The green sand  molding process is the casting mold process of choice because --

• The patterns for the sand mold are low cost .
• A high surface finish and  tight dimensional tolerances are not critical for the ice cleat.
• The prototype run has too short of a lead time for a shell or investment pattern.
• Sand molds are suitable for producing multiple castings in a tree configuration.
• If design changes are necessary, the pattern for the sand mold can be easily changed, with the opportunity for rapid tooling methods, such as laminated object manufacturing.

Go to the section on alloy selection.