Beeswax Pillar Finishing Qs: Cutting Wick for Flush Bottom & Avoiding Second Pour Lines

[Calex]

I've already learned a lot from lurking, but now I have some questions. For these questions I'm making 3" diameter pillars with beeswax using an aluminum mold. I appreciate any and all suggestions!

 

1 - Any tips for cutting the wick out of the bottom of a beeswax pillar so that the bottom is flush. I've been cutting as close to the bottom as I can get, but I've still got a nub sticking out. Should I just dig my scissors in there?

 

2 - The method I've been using is to pour the wax into my wicked mold, allowing the beeswax to film over just a bit on the top (what will be the bottom), then poking two holes on either side of the wick with a chopstick and immediately adding a second pour. This results in a line between the two pours at the bottom, and, in some cases, the bottom layer is a bit fatter than the rest of the candle and/or seeps down the sides a little bit. Am I doing something wrong, or is there some way to remedy this after the candle is made?

 

3 - I'm currently using a #6 untreated braided square cotton wick that I prime myself with beeswax. This creates a wax pool that doesn't quite reach to the very edge of the 3" pillar. I actually like the raised sides/mild tunneling effect, though I'm not sure this is really how pillars are 'supposed' to burn.

 

Thanks chandlers!

 

-Alex

[Jcandleattic]

Make your second pour about 10 degrees hotter than the first pour and that should prevent the jump line. For the melt pool not reaching the sides, that's how pillars are supposed to burn, but at the time you extinguish the wick you should "hug" your candle, meaning pushing the warm, pliant wax in toward the melted wax, that way you don't get the shell. However, I'm not sure how easy it is to hug beeswax because it is so brittle. I know you can't with palm, and possibly not with beeswax. 

To get the wick flush on the bottom, since this is at the top of your mold while pouring, what I do, is while the wax is still warm, I cut my wick and poke it down inside the warm wax and then let it set up. This works for me most of the time.  

[Calex]

Thanks so much for the tips J! I will definitely try the second pour at a hotter temp, and perhaps a bit earlier too. 

 

Been playing with the hugging method a bit, and the beeswax is pliable enough for this. 

 

I may try and experiment with the cutting of the wick while the wax is still soft, but I typically use that extra wick a bit to help pull out my candle

 

Last night I took one of my pillars and pressed the bottom against a spackling blade I heated up. This pretty much flattened out the bottom so that it sat nicely with no wobble. This wobble was my main issue with the extra wick sticking out the bottom.