Abstract: Apparatus for supplying melt from a melt-holding vessel to a casting machine comprises a ceramic melt pump casing or housing submersible in the melt. The casing includes a melt-pumping chamber with a melt inlet and melt outlet and a piston-receiving bore communicated to the chamber. A piston having a ceramic pumping portion is movable in the bore relative to the chamber in a suction stroke to draw the melt into the chamber through the melt inlet and in a pumping stroke to discharge the melt from the chamber through the melt outlet to, for example, a melt casting machine. A melt inlet valve having a ceramic valve portion submersible in the melt is movable relative to the melt inlet to open/close the melt inlet when the piston pumping portion is moved in the respective suction/pumping stroke.

Abstract: A crosswise controllable pilot valve for generating a pilot pressure corresponding to an amount of operation of a control lever. This valve has a spool reciprocable within a valve case between a pilot pressure supplying position for interconnecting a pump port and a supply and exhaust port, and an exhaust position for interconnecting a tank port and the supply and exhaust port, and a push rod movable in a first direction within the valve case to move the spool to the supplying position. The push rod includes a cylindrical skirt portion adjacent one end thereof having sliding surfaces for sliding relative to the valve case, and a rod portion adjacent the other end. The skirt portion, rod portion and valve case define a first space, while the skirt portion, spool and valve case define a second space.