More Beeswax!

[Bullwolf]

I found a stray piece of honey comb on my Ranch a couple weeks ago, and melted it into a little beeswax ingot. Not really knowing where to talk about it, tacked it on an existing thread about Bees Wax, in the lube section.

Bees Wax Thread

Figured this fit in the "Our Town" section of the forum. So I'm posting it here.

I realize that I could buy all the filtered Beeswax I want from Randyrat, but I wanted to try making it on my own, so I'd know how to do it.

After my original post about melting the beeswax I read a few comments on how others did the same thing. One of our Cast Boolits forum members, Beagle333 even sent me a PM mentioning that I could have made the beeswax cleaner by simply straining it through a pair of woman's nylons (panty hose) while holding it over the boiling water - Making a tea bag of sorts. I thanked him for the information.

I had been considering trying something like this, maybe even using cheesecloth. I had read of others using paper towels, in conjunction with a solar beeswax melter. So of course I did a search about how to fashion a solar beeswax melter.

Beeswax: Solar Wax Melter

The ironic part about all of this is my Grandmother used to raise honey bees, but sadly she is not around to coach me about them anymore. Also, being severely allergic to bee stings, I often tended to avoid her Bee keeping at an up close and personal level.

When I had found that first single comb, it was pretty near dark. In the daytime I went back to look for the rest of the combs. Success was found by simply looking up.

There were 5 good sized honeycombs, and a single smaller one over my head.

I carefully removed the combs, stuffing as much of them as I could into a couple of Zip-loc gallon freezer bags.

I'd already melted the first comb I had found in a soft drink can after removing the top from it. I figured I'd try doing it this way again. So before getting started, I prepared a handful of cans the same way ahead of time.

Since I don't wear pantyhose, and my remarkably patient significant other only does so rarely, I considered going to the store to actually purchase a pair.

Fortunately,she had a few of those disposable nylon foot socks in her purse. The kind that women often use when trying on shoes or boots. So I had found my nylons, and the price was right too. (Free!)



First I crushed up the majority of the waxy comb.

Then I stuffed the crushed up wax into one of the foot sock nylons, making a beeswax "tea bag" out of the crumbled up honeycomb.

I already knew that beeswax is flammable at higher temps, having used it as a second flux step (reductant?) to help reduce the tin back into my melt in my lead pot. I've seen it self ignite when the melt is up to temp. So I kept a lid on hand to smother it, just in case there were any accidental flare ups. Much like when making 45-45-10.

I melted the beeswax again using a double boiler, much like I would use if I was making a boolit lube, or a fine desert that I did not wish to scorch.

I put the nylon tea bag full of beeswax in the second container (a can) submerged in boiling water until it melted, squeezing and eventually straining out the majority of the clear liquid beeswax.

I got a couple cleanish pieces of filtered beeswax from this after it cooled.

All of the slumgum (The impure residue, consisting of cocoons, propolis, etc., remaining after the wax is extracted from honeycombs) that was left over, I kept and melted into one big darker colored chunk.

It all looked so much larger when it was in honeycomb form.

I was sure I'd likely missed some beeswax that didn't get strained out, and was still mixed in with the slumgun. So I melted the last of it all together, with the intent to use that brownish colored chunk later as a flux for my lead pot - That smells a little like honey.

Lots of fun was had all around, and it was only marginally messy. I did get some beeswax under my fingernails though, and my hands smelled like honey for at least a couple of days after.


- Bullwolf

[brassrat]

Good story, now we know what to do. It looks like pewter melting, not much when done melting.

[fryboy]

i oft double/triple wrap the raw stuff in nylons and weight it down ( with a small boat anchor i cast out of lead one day ) under water , low heat melts it where it rises out oc the umm tea bag and it then floats and solidifies on top , the water aspect also helps get out alot of dirt and bee umm stuff ( bottom of the water is always dark and dirty )
the slum gum i too use in flux ( not as straight flux as i brew me own flux as well ( fry's fabulous flux :P ) add some rosin and some fine sawdust etc )

looks good amigo and experience is always worthy !!

[pworley1]

Very good post.

[xbeeman412]

When I melt small pieces to send out I just heat it in a pan on the stove tell its all melted then take a knee high nylon stocking threaded over a 2 inch PVC pipe and pour the liqiod wax into the pvc pipe and let it drain into the mould. Wax can be heated tell liquid on the stove just don't keep heating it past the liquid state.

[Wolfer]

I've done it lots of ways but what I do anymore is stuff a piece of window screen down in a big coffee can. Dump in my crushed and washed comb. Fill with water until it covers the comb.

Heat until melted. Then I slowly raise the screen out of the can letting the wax work its way back into the can.
Once cooled it will shrink away from the can and can be dumped out. It will still have some gunk on the bottom side that I scrape off with a knife.

This is usually clean enough for my lube purpose. If I wanted it cleaner I'd put it in the hose and back in the water another trip.

Originally I planned to double filter it like this but the first screening decided I didn't need it.

Its amazing how little wax is used to build a comb.

[smoked turkey]

I learned a lot from this post. It is so appropriate for our group here. For what ever reason we tend to be folks that like to make our own stuff, and this fits in perfectly. I think this is "sticky" material for future reference. Thanks for posting.

[D Crockett]

well I know you know what to do with the bees wax but did you know that the stuff that is left makes a very good flux for cleaning lead I have cleaned a lot of wax and used a lot of the left over for flux D Crockett

[Beagle333]

Fryboy has the procedure down. Weight down the "tea bag" and heat the water until the wax floats through the bag. You make poke at it or stir it or whatever you like, as long as you don't tear it. When the water cools, the wax will be a nice clean cake floating on top of the water. Lift this off and later you can melt it into any shape you like. Discard the water and the "tea bag" full of nastiness however you wish. You should increase your recovery percentage a bit if you actually sink the bag in the hot water. Great thread!!!

[osteodoc08]

Awesome post!

[lbaize3]

Now, this was a fun and informative thread!

[bangerjim]

Thank all those many thousands of bees for making it for you!


banger

[Bullwolf]

Weight down the "tea bag" and heat the water until the wax floats through the bag. You make poke at it or stir it or whatever you like, as long as you don't tear it. When the water cools, the wax will be a nice clean cake floating on top of the water. Lift this off and later you can melt it into any shape you like. Discard the water and the "tea bag" full of nastiness however you wish. You should increase your recovery percentage a bit if you actually sink the bag in the hot water. Great thread!!!

Thanks for the kind feedback everyone. And to Beagle333, thank you for taking the time to explain the straining process to me in a PM.

I did partially melt one of the beeswax filled nylon bags directly in the boiling water, more on accident than intentionally. The wax melted MUCH faster that way.

After the water cooled down, the wax skimmed on top of the water, and was easily removed. Had I realized that the beeswax would separate entirely from the water when it cooled, I probably would have started off by dunking it right into the boiling water. (like you had suggested to me in a PM)

For some reason I got it in my head that I would get damp beeswax with a higher moisture content by doing it that way, and it might make a somewhat damp flux. I couldn't have been more mistaken.

One of the cans I poured wax in had a small amount of water spilled in the bottom. The wax separated away from the water in the bottom of the can as well. Water just did not want to mix with the wax.

Had I not been so stuck on the double boiler method from cooking boolit lube, I would have just melted all of the wax right in the boiling water.

I also violated a cardinal rule, and used a kitchen food grade saucepan instead of my lube only mixing pot to melt the beeswax in. So I was trying to be kind of nice to the saucepan, and not coat it up with beeswax.

I should have used the same thrift store enameled pot that I mix my boolit lube in, and dunked the wax "tea bag" directly into the boiling water.

Like many of us here I tend to learn better by doing, and this was definitely a learning experience for me. It will likely get done more efficiently the next time.

Since I had not taken any pictures of the wax separating in the water - I left that part out of my original post.



- Bullwolf

[TreeKiller]

Have you bought a new pan yet?

[fryboy]

when it comes to wax removal ( be it waxed on purpose or accident ) heat is your friend ,warm until liquid and blot with either old rags or paper towels ,after you get all the wax off you can see a strong vinegar solution can help in film removal followed by hot water and a good soap ( such as dawn )

[Bullwolf]

Have you bought a new pan yet?

I did not buy a new pan, only because the beeswax did not stick to the pan.

It's the same pan that I use to warm up a can of soup in.

I'm not too concerned if there's a small dab of natural beeswax in my soup. I'm pretty sure ingesting a little beeswax won't hurt me. I've probably eaten more beeswax due to using Burts Bees lip balm.

It's not like I was cooking boolit lube, or melting lead in the pan. Doing something extreme like that would have required the purchase of a new pan.



- Bullwolf