Several methods of production of castings have been studied via the example of a case part, an axial piston pump back-end cover, namely. These methods include sand mold casting, casting into molds made of cold-hardening mixtures, permanent mold casting, lost-wax casting, lost-foam casting. We have considered only those casting methods, which ensure obtaining internal cavities with curved axes without the use of core boxes, inserts, or any mechanic interference. The complex design and technological features of the cover made of gray cast iron show the advantages and disadvantages of each of the casting methods. We have built 3D-models taking into account allowances, laps, roughness, and accuracy of castings for each of the studied methods, i.e. sand mold casting, casting into molds made of cold hardening mixtures, permanent mold casting, lost-wax casting, lost foam casting [Baranov 2017, Domanski 2017, Elbakian 2018]. The examined casting methods have been compared in terms of the technological processes required, the time needed to obtain a casting, staff qualification. The calculation of the material utilization ratio has been carried out. As a result of research conducted, it was discovered that the optimum method of production of castings with complex internal configuration is casting into molds made of cold-hardening mixtures. The research analysis has shown that this method requires less time to prepare for casting production, than other methods. What is more, surface roughness and geometric specifications accuracy are also better than the ones, provided by other casting methods.
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