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Die Casting Medals vs Stamping: Which Is Better for Custom Medals?

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When you decide to order custom medals, you are faced with a critical technical choice: die casting medals or stamping? This choice is the foundation of your medal design and dictates everything from the custom shapes available to the final shipping costs. 

Choosing the right custom manufacturing method affects the custom quality, the custom cost, the custom lead time, and the custom design flexibility of your custom medals. Many providers offer affordable die casting medals, with hundreds of options to choose from, making it easy to find the perfect fit for your needs.

There is often no minimum order requirement, so you can order as few as one medal without restrictions.

Whether you are organizing a soccer tournament, a martial arts belt test, or a cross country meet, the custom medals you provide should leave a lasting impression on every recipient. This guide will help you navigate the custom world of cast medals and stamped awards so you can save money while delivering great quality to your athletes.

What Is Die Casting?

Die casting medals involve a process where molten metal is injected under high pressure into a steel die. This custom method is the gold standard for custom die cast medals and custom diecast medals that require 3D reliefs and complex custom shapes. If your award medals feature a 3D logo or intricate textures, die casting medals are the superior choice.

In a medals shop, you will find that cast medals allow for custom features like integrated bottle openers or spinning parts. Because the die cast process uses a liquid metal, it can fill every tiny corner of a custom mold, making it the best way to create custom medals with achievement details that pop.

What Is Stamping?

Stamping is a custom process where a heavy die is pressed onto a sheet of metal (usually brass, steel, or aluminum) to “stamp” the logo and word medal text onto the surface. Unlike die casting medals, which are molded from liquid, stamped custom medals are cut from solid sheets.

Stamping is a traditional custom method often used for military medals or simple award medals. It is a custom way to produce medals quickly, though it is limited to 2D custom designs. For a soccer league or cross country event needing thousands of medals with a flat logo, stamping can help you save money.

A pallet of new zinc alloy raw materials, neatly stacked and secured with green straps and plastic wrap, ready for storage or transport.
We insist on quality, using only brand-new raw materials to ensure the quality of each product.

Key Differences

Design Flexibility

When you create custom medals, flexibility is everything. Die casting medals offer high flexibility for 3D custom designs, multi-layered custom medals, and custom shapes that stamping simply cannot achieve. While die cast medals can be thick and textured, stamped medals are limited to flat custom surfaces with minimal medal detailing.

Production Time and Cost

The custom setup for die casting medals typically involves a higher upfront custom mold cost. Because cast medals require the metal to cool and the die to be prepared with precision, the custom lead time is longer.

Some providers may also charge extra for custom features such as color options or designer plates, so it’s important to confirm all additional charges before placing your order. Stamping, however, is a faster custom process. 

If you need to order custom medals in high volumes for sport events on a tight custom deadline, stamped medals are more efficient.

Custom Quality and Detail

For custom die cast medals, the custom precision is unmatched. Cast medals allow for deep custom engravings and raised custom elements that give a gold, silver, or bronze medal its weight and value.

Stamping produces cleaner edges for flat custom medals but fails to provide the custom depth needed for a lasting impression.

A metal cage filled with leftover zinc alloy pieces, representing the scrap material collected after the die casting process, placed in a warehouse environment next to water bottles.
Production waste is stored uniformly and then sold to other raw material recycling companies.

Pros and Cons of Die Casting

Pros:

  • Custom 3D designs: Ideal for complex custom die cast medals.

  • Custom detail: Die casting medals capture every part of your logo.

  • Custom shapes: Die cast allows for unique custom medals and custom insert medals.

  • Custom size: Can accommodate larger award medals for major achievement events.

  • Ability to select from a variety of holders and features to best fit your budget and preferences.

Cons:

  • Custom cost: Higher custom price per medal.

  • Custom setup: Initial die creation for cast medals is an investment.

  • Custom lead time: Die casting medals take longer to produce.

A worker carefully opening the sprue of a metal mold, allowing molten zinc alloy to flow into the mold cavities, with gloves and flashlight for precision.
A master with over ten years of experience is crafting the sink, ensuring the presentation of the entire medal.

Pros and Cons of Stamping

Pros:

  • Custom speed: Faster production for sport medals.

  • Custom savings: Helps you save money on high-volume awards.

  • Custom simplicity: Best for standard custom medals.

  • Custom consistency: Reliable for thousands of the same design.

Cons:

  • Custom limits: No 3D custom diecast medals capability.

  • Custom depth: Stamped medals lack the custom relief of die cast awards.

A close-up of a worker wearing protective gloves operating a metal stamping machine at the exact moment of pressing, showing the industrial production process in a factory setting.
A close-up of a worker wearing protective gloves operating a metal stamping machine at the exact moment of pressing, showing the industrial production process in a factory setting.

Looking for the perfect custom medals?

Choosing between die cast and stamped medals depends on your medal design goals. PeaKeen can be your partner when it comes to custom medals, and their sales team are experts in giving you directions in design and placing your custom medals order. 

Whether you need custom die cast medals for a martial arts tournament or simple stamped awards for a soccer match, PeaKeen ensures great quality every time.

When to Use Die Casting Medals

You should choose die casting medals when your event requires a high-end, commemorative feel. For martial arts or sportachievementawards, the weight of custom diecast medals makes a difference. If your custom medals include:

  • Custom 3D reliefs or logo textures.

  • Custom interactive parts (spinners or sliders).

  • Custom cut-outs or unique custom shapes.

  • Custom insert medals for specific athletes—these are made of two parts: a sublimated insert disc and a solid metal insert holder, allowing you to customize the medal to suit individual needs by choosing different designs for both the insert and the holder.

In these cases, die casting medals are the only way to create a gold, silver, or bronze award that feels truly special.

When to Use Stamping for Custom Medals

Stamping is the custom choice for high-volume running events like a cross country marathon.

If you are looking to save money and need five thousand soccer medals with a simple logo, stamping is the way to go. It is the best custom method for budget-conscious events where a flat award medal is sufficient.

Case Studies

  • Example 1: A Commemorative Anniversary Event. A medals shop was asked to create a custom 50th-anniversary medal for a university. The medal design featured a detailed 3D logo of the campus clock tower. Die casting medals were chosen because only cast medals could add depth to the architecture, creating a lasting impression for every recipient. The company was able to serve the client’s needs by offering custom insert medals that typically cost under $7.50 each, with no minimum order requirements—allowing the university to order exactly the quantity they needed.

  • Example 2: A Massive City Marathon. With ten thousand athletes participating in a soccer and cross country festival, the organizers needed to order custom medals quickly and affordably. Stamping allowed them to produce gold, silver, and bronze medals with the city logo at a fraction of the custom setup cost, ensuring everyone received their award medals on time. The flexibility to serve both small and large orders meant the organizers could confidently request any quantity, from a single medal to thousands, without restrictions.

A worker wearing protective gloves operating a metal stamping press, pressing metal sheets with precise force during the manufacturing process in a factory setting.
A worker wearing protective gloves operating a metal stamping press, pressing metal sheets with precise force during the manufacturing process in a factory setting.

Conclusion

In the end, the choice between die casting medals and stamping comes down to your custom priorities. If you want great quality, 3D detail, and custom shapes, custom die cast medals are the winner. If you need to save money on a simple custom logo for a high-volume sport event, stamping is your best friend.

Understanding the trade-off between custom design complexity and custom production cost is essential for any medals shop customer. No matter which custom path you choose, make sure your award medals represent the hard work of your athletes.

When you are ready to order custom medals, look for a manufacturer that offers both custom diecast medals and high-quality stamped awards. PeaKeen is dedicated to providing custom medals that help you celebrate every achievement. From providing a free quote on this page to ensuring safe shipping to your door, PeaKeen makes the custom process easy and reliable for all your awards needs. Our team is happy to answer any questions and assist with orders of any size, ensuring you receive excellent customer service and support throughout your experience.

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