One angle I never see talked about is the waste. No-bake sand doesn't have the bentonite clay, so you skip that sticky sludge cleanup. It breaks down cleaner, which saves a lot of time after the cast. For smaller operations, that back-end hassle really makes a difference.
Totally feel you on the sludge. My flasks used to get that nasty green sand coating that took forever to pressure wash off. Switched to no-bake for a batch of gear blanks last month and the sand just fell apart after shakeout. I saved like an hour of scrubbing per casting session, which adds up fast. That cleanup time is a hidden cost nobody talks about.
Yeah, @mitchell.mia, I've been there with the green sand gunk. In my experience, once that sludge sets, it's like concrete. Switching to no-bake made a big difference for me too, but your mileage may vary based on the mold size. I found that even with no-bake, letting it cool fully before shakeout helps it crumble better. That extra minute of patience saves another ten of chiseling later, so the time saved really adds up.