Further Adventures in Wax Inlay

[Robson Valley]

Most organic waxes melt in the 50 - 65C range. Can you keep piling/dripping them on to fill in the dips?
As an experiment, take a 10" candle and measure it. Put it in your kitchen fridge freezer for an hour an measure it. Maybe cracked _and_ 1" shorter? Lesson: the coefficient of expansion for waxes is considerable.

Mack, you have a puzzle, maybe brew your own waxes with stearate to get the hardness up.

[AL...]

Bob thats a power of work mate!!!
Fantastic spoon i realy like it.
Just a thought about the filling in with the wax . How about heating the wood before melting in the wax Im wonderin if the diffrence in temp will help stop the bubbling of the wax in the groves?
ye can tell me to shuppp if ye like but it was just a thought
Again great work .

Cheers
AL

P.S maybe heat it over a light bulb

[MackTheKnife]

You know, Al, I hadn't thought about that. Perhaps the wax wasn't quite hot enough by the time it dripped off the stick of sealing wax and hit the wood. Maybe getting the wax closer to the surface of the wood would help.

Thanks for the suggestion.

[MackTheKnife]

Thanks, Robson. I think the sealing wax will work well, I just need more experience in applying it. I think the hotter the wax is when it hits the wood, the better chance it will fill the space without voids. I need to get the stick of wax right down on the wood.

[Dileon]

Ok here it is....now I can see....resin or shellac. Thanks for the information....helps a great deal. This is old historic recipe for sealing wax.
Black Sealing Wax

3/4lb best black resin,
1/4lb finely powdered ivory black
and 2 oz beeswax.
Melt over a slow fire and form into sticks by rolling on a piece of glass.
Red Sealing Wax

1lb shellac,
3/4lb vermillion or venetian red,
and 5 oz Venice turpentine.
Editor's Notes:

When melting any flammable waxes, use of a double boiler is recommended. Certainly a "slow fire", or any source of open fire isn't recommended. Personally I use a thermostatically controlled electric hotplate.

[Dileon]

On the bubbles, other materials,... you use vibration to bring bubbles to the top and perhaps the heat gun would keep both the wax melted and wood hot, let the bubbles break down....just a thought. I am off to the studio ....thanks for all the input.

[Steve Reed]

Bob, I do a lot of "old world" chip carving. I'm thinking this technique would work well with that since, as you said, the cuts are more shallow than traditional chip carving. I', wondering if sanding would work, as I have had zero success with scrapers. Do you think the wax would "smear"?
Thanks

[MackTheKnife]

Steve, I've never tried sanding, so I don't know for sure. However I think the wax would just clog up the sandpaper. I guess it wouldn't hurt to try. Just be sure to get as much wax off the surface of the spoon as you can with your knife. You should be able to get 98-99% of it off. If nothing else, try scraping with the edge of your knife.

I know what you mean about scrapers. Used to be, I couldn't sharpen or use one to save my life. So I googled "sharpening scrapers" and "using scrapers" and watched about a half a hundred YouTube videos. Now I think I'm starting to get the hang of it.

Good luck, and be sure to post pictures.

[Dileon]

forget the encaustic wax,... it went up twenty dollars leaving it for rich people only.... sealing wax it is ..... Things are getting so outrageously expensive, I am wondering if soon I am going to have to make my own paint.....soon.