MommaD Posted January 11, 2006 Share Posted January 11, 2006 I made a beeswax taper candle, rolled out of beeswax sheets. How long should I burn it at a time to see if the wicking is right? I have never made one of these before, and don't know exactly. Any help is appreciated. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MommaD Posted January 11, 2006 Author Share Posted January 11, 2006 annnnybody???? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Henryk Posted January 11, 2006 Share Posted January 11, 2006 Maybe ask in the Veg forum.IMO, a taper should be from start to finish without any drips and consume itself (assuming you don't have drafts which really affects tapers).I actually was *just* going to try some rolled BW tapers (I only have done poured). I would however test them the same way I do regular tapers - meaning burn a couple from start to finish.You would think, with a taper since there is no chimney effect like you would have with a container candle, or no hugging as you may need to do with a pillar, that you should be able to get by with less than a full burn, but since you don't know how someone ELSE is going to burn it or how your wick is going to react with your batch of beeswax sheets, I still would suggest a FULL burn from start to finish. (With a rolled BW candle it'll only take a few hours, with a poured BW taper a couple hours longer - depending upon how tall you are making them - my poured are 10" and last for ~10 to 12 hours).Plus you want to make sure that your wick is self-trimming as much as possible when longer burns are done - you don't want an inch long wick after it burns for a couple hours as then it will become a torch and blow out one end and make a mess. (You may want to get a pair of cheap bobeches and use them all the time - just in case).HTH Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Karen B Posted January 11, 2006 Share Posted January 11, 2006 Kind of have to agree with HenryK take this advice for what it's worth, I haven't done beeswax sheets tapers but I've done bayberry wax tapers for family & friends as Christmas gifts & stuff. My testing was from start to finish. Make sure flame doesn't get to big, no dripping, & self consumes nicely all the way down. I'm certainly no expert in tapers, that's just what I looked for before I gave them out as gifts. But I also made sure the people that would be burning them had a positive IQ level. Karen B Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lindsaycb Posted January 12, 2006 Share Posted January 12, 2006 Beeswax sheets are entirely a different beast that pouring a taper in beeswax. I don't think they burn as long, they're more of a novelty looking candle Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MommaD Posted January 12, 2006 Author Share Posted January 12, 2006 Beeswax sheets are entirely a different beast that pouring a taper in beeswax. I don't think they burn as long, they're more of a novelty looking candleNo, this one's been burning about six hours now, and not finished yet, so it's good. I have been marathon burning it. It's looking pretty good. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Henryk Posted January 12, 2006 Share Posted January 12, 2006 Karen, I assume you blend Bayberry with BW for your tapers, or do you just make really thin dipped bayberry ones? If you blend, do you find any certain percentage of Bayberry to BW better overall?TIA Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MommaD Posted January 12, 2006 Author Share Posted January 12, 2006 bumping this up, so that she can see your question.Well, so far, the taper is doing excellent. I am very excited about these, they are colorful, pretty, and they burn well. I also enjoyed making them. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Karen B Posted January 12, 2006 Share Posted January 12, 2006 Thanks MommaD,Actually the bottom was about 7/8" so I "think" that's a regular sized taper. I didn't use any BW with them but I did have to use a 21 flat ply. to get a decent burn. I'm absolutely no expert in tapers at all & even though I do qualify as crazy, I'd have to loose a few more brain cell's before I'd ever concider selling these things. Hand diped tapers are not only a lot of work but that bayberry was a lot of fun to get a decent burn from. (plus I'm not really into the smell of that wax, beeswax is much nicer) Wish I would have talked to you before Christmas, never thought about those really thin tapers, maybe those would have been easier all the way around.Karen B Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ChrisR Posted January 12, 2006 Share Posted January 12, 2006 Henry......I mix my bayberry wax with BW 50/50 with a 2/0 square braid for a great taper. I use a silicone mold and and spray it with a silicone mold release. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Karen B Posted January 12, 2006 Share Posted January 12, 2006 Henry......I mix my bayberry wax with BW 50/50 with a 2/0 square braid for a great taper. I use a silicone mold and and spray it with a silicone mold release.Hey ChrisR you used a silicone mold & it released OK. I just assumed this wax wouldn't be very willing to come out of a mold without breaking. Or was it the beeswax that helped.Karen B Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Henryk Posted January 12, 2006 Share Posted January 12, 2006 Thanks Mom, Karen and Chris,So Karen, your pure bayberry ones you dipped right? If you got a full size taper and they burned good - congrats! DW cannot stand the smell of melted bayberry when I'm making them.I do what Chris does, but I go back and forth between 50/50 and 25/75 (BW to bayberry). I took out some I made in 2004 for xmas 2005 and loved the look they got after they where stored that long - got the olive green of the bayberry plus the bloom of the BW - almost looked like stone.I also use silicone molds - spray every other time about. I don't know how much good it does since I doubt much gets down into the mold - and you don't want to use too much. I doubt pure bayberry tapers would come out without some cracking in most taper molds (even silicone molds with mold release) - plus, I don't think I would like the burn of a standard 7/8" taper made of pure bayberry. Now, those smaller-diameter dipped ones, I could imagine them burning ok if wicked properly.I use flat-ply in mine - but I can't remember the size (don't have notes with me) - it was somewhere between 15 and 21 - but I think the 21 was too big if I remember right. I'll have to try the square 2/0 next time I make some - thanks for the tip. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ChrisR Posted January 13, 2006 Share Posted January 13, 2006 Karen I tried many different formulas of bayberry to beeswax till I settled on the 50/50. Anymore bayberry wax than that in my particular mold, stuck like crazy. :undecided Now it comes out with no trouble!! I do like Henry and spray the mold about every second or third pour. Because of the beeswax, the bayberry scent isn't as strong as I like, so I add a smidge of Scent Works New England Bayberry. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cetacea Posted January 13, 2006 Share Posted January 13, 2006 Ok getting back on track, I roll beeswax tapers. Use 2/0 wicking and test burn from start to finish. I first measure how long the taper is, then time the burn and find out exactly how many minutes for each inch. You want to look for dripping (if its dripping decrease your wick size). If you aren't getting what you want time wise, roll tighter....LOL.What is important to remember with beeswax sheets is that each color batch burns differently, so you need to test for each color and each batch...unfortunately. I have NO idea why, but purple, navy, dark red and forest green burn differently from lighter colors AND burn differently from each other.HTH, good luck! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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