Materials & Physics Lab
Predict shrinkage, expansion, and material behavior for woodworking, ceramics, and metalwork.
Materials move — the only question is how much
Wood picks up moisture in July and gives it back in January, and a solid oak tabletop can travel three or four millimeters across its width between seasons. Wet clay loses volume as it dries and again as it fires, so a pot thrown to a target size will finish smaller than you intended unless you plan for the total shrinkage from the start. Wax models burn out during investment casting and are replaced by metal that fills the void — but the metal weighs many times more than the wax it displaced, and knowing exactly how much saves ordering surprises. Sheet metal bent around a die does not just fold at the corner; it stretches on the outside and compresses on the inside, and the length of your flat pattern depends on which fiber lies where.
What you'll find here
Five calculators for the physical predictions that separate hobby work from professional work. The Wood Shrinkage Calculator uses USDA Forest Products Laboratory coefficients for 20 species, split by radial, tangential, and volumetric direction and by flat / quarter / rift sawn cut. The Ceramic Shrinkage Calculator handles the drying-plus-firing total for common clay bodies. The Wax-to-Metal Casting Calculator converts investment weights across 15+ metals from silver to bronze. The Sheet Metal Bend Calculator uses K-factor and bend allowance formulas from published sheet-metal fabrication references. The Segmented Woodturning Calculator produces miter angles, segment lengths, and total stock requirements for ring-turned vessels.
Coefficients, not folk wisdom
Every material property used here is a published number, not an average of shop-floor advice. Where a value depends strongly on conditions — species, alloy, temperature, moisture — the tool exposes those inputs rather than hiding them behind a fixed constant.
Tools in this lab
Wood Shrinkage Calculator
Predict dimensional changes in lumber as moisture content changes. Covers radial, tangential, and volumetric shrinkage.
Ceramic Clay Shrinkage Calculator
Calculate wet clay dimensions needed to achieve target fired pottery size, accounting for drying and firing shrinkage.
Wax-to-Metal Casting Calculator
Convert wax model weight to metal casting weight for lost-wax investment casting across 15+ metals.
Sheet Metal Bend Calculator
Calculate flat pattern length for sheet metal parts with multiple bends using K-factor and bend allowance.
Segmented Woodturning Calculator
Calculate miter angles, segment lengths, and stock requirements for segmented wood ring turning.