponsoring the Cast in Steel 2022 competition are welcome and should contact monroe@sfsa.org. AFS has graciously agreed to be the Presenting Sponsor for the Awards ceremony at the 2022 CastExpo.

The Event

Award winners

• Main Awards
  • Pittsburg State University: Best Performance & Runner up for the Best Technical Report
  • Penn State Behrend: Best Technical Report
  • University of South Alabama: Best Project Video

• “Ben’s Honorable Mentions”
  • University of South Alabama: Most Creative Alloy Combination
  • Art et Métiers Science et Technologies: Most Likely to be Confused for a Wrench (Honored for the Unique Shape)
  • Saint Martin’s University: Most Likely to Explode (Honored for the Challenge of the casting)
  • Georgia Southern University: Most intricate Casting
  • Texas State University - Team 2: Must-Have for a Zombie Apocalypse (Honored for the Strength of the Points)
  • Texas State University - Team 1: Most Interesting Head Design

Technical Reports

Super Steel Hammer

Many thanks for the generous donation of our sponsor, MAGMA Foundry Technologies, Inc.

Award winners

• Main Awards
  • Best Performance - Virginia Tech
  • Best Technical Report - Texas A & M University
  • Best Video - University of South Alabama

• “Ben’s Best” Recognized for special attributes and creativity:
  • Most Period Correct Handle - Mississippi, Team 2
  • Most Ambitious Casting & Intricate Design - Missouri State University
  • Unique Design - Instituto Tecnologico de Morelia, Mexico
  • Best Cast Guard & Pommel - Pittsburg State University - Fist Pommel
  • Most Surprising Knife Cast - Penn State University

Technical Reports

Team	Knife, Testing & expert commentary
Cal Poly San Luis Obispo - Team 1 Technical Report Industry Partners: American Casting Company Pacific Heat Treating Co. AWL Tech Engineering & Machining, Inc. Ridgeline Knife Works
Cal Poly San Luis Obispo - Team 2 Technical Report Industry Partners: American Casting Company Pacific Heat Treating Co. AWL Tech Engineering & Machining, Inc. Ridgeline Knife Works
Instituto Technológico de Morelia Technical Report Team video Industry Partners: Fundidora Morelia
Instituto Tecnológico de Saltillo Technical Report Team video Industry Partners: Mahle - Planta Camisas, Ramos Arizpe
Mississippi State Team - 1 (No report) Industry Partners: Southern Cast Products (Meridian, MS)
Mississippi State Team - 2 (No report) Industry Partners: Southern Cast Products (Meridian, MS)
Missouri University of Science & Technology (No report) Team video Industry Partners: Metaltek-Carondelet Southern Cast Products (Jonesboro, AR)
Penn State University - Behrend Technical Report Team video Industry Partners: Regal Cast Urick Ductile Solutions
Pittsburg State University Technical Report Team video Industry Partners: Monett Metals
St Martins University (No report) Team video Industry Partners: Bradken
Texas A&M Technical Report Team video Industry Partners: Texcast American Foundry Group Holt SigniCast Applied Process
Texas State - Team 1 Technical Report Team video Industry Partners: American Foundry Group
Texas State - Team 2 Technical Report Team video Industry Partners: American Foundry Group
Texas State - Team 3 Technical Report Team video Industry Partners: American Foundry Group
University of Northern Iowa Technical Report Industry Partners: Omaha Steel
University of Pittsburgh at Johnstown Technical Report Industry Partners: McConway & Torley, LLC
University of South Alabama Technical Report Team video Industry Partners: Howell Foundry LLC
Virginia Tech Technical Report Team video Industry Partners: Midwest Metal Products

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Award winners

• Main Awards
  • Best Performance - Instituto Technológico de Morelia
  • Best Engineering Design - Texas State University

• Special Awards
  • (Runners up) Engineering Design - Cal Poly-Pomona Team#1 & Penn State-Behrend
  • Most Captivating Design - Pittsburg State
  • Most Likely To Succeed - University of South Alabama
  • Most Historically Accurate - Mississippi State
  • Best Axe Swinger - Jenni Brown from University of Alabama at Birmingham

Technical Reports

Tap school name to view report

Report	Axe	Testing & expert commentary
Instituto Technológico de Morelia Winner - Best Performance
Texas State University Winner - Best Engineering Design
California State Polytechnic University, Pomona Team 1 (Investment)
California State Polytechnic University, Pomona Team 2 (Sand)
Georgia Southern University Team 1 (Liggett)
Georgia Southern University Team 2 (Lewis)
Iowa State University Team 1 (Sand)
Iowa State University Team 2 (Investment)
Kent State University
Michigan Technological University
Mississippi State University
Pittsburg State University
Penn State
Purdue University
University of South Alabama
University of Alabama at Birmingham
University of Northern Iowa Team 1 (Investment)
University of Northern Iowa Team 2 (Sand)
University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee
Youngstown State University

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