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calan

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Posts posted by calan

    I've decided that I hate all wicks equally

    in General Candle Making Discussions

    Posted

    3 hours ago, Athena27 said:

    Anyway - did I i understand you to say that you are just test burning plain wax without FO? If so, I understand why you are trying that, but my impression is that when you start adding FO into your mix it will totally change how you may feel about a certain wick. It could burn completely differently when you add another variable. 


    Yep. I'm just test burning various wicks in plain wax to establish a baseline and record burn rates.

    I've decided that I hate all wicks equally

    in General Candle Making Discussions

    Posted · Edited by calan

    Fired up 6 more test candles when I got home from work with some more wicks I got today, and I gotta say...I'm kinda liking these ECO wicks after a couple of hours. (4630 and 4630/444 blend, straight wax). They seem to be burning clean and symetrical, with no 'shrooming at all. Premiers and CD's aren't horrible, once I get the right size dialed in.

    The zincs on the other hand... ughhh. Looks like the Manhattan Project.  :D

     

    I've decided that I hate all wicks equally

    in General Candle Making Discussions

    Posted · Edited by calan

    1 hour ago, bfroberts said:

    It sounds like you are throwing darts at a wall to see what sticks.  Just focus on one wax and one or two recommended wick series.  Dial that in.   You'll just muddy the waters blending this and that and jumping around.


    LOL  I can see how it seems like that. TT mentioned it also.

    Right now, I'm just playing with different waxes and wicks to see what I want to work with, and which ones aren't going to fight me too much....all while reading and learning. I'm not trying to get a perfect candle or anything like that yet...just doing some methodical testing (In fact, I'm mostly just smelling the FO's in their bottles and burning plain wax in various containers with various wicks...no sense wasting the pricey little FO samples until I at least know which waxes I like). Once I settle on a wax and couple of containers that I want to go with.... I'll settle in and start fine tuning.

    So I guess I am sort of throwing darts at a wall, but I'm aiming for a specific, big target at this point.  :)

    (This thread was meant sort of tongue-in-cheek...I have a somewhat warped sense of humor :D )

    • Like 1

    I've decided that I hate all wicks equally

    in General Candle Making Discussions

    Posted · Edited by calan

    Those are the one's I've been using. They say no priming is needed, and actually recommend against it IIRC. But I think TT up there ^ might know a little bit about this candle thing.  :)

    They burn ok, but seem to be inconsistent. I think the secret is keeping them perfectly trimmed throughout the burn...but I can't trust everyone to do that...so they make me nervous.

     

    I've decided that I hate all wicks equally

    in General Candle Making Discussions

    Posted · Edited by calan

    Yeah...I'm just getting a little impatient and cynical in my old age.  :)

    (I am actually being methodical about it, mostly. Keeping a spreadsheet on everything and going in incremental steps)

    GW 444 is a breeze to work with and clean up, but a bit ugly and it has the usual soy issues. IGI 4630 is just so damn sticky and messy, and I can't make it not smoke. I made up a pound of a 70/30 blend of those two to test, since it's what I have right now...but I dunno.

    I may just get some more of the ProBlend 600 and stick with that. It's clean, takes dye nicely, easy to work with, cleans up easily, and makes nice smooth candles. Maybe the throw will come around if I just wait long enough.

    BTW, thanks for all the helpful info you've posted here over the years. I've read a lot of your comments and got something useful from them all.

    I've decided that I hate all wicks equally

    in General Candle Making Discussions

    Posted · Edited by calan

    ..at least the ones I've tried.

    Since getting into this about a month ago, I've experimented with HTP, CD, Hemp, Zinc, wooden, and Premier wicks in IGI4630, GW 444, FC's  ProBlend 600, and a few blends of those... and I hate them all.  :D


    HTP burns decent and is consistent, but they lean and curl and getting a nice symetrical MP is impossible. CD's aren't bad, but they are a smokey blow-torch in the 4630. (The Hemp 1400's are also super hot). Zincs are consistent, but I have a black golfball sitting on top of every candle after 5 minutes (even with no FO or dye and properly sized). The Premiers burn nice, but they are unpredictable...a 735 may burn hotter than a 755...or it may not. 
     

    The wooden wicks have the nicest flame and ease of use, but they are the least consistent of all. Assuming I can ever find the right size for any given candle...I can pull two wicks from the same bag and put them into two candles poured simultaneaously from the same pitcher of wax... and one may flicker and drown while the other threatens to catch the ceiling on fire.

    I have some ECO's coming to play with, and still looking for a sample of LX's and the seemingly rare paper-core ""44-xx" series for my container size (2" to 3"), but I don't expect to see much difference.

    So, I have about 50 lbs of wicks and 2 working candles. I think I'll just start buying up Walmarts melts and slapping a new label on them.  😛

     

     


     

    Looking for samples of LX and paper core wicks

    in General Candle Making Discussions

    Posted

    26 minutes ago, TallTayl said:

    This is where I get mine too. I just buy a set of each size to have in my testing lab. 

     

    Heres their wick chart to give an idea if you don’t want the whole enchilada of sizes.

    https://www.northstar3c.com/shop/Candle-Wicking-Information


    It looks like they have a very limited selection. Nothing in LX below LX-22, and none of the "44-xx-xx" range of paper core, which I believe is the size I would need based on what I've seen posted.

    Or am I just blind?  :)

    Specific gravity of FO, and wicking

    in General Candle Making Discussions

    Posted · Edited by calan

    24 minutes ago, candlesinflorida said:

    Is it too lame to ask, what is specific gravity? And what could it tell us about the candle making process? (Slept through hs science and went to a college w/ zero actual requirements-but now I am interested!)

     

    In simple terms, it is a measurement of a liquid's density, or viscosity...usually measured in reference to a standard such as water.

    As for why I brought it up, it seems that there should be a correlation between the viscsoity of various FO's, and how easily they are drawn into a wick. I was just curious if this holds somewhat true.

    In other areas, SG is usually a pretty good tool for comparing and predicting how various types of fuels, paints, plastics, etc. will react in various conditions... all other factors remaning equal.

    To color or not to color

    in Business Side of Things

    Posted · Edited by calan

    On 9/12/2019 at 11:16 AM, Crafty1_AJ said:

    Then to play devil's advocate, there are those who want neutral colors (no dye) because it seems more natural, or because uncolored fits in with their decor better.  

     

    If I have a candle that doesn't fit in with my decor, I just burn it inside a pretty crock that does match my home!  :)


    What's a decor?

    :D :P

     

    Specific gravity of FO, and wicking

    in General Candle Making Discussions

    Posted · Edited by calan

    13 minutes ago, Kerven said:

    For example, one supplier had sheets for a few vanilla fragrances and, although they were different formulations, the values were exactly the same (1.01) with a +/- .05 margin for each.


    I'm no chemist (by any stretch), but that may not be an invalid observation. Assuming all vanillas are well... vanilla (:D), it might be that the differences in formulation cause very small changes to the SG.

    I would be interested to see what happens when a vanilla is mixed with something else, like tobaccos, etc., or how they compare to known lighter fragrances.

    Best place to get some Glass Glow palm wax to play with?

    in General Candle Making Discussions

    Posted

    21 minutes ago, Sebleo said:

     

    I’m moving from palm because, while the melts were amazing, I don’t like that they won’t perform well in all warmers. Too many people out there with scentsy and other low temp warmers. 

     

    I want to offer the same wax type with candles and melts- so, that’s why I’m not using the glass glow. I will check when I get home to see exactly how much I have left. 


    Sounds good. Thanks

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