bah67

Thanks. I was planning on ordering the Apple and Maple Bourbon from CS last week, but forgot. I will also try the Bourbon Vanilla. They both sound great!

I am going to pour a couple new testers today. Hoping to get the wicking down. It seems the tumblers are tricky to wick for some reason. Oh well, but I fell I am getting closer! I will take some pics of the finished product.

I would love to find a great bourbon FO that works well in GB415. Does anyone have any suggestions?

Thanks Linda and Stella, I was just curious about the cure time if you remelted the wax. I had used CD8s which were way, way too small and did not want to waste it. I figured it would have to cure the same amount of time but thought I would ask. I think I almost have the wicking down and can adjust per FO that I use. But I will see how the rest of the burn tests go.

On Sunday I remelted a couple of the candles that I first tested with the CD8s (which were way too small). Anyway I was wondering do you have to cure them all over again when you remelt them? When I remelted them I did it the same as if I were making new candles. I was just wondering if when remelting, you loose the cure time since it goes back to the liquid form. I heated them back to 185*. and poured when it got cloudy. TIA

Thanks Stella. I will continue testing them. I did a couple more searches and have found a few threads where people used CD16s and CD18s in tumblers. I think I may have started low on my wicking after reading the wick-it guide again. I think I am on the right track. So I will continue and see what happens with these. I would really like to use the least amount of FO as possible and get the best CT & HT. So I am learning alot and starting to understand all this. Even with all my research you never know or really understand until you actually start doing it! Thanks.

Just an update. I let the 415 cure for 5 days and did a test burn early Friday morning with the CD12s in the tumblers. The first burn did really well. I actually tested 2 different FOs, Fig Tree and Cool Citrus Basil at 9%(late Friday afternoon). They had great CT, the hot throw was so-so in both. I did a second burn today and they flame is very low, so I stopped after 2 hours. Also i did not get much of a melt pool, nothing close the the first burn in the same amount of time. And I am not happy with the HT at all, the Fig did better than the Cool Citrus Basil. (They both had a very low flame in the second burn.) Tomorrow I am going to remelt the wax and try a CD14 and also will try one or 2 of the HTP wicks to see how they work. And while I am remelting wax, I am going to remelt some of my other testers and use different wicks to see how they work also. Is it common to go to a CD14 in a 2.5"D tumbler? Just curious, so far the 415 was poured very well with very smooth tops, etc. while the 444 and 464 have had terrible tops and craters. Now if I can only get the wicking down!! Also between the 415, 444 and 464 do most of you get a better CT & HT with the 415 than the 444 and 464?

Stella, I went a little slower today! I did another test burn on the 444/CD12 and got a FMP. I think that was the 6th burn. But I am not sure if I like the 444 after it is burned, it has some tiny craters. But I will test it to the end to see how it performs. I also tested the 464 today for the first time with a CD10 (I poured it last Thursday) It reached a full melt pool at 3 hours. I suppose that is due to the lower melting point of the 464 (used the same FO and amount of FO in the 444). So that wick may be too large. It did have a mushroom but burned great. The hot thorw was nice, not great. I do have a 464 with the same FO with a CD8 that I will test later this week. And my 415 with a CD10 is just tunneling, I did let it burn for 3.5 hours but its getting to the halfway point and the hangup is too much a little over 1/4" thick all around. So I am excited totest the 415's that I poured Sunday.....but I am letting them cure to at least Friday, possibly Saturday. The 415 is what I think I will like to work with most becasue of the last few times they set up better, but until I test them this coming weekend I will continue with my testing of the 444 and 464. Because I may decide I like one of the others better after all these tests are done....boy is this exciting....decision, decisions, decisions!!

I bought the Wagner HT1000 last week at Lowes for $25. Works great. I checked Kmart and they did not carry it here.

I would have a headache also. lol It would probably cause some to go crazy, but I usually have alot going on at work and I guess that translate to my personal and hobby life. My thinking is to try different possibilities and see how they all work, what does well at a low FO %, curing, etc. and then tweek them to put all the good ideas that work into one. I know that it may be impossible to achieve, but I like a good challenge. Plus it helps me to actually compare them to the same amount of burns, etc. Hope this makes sense. I take alot of notes also but in the end I am a very visual person, so I like to test and compare things side by side so I have it fresh in my mind. Even after a couple of months I can read my notes look at pics etc, and still have questions about what did that little area look like. Some say I am very anal about things, ok about ALOT of things LOL, and I am the first to admit it too!! I figured that season would affect how it would burn, but was not sure to what degree. But I do understand what you are saying and where you are coming from also. I appreciate all the help and input.

I did another test burn today before work with the CD12 in the 444. The hangup is starting to go away, not completely but it's getting there. One question (I know it can take a few burns to achieve a FMP), should I try a CD14 just for the heck of it or is this how a soy candle actually burns in the real world? LOL I actually think a CD14 would make the glass too hot, but I would like to try since I am experimenting. I am curious if others peoples candles takes 5 or 6 burns to achieve this? I am thinking that the next burn (tomorrow morning) will achieve this. Oh, I almost forgot, I poured some more candles yesterday using CD12s in frosted tumblers. Stella I am going to be patient and let them cure for 5 days:D. I also used 9% FO this time just to experiement. I used the 415 and the tops came out FANTASTIC, very smooth. I made 5 and on one I added CO 1/2 tsp to 8oz of wax, at this time I cannot see any visual different in the appearance of the wax. I have no reason to even use my heat gun. Although there were some wet spots, but too noticeable. What is a good way to achieve no wet spots? Will adding USA help?

Ok, thanks for the input Tops. I am doing another burn (#4) right now. Some of the hangup is melting so it does look promising. I will keep my fingers crossed! It looks like it is sooooo close.

OK I just completed the test burn of the 444 with a CD 12. I am almost at a FMP. I know that I have read on here that sometimes it takes 2-3 burns until you achieve a FMP all across the top. It is about 1/4-3/8" deep and the sides are starting to melt down. And I am getting a really good HT today!!! I guess my nose stopped working yesterday lol. Test Burn #1- 3 Hours Test Burn #2- 3.5 Hours Test Burn #2-3.25 Hours Is this correct? Am I heading in the right direction? How does this look?

Thanks Tops, thats what I thought but wanted to ask anyway. I didn't heat the containers up too much they were just warm to the touch. I am on my 2nd burn of the 415, stil not FMP and the flame is getting low (testing the CD10). It has been 3 hours now, I may let it burn for a little while longer to see. There is a large mushoom right now. And there is not much HT on this burn. I think I may want to test one with a CD12.

Thanks Kandlenutz, its been fun so far. I think I am going to get some caps this week for the FOs. Here is what I did: 415 I heated the 415 to 180-185*, poured into my pouring pot that already had the FOs measured, I stirred for 3 minutes and let it cool and stirred it ocassionally until it reached about 100*, when it became cloudy. I did heat my jars with my heat gun and the adhesion was very good, a few wet spots but they were minimal and very small. (Frosted tumblers). 444 Heated to 178* poured in pouring pot with FOs and stirred for 3 minutes and stirred occasionally until about 130* and poured into warmed clear tumblers. 464 Heated to 180*, added to pouring pot with Fos and poured at around 158-160*. Did not warm the jars, I planned on warming them but forgot. But I did get sink holes, so I am wondering if I should try and pour cooler to see hw that goes and to slow down the cooling from such a hot pour. I melted 1 pound of each wax to test, one thing I did notice while pouring the other day is that I seemed to get more volume with the 444 and 464, and with the 415 I had a little less wax left over. It this because when you pour at a lower temp and it becomes cloudy and is cooler that the wax sticks to the sides of the pitcher more? I did hit it with the heat gun towards the end. (I think I answered my own question. LOL) Also the temp in my little work room was about 66-68*, and I cannot control the temp too much because of radiant (boiler) heating, so I am going to use a ceramic heater to help warm the area up so they will not cool as quickly.

Thanks for all the advise Stella. I wanted to let them cure longer, but since I am snowed in...I decided to start testing. I will be experimenting more this week and wil let them cure longer since I will be busy with non-candling tis coming week. I did put them in different areas of the house, it does make sense to only test one at a time. I guess I was getting a little antsy. But I also wanted to compare the wicks as they burned a t the same time, to see if I could actually see the difference as they burn. I just finished testing the 444's with the Pomegrante Sage (CD10 and CD12), I think the CD10 had a better HT. To me they both looked like they burned about the same, I could not really see much of a difference. (Actually the FO is not bad when burned. Here are a couple pics of them side by side(CD10 is on the left, CD12 on the right): I am going to test the 415 for the 2nd time. The wicks ARE trimmed correctly this time. I will test the CD 10 first, the CD8 was getting a little small towards the end of the first test burn, but I will test it again later tonight-since there is no place to go, except out to shovel!!!.

The candles turned out well for my first time. Here is what is happening so far (I made two 8oz tumblers each of 415, 444 and 464): 415-CD8 and CD 10, FO at 1oz Vanilla Hazelnut 444-CD10 and CD12, FO at 1.2oz Pomegrante Sage 464 CD8 and CD 10, FO at 1.2oz Pomegrante Sage They all have really good CT. O love the vanilla hazelnut! (Although the pomegrante sage is way too florally for me-So I am searching for a different one that is more tangy and citrisy-simular to Henri Bendel). The 415 looked really good a little bit of an uneven top. The 444 had a weird uneven top and a small sink holeamd the 464 had sink holes by the wicks. I know they cooled to fast. I did use skewers in the sink holes and heat gunned the tops of all 6 candles to smooth them out and to fill in the sink holes. Here are a couple pics after I smoothed the tops out (415 on left, 444 middle, and 464 on right): I was actually suprised that I like the 415 so far, I really thought I would like the 464 the most, but I may be leaning at this point towards the 415. I do want to experiment more by adding some USA. But will see how the others burn also. I just finished test burning the 415 this morning. The diameter is approx. 2.5" wide so I burned them for 2.5 hours. Had good HT, but I think I will use the 1.2oz next time (It seemed sooo strong OOB). I thought I trimmed the wicks to 1/4" but I misread my measuring tape so they were a little larger than I would have liked. It did mushroom, but I will see how ithey do on the second burn (will make sure I trim the wick to the correct size this time!) Here are some picks of the test (CD 8, CD10, CD 8 and CD10): I did not get a FMP, I know it can take2-3 burns to get the one, but how do they look so far? I am now testing the 444 with the CD10 and CD12 so I can see how the CD 12's will do. So far they are giving a great HT. Then its onto the 464!

Good to know! I could not help myself either!

Thanks Stella! I did wick the 464 and 415 with CD 8 and 10. But the 444 I wicked with the CD 10 and 12. I didn't see your reply until after I started, but I do have the whole weekend to play around with it. I put them on mesh cookie racks with a box over them. I did notice before leaving that the 464 had sink holes around the wicks. But the 415 seemed to be setting up really well. I know I shouldn't have peeked but I guess I got excited!

Here is the specs for the tumblers: I am going to use 8 oz tumblers, both clear(2.5" opening, 3-5/8" tall) and frosted (2 5/8" opening, 3.5" tall) to see which I like best. I also got some jelly jars that have a 2 3/8" opening and 3 7/8" tall. Tops suggested starting with 1.2 oz of FO. So I will probably start with 1-1.2 oz of FO.

I bought a Presto 6qt model 6000 over the weekend at Kmart and it was on sale for $24.99, the regular price at Kmart is $29.99. So maybe I got a bargain.

Well I ordered my supplies tonight!! And will pick them up Thursday! I did get a few additional things, even after I told myself I am only ordering what is on my list...decided to to get a case of the frosted tumblers and 24 of the clear tumblers. Thought I should have extras, just in case I start pouring different mixtures and cannot stop! And I ordered an extra dozen of each of the wicks, and some jelly jars for the heck of it. scale should be here in the next day or two, and my FO's will arrive tomorrow!! Another question, where should be a good starting point for the wick in the tumblers? I am thinking after reading, that maybe starting with a CD12 and HTP83. Not really sure about the size to start with the HTP though.

Thanks for the link Top, I will check it out. And Luminous thanks, I hope I am prepared! 8 Gran One thanks, It has been so far studying and learning all this. So hopefully in a week or so I will have poured my first soy candle. I bought a Presto Pot tonight at Kmart, so that is one more thing checked of my list!

Thanks! One question is when you measure your FO (by weight on a scale), do you use the pipettes to help with the measuring? This might seem like a dumb question but thought I would ask.

Top thanks, I was wondering if I needed to get some USA also. So I order some also and will see how the first ones come out before adding any USA or CO. I agree and plan to pour and see what happens first. Hopefully me space will be warm enough, I have a client that has building and the lower level is empty and has a few rooms. So they told me I could use one of them so I choose the kitchen which has cabinets and a sink (need to get it cleaned up first). There is heating but not sure of the constant temp, so I may need to take in a heater to warm it up some. I will take a themometer with me and check out the temp. Once I get everything set up this coming week then I will be ready. I am glad that those wicks should/will work in the waxes. That is a relief. And hopefully I will like the tops or use a heat gun to smooth them out. But I guess I need to pour them first! And thanks for the pointer about starting with 7% FO. I have the calculation in my notes. And I do plan on adding or substracting to get a good cold and hot throw. Thanks!